Preventing Plagiarism 

 

Plagiarism is using someone else's words or ideas without giving them proper credit.  Plagairism includes puchasing a paper or part of a paper online or paying someone to complete your work for you. Plagiarism is a serious offense. According to LPC policy, you could receive an F for any paper that is plagiarized in whole or in part, and futher disciplinary action is also a possibility.

To make sure you don't plagiarize:

• Always put quotation marks around any text that you did not write and tell readers who did write it.
• If you discuss information that you read somewhere (such as a fact or statistic), make sure to tell readers where the information came from. 
• Follow all citation directions for the citation style used by your class (for example, MLA style, APA style)
• Don't upload your writing assignments to an essay-sharing website or give your essay to another student for them to copy.  
• Most importantly, always complete your own work. 

Resources

LPC Library

• You Quote It, You Cite It! - An interactive tutorial lesson on citation
• Citation Style Guides - A thorough explanation of MLA and APA citation styles, with examples
• Research Help Tutorials - A collection of strategies for research and documentation

English Department

• What is Plagiarism? - A brief powerpoint presentation describing the basics of plagiarism

Las Positas College

• Academic Honesty Statement - Las Positas's policy on cheating and plagiarism
• Student Conduct and Due Process - Explains the consequences of plagiarism 
• RAW Plagiarism Site for Instructors - How to help students avoid plagiarism

External Resources 

• Understanding and Preventing Plagiarism (Community of Accredited Online Schools) 
• Academic Cheating Fact Sheet (Stanford University)