Skills For Success

Mary E. Clinton
School of English
September 2010
 Plagiarism
“Plagiarism occurs when a student misrepresents, as his/her own work,
the work, written or otherwise, of any other person (including another
student) or of any institution. Examples of forms of plagiarism include:
 
• the verbatim (word for word) copying of another’s work without
appropriate and correctly presented acknowledgement;
• the close paraphrasing of another’s work by simply changing a few
words or altering the order of presentation, without appropriate and
correctly presented acknowledgement;
• unacknowledged quotation of phrases from another’s work;
• the deliberate and detailed presentation of another’s concept as one’s
own.”
Section 8.1 of the University’s Code of Practice on Assessment
 Collusion
• “Collusion occurs when, unless with official approval
(e.g. in the case of group projects), two or more
students consciously collaborate in the preparation
and production of work which is ultimately submitted
by each in an identical, or substantially similar, form
and/or is represented by each to be the product of his
or her individual efforts. Collusion also occurs where
there is unauthorised co-operation between a student
and another person in the preparation and production
of work which is presented as the student’s own.”
Ibid
 Fabrication of Data
• “Fabricated data is defined as any data
presented as part of a formal assessment and
which has not been obtained by legitimate
means of experimentation or enquiry and/or
there is insufficient evidence to support its
validity. Fabricated data also includes any
instance where existing data has been
falsified.”
Ibid
Q. How can you prevent Plagiarism,
Collusion or Fabrication?

A. By critically analysing your reading

and writing in a suitable acceptable
academic format with full and proper
citation.
 General Advice
1. Make Academic Writing a Habit.
2. Work on several manuscripts at a time.
3. Beginning – middle – end.
4. Avoid casual or chatty style
5. Miscellaneous and random observations
6. Formulate Thesis
7. Design your arguments
8. Edit and Proofread
Bloom six levels of intellectual behaviour
(1956 revised 1984)
Analysing the Topic

• Summarise
• Analyse
• Synthesise
• Evaluate
 Authorial Stance Markers
• Conclusion or Causality
• Continuation
• Contrast
• Emphasis
• Evidence
• Illustration or Exemplification
• Sequence
 Analysing the Question/Rubric
• Task Words tell you what you have to do; the
action(s) you need to perform.

• Limiting Words limit and define the essay,

making it workable.

• Content Words tell you what the focus is and

what you should write about.
 Essay and Assignment Patterns

• Say what you are going to say

• Say It
• Say what you have said.

• Create and Use an essay outline as a

template
Commonly used Formats

• Analysis
• Compare and Contrast
• Problem/Solution
• Cause and Effect
 Paragraphs
• Introduction – Body – Conclusion
• Cohesion
• Repetition of Key words/phrases
• Lexical Parallel structures
• Grammatical consistency
• Transitional Words/Phrases
 When to introduce Quotations
• when you want to use an author as an
authoritative voice
• to introduce an author's position you may wish to
discuss
• to provide evidence for your own writing
• to make a clear distinction between the views of
different authors
• to make a clear distinction between an author's
views and your own
 Discourse Markers

• Transitional Words

• Reporting Verbs
 Transitional Words
• To improve your writing you need to make
sure that your ideas, both in sentences and
paragraphs, stick together or have coherence
and that the gap between ideas is bridged
smoothly.
Reporting Verbs
Citation and Quotation
• OSCOLA
• APA
• Harvard
• MLA
• Vancouver

• MRHA
• Chicago
 Reports
• Reports have their own structure and this is
distinct from the form of an essay.
• Essays are mainly used to allow you to
demonstrate your ideas and arguments to
tutors.
• Written reports provide specific research-
based information which results in a course of
action being decided and acted on.
 Why use Reports
• Reports are designed to give information
concisely and accurately.
• A formal report has an impersonal and
objective "tone of voice". The main argument is
clear and uses a minimum of words.
• Accurately presented facts are in the main body
of the report - your evaluation of these is in the
"conclusions" and "recommendations" sections.
 Structure
• Reports tend to follow a standard structure
but much depends on the circumstances in
which they are being written. It helps to ask
your lecturers, employers or mentors what
they expect - there may be an accepted way of
writing a report appropriate for your course,
or employment/ professional body.
Notice the
format of
numbering
Enjoy Your Time at University

Study Effectively: Study Well