Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing
Paraphrasing: Restating Another Work in Your Own

Words
Prepared by Dr. Andree Swanson

AC Swanson Group, Highlands Ranch, CO
Academic Writing
Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 Image(s) from Microsoft Clip Art. 1
 What is paraphrasing?
 Why do we use paraphrasing?
 Citing your source
 Include the in-text or parenthetical citation
 No need to include page or paragraph number
 Reducing the number of quotes in a paper
Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 2

Question
 You’ve been asked to paraphrase a paragraph for a paper?
How do you do it?
Answer
 You are turning the words that you read into your own
words.
 You avoid:
 Including your opinion
 Using a quote from the source
 It is as if you are translating the words from the

author’s to yours.

Question
 You can easily put the section that you want to use in
quotes, cite the source, and then avoid plagiarism;
however, your faculty member says: “You need to avoid
too many long quotes”. So, what do you do?

Answer
 You need to put the work in your own words
 Otherwise you are stealing someone else’s work
 A good paraphrase is exact, complete, and in your
own words
 You must cite your source

 Remember… there is no new information in
the world
 Unless you are working on your doctoral
dissertation and coming up with new
concepts, theories, and material, you are
presenting someone else’s ideas in your
research paper or thesis.
Think like an auditor…
What does this mean?
 It is your paper trail to your resource.
 If you find a citation within the text, you can be assured (if
done right), that there will be a corresponding reference
on your Works Cited (MLA) or Reference (APA) page.

Here is an example using an exact quote
 The teacher entered into a contract with the school

district to work at a specific school. “The classical
definition of a contract is a legally binding
agreement made between two or more person”
(Carby-Hall, 2003, p. 24).

Here is an example using a paraphrase
 The teacher entered into a contract with the school

district to work at a specific school. A contract is a
compulsory agreement between at least two
people. A contract can be held up in court. It is a
legal document (Carby-Hall, 2003).

The teacher entered into a  Note that the page or
contract with the school paragraph number is
district to work at a specific not included when you
school. A contract is a paraphrase.
compulsory agreement
between at least two
people. A contract can be
held up in court. It is a legal
document (Carby-Hall,
2003).

 Essentially the ONLY time that  makes a statement that you
cannot reasonably paraphrase,
you should use a quotation is
 or makes a statement that you
when your source states:
want to argue against in
 an opinion that someone may
considerable detail.
question,
 presents a vivid description of a
personal feeling or personal
historical event,
 defines a term,
 Pay attention to how many quotes that you use.
 If more than 5-10% of your paper consists of
quotations, you must have very sound justification
for having so many quotes.
 Avoid placing one quote after another.

 Scholarly journals normally indicate that if more
than 30% of the information in your paper comes
from any single source, then you must co-author
your paper with that other author.
 This is a major reason that you must use more than
one source for your paper and/or presentation.

 Avoid the temptation to read an article and copy that
author's thought pattern (ideas) into your own paper.
 This is similar to creating a computer program that has a
similar look and feel" to another program without obtaining
permission.
 Many companies have lost millions of dollars for such acts.
 The written version is called plagiarism and also has cost
authors their reputations and/or substantial lawsuit
settlements.

When in doubt, ask your faculty member.
He/she will be able to coach you through the
process of paraphrasing.


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Paraphrasing: Restating Another Work in Your Own

Prepared by Dr. Andree Swanson

 No need to include page or paragraph number

 Reducing the number of quotes in a paper

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 2

 Using a quote from the source

 It is as if you are translating the words from the

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 4

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 6

 Otherwise you are stealing someone else’s work

 A good paraphrase is exact, complete, and in your

 You must cite your source

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 7

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 9

 The teacher entered into a contract with the school

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 10

 The teacher entered into a contract with the school

legal document (Carby-Hall, 2003).

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 12

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 14

one source for your paper and/or presentation.

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 15

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 16

He/she will be able to coach you through the

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013 17

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