UNDERSTANDING AND

AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES
The definition of plagiarism has been
oversimplified with the notion of “copy and
paste.” The danger with this association is
that it can weaken the real meaning of
plagiarism, which is not just limited to simply
copying and borrowing.
Cayog and Datu (2019) present several definitions of
plagiarism from various sources. They used the following
definitions by Marriam Webster Online Dictionary:

• to steal and pass off the ideas, words, or works of another

person as one’s own
• to use another person’s ideas, words, or works without
proper acknowledgement of the source
• to claim ownership of another person’s creative or literary
work
• to present as new and original an idea or product derived
from an existing source
In addition, Cayog and Datu (2019) also make use of the
definitions provided by plagiarism.org.
• forgetting to put quotation marks on phrases quoted directly
from a source
• failing to provide accurate information about the source cited
within the text
• changing only a few words but copying the sentence structure
of a source without giving credit
• copying so many words or ideas from a source (whether cited or not)
that it makes up most of the work
Generalizing the definitions above, Cayog and Datu (2019)
state that plagiarism is an intellectual fraud that should be
avoided at all cost because of the following reasons:

• Stealing other people’s ideas can result in expulsion or loss

of academic degree.
• Academic dishonesty undermines the hard work one has put
in previous works.
• Plagiarism is easily detected now with the aid of software or
applications.
• Intellectual fraud can be punished by the law due to
Intellectual Property Rights.
TWO TYPES OF
PLAGIARISM
PLAGIARISM OF IDEAS
Author-oriented citation
An author-oriented citation starts with the surname of the author,
followed by the year of publication in parenthesis. Verbs of statement
such as argues, posits, and explains at the start of a paragraph or
sentence may be used.

Example:
Donohue (2015) argues that if humans continue to generate
greenhouse gases, the earth would reach a tipping point where the
damage to the environment becomes irreversible which may result in
the earth's fragile ecosystem collapsing bringing with it most living
things including humans.
PLAGIARISM OF IDEAS
Text-oriented citation
In a text-oriented citation, a paragraph or sentence from a source is
followed by the surname of the author of the work and the year of
publication. The citation must be enclosed in parentheses.

Example:
Sea level rise has accelerated and we are concerned that an abrupt
decline in the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets will exacerbate
future rise. As we have seen this year with tragic effects in the
Bahamas and Mozambique, sea level rise and intense tropical storms
led to humanitarian and economic catastrophes. (Taalas, 2020)
PLAGIARISM OF IDEAS
Another way of citation
Another way of citation You may also start the sentence or paragraph
by using the phrase “According to…” followed by the surname of the
author and the year of publication enclosed in parentheses.

Example:
According to Mendoza (1990), by the end of the century, our fuel
reserves will be reduced to half, and scarcity of energy supplies will
be a big problem.
PLAGIARISM OF LANGUAGE

plagiarism of language, as explained by Valdez

(2016), occurs when an author uses the
language of another writer and claims it as his
or her own.
PLAGIARISM OF LANGUAGE
Word-for-word plagiarism
Toquero (2020) states that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education
intuitions in the world are shifting to online learning or distance education
programs. The advantage is it can allow for the students to learn at their
convenience since it is needless to attend training centers and universities. This
large shift to online instruction does not need for the face to face interaction
between teachers and the students together with their classmates so there is
prevention and control over the spread of the virus. Higher education institutions
in the Philippines thereby should prepare the courses for online transfer since
another epidemic can breakout in the future. That indicates aligning the
competencies that students should learn in the subject courses in an online
format. By doing this, universities can expedite its response for continuous
learning of the stakeholders.
PLAGIARISM OF LANGUAGE

PATCHWORK PLAGIARISM
Here in the example below, you can see a writer
who commits patchwork plagiarism. In this type, the
ideas from the source are mixed with the
interpretations of the writer making ownership of
ideas unclear.
Patchwork plagiarism
Toquero (2020) states that higher education intuitions in the world are
shifting to online learning or distance education programs due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. This setup has its advantage as it can allow for the
students to learn at their convenience since it is needless to attend training
centers and universities. In this learning modality, there is no need for the
face to face interaction between teachers and the students together with
their classmates so there is prevention and control over the spread of the
virus. It is recommended that Philippine education should prepare the
courses for online transfer since another epidemic can breakout in the
future. That indicates aligning the competencies that students should learn
in the subject courses in an online format. By doing this, universities can
expedite its response for continuous learning of the stakeholders.
TASK 1
Search for six articles in print newspapers and cut
out the article or the paragraph. Apply the different
citation techniques. Write your output on a long
bond paper