Avoiding Plagiarism:

Modified APA style of

referencing…

Mrs. McGowan, Teacher-Librarian (2011)

Adapted from Ms. E. Hansen, QE (2006)
Adapted from Ms. M. Mirka, Centennial (2004)
Do you know…
• What is Plagiarism?

• What is an in-text Citation?

• What is a reference list?

• What does paraphrasing mean?

Getting Started…
• What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism means using

another’s work
without giving them
credit and saying that
it is your own

From: Mirka, 2004, The Plagiarism Trap. Powerpoint Presentation

Examples of Plagiarism…
• Copying and pasting text from online
encyclopedias
• Copying and pasting text from any web site
• Using photographs, video or audio without
permission or acknowledgement
• Using another student’s or your parents’
work and claiming it as your own even with
permission
• Using your own work without properly citing
it!

From: Mirka, 2004, The Plagiarism Trap. Powerpoint Presentation

More Examples of Plagiarism…
• Quoting a source without using quotation
marks-even if you do cite it
• Citing sources you didn’t use
• Getting a research paper, story, poem, or
article off the Internet
• Turning in the same paper for more than one
class without the permission of both teachers
(this is called self-plagiarism)

• Can you think of more?

From: Mirka, 2004, The Plagiarism Trap. Powerpoint Presentation

How to Avoid Plagiarism…
• Use your own words and ideas
• Always give credit to the source where you
have received your information
• If you use someone’s exact words - put them
in quotes and give credit using in-text
citations. Include the source in your
references

From: Mirka, 2004, The Plagiarism Trap. Powerpoint Presentation

How to Avoid Plagiarism…
• If you have paraphrased someone’s work,
(summarizing a passage or rearranging the
order of a sentence and changing some of the
words)-always give credit
• Take very good notes--write down the
source as you are taking notes. Do not wait
until later to try and retrieve the original
source
• Avoid using someone else’s work with minor
“cosmetic” changes

From: Mirka, 2004, The Plagiarism Trap. Powerpoint Presentation

 Getting Started…
• What is a reference list?
– A reference list at the end of a paper
provides the full information necessary
to identify and retrieve each source. It
cites works that specifically support a
particular article.
– References should be alphabetically
listed by author’s last name at the end of
the paper or presentation.

• A bibliography?
– A bibliography cites works for
background or for further reading.
Getting Started…
• What is a Citation?
– References and citations in text are the
formal methods of acknowledging the
use of a creator’s work.

• An In-Text Citation?
– Direct citations and quotations are
acknowledged in the body of a
research assignment.
(Right in the sentence or paragraph)
http://gladstone.vsb.bc.ca/library/cheating/
How does plagiarism affect you??
WHAT happens if you plagiarize?

• In junior/senior high school?

• In post-secondary?

• In society?
 Special Consideration: The INTERNET
• Special recognition needs to be given to the Internet
as a source of information. Due to the transient
nature of information on the Internet, you may choose
to keep a copy (either paper or electronic) of the
website used.
WHY???

• Internet sites must be evaluated very carefully for

reliability, as all sources are not authoritative or
trustworthy.
 Who wrote it? What’s the source? Contact info?
 Is the info accurate? Appropriate? Reliable?
 When was the information last updated?
 Does it agree with other credible sources?
 Do the links work? Is it well laid out? Easy to navigate?
CITATIONS IN TEXT
Definition
In text citations identify the source of a quotation or a personal communication
used in research. Format like this (author’s last name, publication date, and
page number p. or pp.). 1 2
3
Citations within the writing (paragraph) are quick and limited in information.
Citations point you to the full information on a back References page.

Purpose
1. Whether paraphrasing or quoting an author directly,
the source must be credited.
2. In text citations refer the reader to a References page.
The reader then knows where the information came
from.
Format
1. Citations are included in the same sentence or paragraph
as the quotation.
2. The sentence and the citation together must provide the
author’s last name, publication date and page(s) from
which the quotation was taken.
In Text Format for Poetry
 For poetry, include line numbers at the end of a
quote (Jones, l. 5) or (Stevens, ll. 2-18).
 Once you know the source, just use line numbers (l.
18).
 One line? – work the line into a sentence, & use “quote
marks” (l. 7).
 Two or three lines? – separate each line with a slash /
to indicate the end of the lines. Use quotation
marks.
 Four lines or longer? – set the quote apart, and
block indent. Do not use quotation marks. (ll. 12 –
20)
Punctuation
1. Quotation marks “ ” enclose quotations of less
than 40 words and are included in the sentence
or text, then the citation.
2. Quotations of more than 40 words are indented
five spaces from the left margin and are double-
spaced in a free-standing block (example later).
They are also known as a Block Quotation.
3. Just before the long quotation starts, type a colon:
then indent your long quotation (block quotation).
(then your citation after the period)

4. Brackets ( ) enclose information about the source

of the quotation (this is the citation).
Quotation Examples…
1. less than 40 words:

He confirms our suspicions. “Because

N-Gen children are born with technology, they

assimilate it. Adults must accommodate – a

different and much more difficult learning

process”_ (Tapscott, 1998, p. 40). (Punctuation is

only after in-text citation.)

Quotation Examples…
2. more than forty words (Block Quotation):

The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2010)

explains how to avoid plagiarism:

Quotation marks should be used to indicate the exact words of

another. Each time you paraphrase another author (i.e., summarize a

passage or rearrange the order of a sentence and change some of the

words), you need to credit the source of the text.. (p.15)

(Punctuation at end of quote, before the citation.)

Citation Example 1
He states, “anything takes on a new
meaning when we think of it as a
monument” (Boorstin, 1987, p. 215)
and adds that monuments can be both
man-made and natural.
Note punctuation

What makes this sentence elegant or unique?

The sentence has both a direct quotation and a
paraphrase!
Citation Example 2
Johnston and Cutchins (1988) state that “life is
hard for animal babies of all kinds, but for young
reptiles, surviving their first year is especially
difficult” (p. 36).

To put two authors in the brackets,

brackets you must
use the ampersand “&” symbol.
(Johnston & Cutchins, 1988, p. 36)
For more than 3 authors,
authors you may use the Latin
phrase “et al” which means “and the rest”
(Abrams, et al, 2010, p. 345)
Personal Communications
Personal communications include e-mail letters, telephone
conversations, interviews, etc.
They are mentioned in the body of a paper only, as they are not
locatable.
They are cited (see below), but NEVER included in your reference
list, because a reader cannot refer to or locate them later.

Author Martine Bates (personal communication,

January 25, 2011) is excited about Marwen’s
latest adventures and hopes her readers are too.
Citing Electronic Sources
(Internet, Online Communities, etc)

For electronic sources that do not provide page numbers:

Use the paragraph number, if available, preceded by
the paragraph symbol ¶ or the abbreviation para.
If neither paragraph nor page numbers are visible, cite the
heading and the number of the paragraph following it
to direct the reader to the location of the material (APA,
2010, Section 7.11).

(Myers, 2008, ¶ 5)
(Beutler, 2000, Conclusion section, para. 1)

(APA Style, 2005, para. 3)

Citing Internet Sources or Sources
with No Author
Many times, you will encounter and need to cite a
resource that does not have an author. It might be a
Corporation. We are used to doing citations using the
author’s last name. However, this is not always
possible.
REFERENCE LISTING of resources that do not have
authors:
No Author
Sports nutrition: Nutrition science & the Olympics. (2008).
Retrieved from
http://btc.montana.edu/olympics/nutrition/default.htm
Corporate Author
Centre for Systems Science at Simon Fraser University.
[Image]. (2009). Great Canadian scientists. Retrieved
from http://fas.sfu.ca/css/gcs/main.html
Romeo and Juliet [CD-ROM]. (1997). New York:
Columbia.

**Use the first few words of the title or corporate

author if no author’s name is given

Examples:
 Many people feel that eating healthy foods can help your
performance playing sports: “It is a proven fact that
eating a nutritious meal prior to a game will increase
performance” (Sports Nutrition, 1998).
 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why use the American Psychological Association (APA) format regarding
references?
It is very widely recognized and an authoritative source for references and
citations in research work. APA is frequently used in local universities. It is
not the only form.
What other forms are there?
MLA, Turabian, Chicago – Use what the instructor asks!

APA Website
University of Calgary
Son of Citation Machine
Source: http://www.fborfw.com/strip_fix/archives/000811.php
 References
Go to the back of your document, and
on a SEPARATE piece of paper…

Centre the word “References” (not

bolded) at the top of the page.
 Give the full information on how to
access your sources, in alphabetic order,
(sort↓) and a hanging indent.
 Double-space the whole page.
 References

American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the

American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC:

Author.

APA Style.Org (2005). Electronic references: Citations in text of

electronic material. Retrieved from

http://www.apastyle.org/electext.html

Calgary Board of Education. (2000). References and citations in text:

Formats for student research. Retrieved from

http://www.cbe.ab.ca/sss/ssspdf/ref-citations-05-00.pdf
 Bibliography
(suggested for further information or investigation)

American Psychological Association. (2010). American

Psychological Association Psych Net. Retrieved from

http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html

Bibliographic formats for citing electronic information. (2009).

Retrieved from http://www.uvim/edu/~ncrane/estyles

 Thank You!

You are welcome to ask your

teacher-librarian if you need any
help. 

The End.
For Better or For Worse – Lynn Johnston

Source: http://www.fborfw.com/strip_fix/archives/000809.php
Source: http://www.fborfw.com/strip_fix/archives/000810.php

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