Avoiding Plagiarism

At the WRC, we take academic integrity very seriously. All students, faculty, and staff must understand and abide by UNC Charlotte’s policy on academic integrity. If you aren’t already familiar with this policy, you can read more about it here.

WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?

The Council of Writing Program Administrators (WPA) talks about plagiarism, specifically within the United States, in their article, “Defining and Avoiding Plagiarism: The WPA Statement on Best Practices.” Here are some of their definitions of plagiarism:

  • “In an instructional setting, plagiarism occurs when a writer deliberately uses someone else’s language, ideas, or other original (not common-knowledge) material without acknowledging its source” (WPA, 2014).
  • “This definition applies to texts published in print or online, to manuscripts, and to the work of other student writers” (WPA, 2014).
  • “A student who attempts (even if clumsily) to identify and credit his or her source, but who misuses a specific citation format or incorrectly uses quotation marks or other forms of identifying material taken from other sources, has not plagiarized. Instead, such a student should be considered to have failed to cite and document sources appropriately” (WPA, 2014).

How can the WRC help?

All WRC tutors are experienced with specific citation styles and documentation practices. We’re happy to answer your questions about plagiarism, or help you practice citing sources so you can be more confident when writing. Tutors can provide clients with vital citation guidance that may help them avoid plagiarism. Clients might need help:

  • determining what constitutes common knowledge v. citable information.
  • understanding that information put in their own words still requires in-text citations.
  • clarifying the differences between paraphrasing, summarizing, and quoting, and understanding how to properly cite each in the text.
  • creating citations in a certain style (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.).
  • examining assignment guidelines and instructor feedback.

Schedule your appointment with us today! For more information on how to schedule an appointment, visit our Schedule an Appointment page.

What about Generative AI?

Visit our Generative AI & Writing page to learn about the benefits and pitfalls of writing with Gen AI.