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OER Start Guide

This guide is designed to introduce faculty to Open Educational Resources, what they are, why they are important, how to find them, how to recognize them, and how to use them. This guide also covers the basics of United States Copyright Law.

Understanding Plagiarism

  • What is plagiarism?
    • Taking part or all of someone else's work and passing it off as your own.
  • How do I know if I plagiarized?
    • If you copy and paste a sentence, paragraph, or entire work written by someone else without citing the original author and source of the work, it is considered plagiarism.
  • Is it still plagiarism if it's only one sentence?
    • Yes. The amount of a work that is copied or used does not matter. If you did not come up with the words or the idea on your own, you need to provide a citation.
  • Is it still plagiarism if I use my own words?
    • Technically, no, this would be considered paraphrasing. However, you still need to provide a citation for information or ideas that you took from a work written by someone else.
  • What type of information can I use without providing a citation?
    • Information that is considered "Common Knowledge" does not need a citation. You will still want to be careful to use your own words, though.
  • How can I avoid Plagiarism?
    • 1) Create citations as you write; don't wait until the end to go back and put them in.
    • 2) Immediately put quotations around any text that you copy and paste from somewhere else so that you don't later think that it was your own words.
    • 3) Be aware of when you write information that you did not come up with yourself.

Copyright infringement involves the unauthorized or unlicensed copying of a work that is subject to copyright without obtaining the copyright holder's permission.

Plagiarism is using someone else's work or ideas without giving the creator proper credit (i.e. presenting their thoughts, words, or ideas as your own).

While plagiarism is an ethical violation by academic standards, it is not illegal.  Copyright infringement, however, is illegal, as it violates the legally protected rights of the copyright holder.

It is possible to be guilty of either plagiarism or copyright infringement in various situations, but it is also possible to be guilty of both at the same time.  For example, if you were to copy the lyrics of a popular song and post it to a website, claiming credit for the work, you would not only be guilty of plagiarism (by passing off the lyrics as your own words), but also guilty of copyright infringement (by copying and distributing a copyrighted work without permission of the copyright holder).

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