How to Avoid Plagiarism Part 2
In writing a paper which uses other people’s ideas incorporated to the article, one should take note of these important reminders:
• Know the proper paraphrasing rules
Paraphrasing is one way of putting other sources’ idea into your own words. With this, one should rewrite the original idea using different words and sentence structure. However, this does not mean that simply changing the word of the original text qualify as a paraphrase. The idea of the original author should clearly be seen in the paraphrased text while using one’s own words. Moreover, despite the changes in the sentence, citation is still necessary for paraphrased text since they are still idea of another person. With this, one can give credit to whom it is due.
Paraphrasing is a great way of incorporating one’s idea with different sources available. With paraphrasing, the idea of other people can be smoothly linked to one’s own ideas. Moreover, one can prove that there are many sources that support the topic of the paper because of the use of paraphrasing. However, it is a misconception that this technique in writing is used just to avoid too much direct quotations. It is not also used to redirect the attention of the readers from the fact that the paper has many sources. Paraphrasing is all about making the paper even better.
• Cite references clearly.
When it comes to mixing your ideas with the facts that you have researched, inadvertent plagiarism can possibly occur. There are some situations that plagiarism can take place. The most common situation is during citing the original author. Especially with complex ideas, misconceptions can occur. Proper knowledge of the idea and use of proper nouns will create a good outcome.
• Check the validity and credibility of the source.
One cannot rely entirely on the validity and credibility of the source. Sometimes, some information are misleading especially when it comes to uncertain sources. To be able to evaluate the information to be used as reference in the paper, one should check the author and when it is published. Through checking on these important facts, one can determine if an idea is reliable and valid. This can also prevent one from committing plagiarism. There are even more ideas regarding how one can evaluate certain ideas.
All these and more can be a great help in checking out which information is true and credible. These details and information can also help a student to avoid committing plagiarism.
Read also: How to Avoid Plagiarism Part 1
