EAP - English For Academic Purposes Avoiding Plagiarism Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student finds a sentence in a journal article that perfectly summarizes a key concept for their essay. They copy the sentence directly into their paper and add a citation at the end. What critical element is missing to avoid plagiarism?
- A page number in the citation
- The author's first name
- Quotation marks around the sentence (Correct answer)
- A summary of the author's credentials
Correct answer: Quotation marks around the sentence
When using an author's exact words, it is mandatory to enclose the copied text in quotation marks. Simply providing a citation is not enough, as it implies the words are a paraphrase, not a direct quote. This is a form of plagiarism.
Question 2: Which of the following is the BEST example of 'patchwriting,' which is a form of plagiarism?
- Submitting a paper written entirely by another person.
- Taking text from a source, changing a few words to synonyms, and rearranging the clauses while keeping the basic structure, without using quotation marks. (Correct answer)
- Inventing data and sources to support an argument.
- Correctly paraphrasing an author's idea into completely new sentences and including a citation.
Correct answer: Taking text from a source, changing a few words to synonyms, and rearranging the clauses while keeping the basic structure, without using quotation marks.
Patchwriting involves copying from a source and then making superficial changes like substituting synonyms or altering sentence structure slightly. This is considered plagiarism because it presents the original author's phrasing and sentence construction as your own, even if cited.
Question 3: Under which circumstance would a piece of information generally be considered 'common knowledge' and NOT require a citation in an academic paper?
- A statistic published in this year's census report.
- A direct quote from a famous political speech.
- The fact that William Shakespeare wrote the play 'Hamlet'. (Correct answer)
- A theory of cognitive development proposed by a specific psychologist.
Correct answer: The fact that William Shakespeare wrote the play 'Hamlet'.
Common knowledge refers to undisputed facts that are widely known and can be found in numerous general sources. The authorship of 'Hamlet' is a well-established fact in this category. Specific statistics, direct quotes, and theories attributed to a particular person are not common knowledge and must always be cited.
Question 4: A student writes the following: 'The investigation showed that the marketing strategy was very successful (Lee, 2021).' The original sentence from Lee's article was: 'The research demonstrated that the promotional plan yielded highly effective results.' Which academic integrity issue is most evident here?
- The student misinterpreted the original author's meaning.
- The paraphrase is too close to the original source's wording and sentence structure. (Correct answer)
- The citation is incomplete because it lacks a page number.
- The source used is not considered academically credible.
Correct answer: The paraphrase is too close to the original source's wording and sentence structure.
This is a clear case of poor paraphrasing, often called patchwriting. The student has only replaced key words with synonyms ('investigation' for 'research', 'successful' for 'effective results') while maintaining the identical sentence structure. A proper paraphrase requires restating the idea entirely in one's own words and sentence patterns.
Question 5: A student is writing an essay on a topic they researched for a different class last semester and wants to reuse some of their previous work. What is the most academically honest first step to take?
- Copy and paste sections from the old paper, since it is their own work.
- Cite themselves as a source using a standard citation format.
- Consult the current instructor about the course and university policy on reusing previous work. (Correct answer)
- Use the same sources but write a completely new paper from scratch without mentioning the old one.
Correct answer: Consult the current instructor about the course and university policy on reusing previous work.
Reusing one's own work for a new assignment without explicit permission is considered 'self-plagiarism.' Academic policies often require that all submitted work be original for that specific course. The only appropriate action is to discuss the situation with the current instructor to seek permission and clarification on how to proceed ethically.
Question 6: What is the primary academic purpose of a citation style guide like APA, MLA, or Chicago?
- To make the reference list look uniform and professional.
- To provide a consistent and systematic way for writers to give credit to sources and for readers to find them. (Correct answer)
- To test a student's ability to pay close attention to small details of punctuation and formatting.
- To ensure that students only use sources published within the last ten years.
Correct answer: To provide a consistent and systematic way for writers to give credit to sources and for readers to find them.
While formatting and professionalism are outcomes, the core purpose of a citation style is to create a standardized system. This system ensures that authors give proper credit to the ideas and words of others, which is fundamental to avoiding plagiarism. It also provides readers with all the necessary information to locate and consult the original sources themselves.
EAP - English For Academic Purposes Avoiding Plagiarism Questions and Answers
A student finds a sentence in a journal article that perfectly summarizes a key concept for their essay.
They copy the sentence directly into their paper and add a citation at the end.
What critical element is missing to avoid plagiarism?