Solution to Plagiarism Dropbox Example (Smart Fabrics)

 

There are a couple of ways to avoid plagiarism in this example.

First, is to paraphrase the content and cite the source in the text. Then add the source to the Works Cited (aka references) section at the end of the paper.

Merely quoting the entire section and citing the source is not a good solution. There's nothing original and citing so much makes for a poor paper. Adding new content would solve this problem.

Once again, here's the original source:

Fabrics have become an arena for competition for scientists all around the world. The race is on to be the first to develop new fabrics that will not only keep you warm but also cool, dry, moisturised and free of bacteria, odour and stains while measuring your heart rate. Welcome to the world of smart fabrics.

The fundamental job of clothes is to keep us warm or cool, so it's no surprise that many of the smart textiles entering the market look to regulate body temperature.

Source: Hile, J. (2004). Smart Fabrics. http://www.abc.net.au/catapult/indepth/s1435357.htm

And here's the plagiarized example:

Fabrics have become an arena for competition for scientists all around the world. The race is on to be the first to develop new fabrics that will not only keep you warm but also cool, dry, moisturised and free of bacteria, odour and stains while measuring your heart rate. Welcome to the world of smart fabrics.

The fundamental job of clothes is to keep us warm or cool, so it's no surprise that many of the smart textiles entering the market look to regulate body temperature.

A combination of quoting/citing and paraphrasing/citing would solve the problem. Adding new content would enhance the paper.

For more about Plagiarism Dropbox, see our site.

 

Fix this Plagiarism

Can your students recognize plagiarism? Do they know how to avoid it?

Here's a sample page from Plagiarism Dropbox to get students thinking about plagiarism and how to avoid it.

First, read the passage below:

Original Source

Fabrics have become an arena for competition for scientists all around the world. The race is on to be the first to develop new fabrics that will not only keep you warm but also cool, dry, moisturised and free of bacteria, odour and stains while measuring your heart rate. Welcome to the world of smart fabrics.

The fundamental job of clothes is to keep us warm or cool, so it's no surprise that many of the smart textiles entering the market look to regulate body temperature.

Source: Hile, J. (2004). Smart Fabrics. http://www.abc.net.au/catapult/indepth/s1435357.htm

Then read this passage that someone wrote based on the original:

Fabrics have become an arena for competition for scientists all around the world. The race is on to be the first to develop new fabrics that will not only keep you warm but also cool, dry, moisturised and free of bacteria, odour and stains while measuring your heart rate. Welcome to the world of smart fabrics.

The fundamental job of clothes is to keep us warm or cool, so it's no surprise that many of the smart textiles entering the market look to regulate body temperature.

The task is to "fix" the plagiarism by taking one or more of these actions:

1. Put " " around copied sections 
2. Paraphrase the existing content 
3. Add new content 
4. Cite quoted sections in text 
5. Cite the paraphrased text 
6. Add Works Cited 
7. Do Nothing (it's not plagiarized)

Feel free to share your solution(s) in the comments section.

For more of a Preview of Plagiarism Dropbox, click here.

We'll reveal the solution in an upcoming post.

Fifth BadApple Challenge and Scoring

 

Just added: a fifth Challenge to our new Bad Apple investigation game. This one tests individual skills using a current controversy in the news: The Thomas Jefferson Statue in New York City.

Also new is a scoring feature that assesses investigative skills. Demonstrate Information Fluency by earning a score of 80% accuracy or higher. Pick up valuable investigative tips and tools along the way. Tutorials are suggested if you want to improve your score.

Play today or with your students:  https://21cif.com/tutorials/evaluation/badapple/

Hard-to-find Citation formats

 
A question came to our Help line from one of our Citation Wizard users: 

How do I use APA to cite case law?

Citing legal information isn't one of the pre-formatted options available on our site. It raises a larger question: How do I figure out the proper format for citing unusual information?

When in doubt, each style manual addresses all the possibilities. Libraries have this information in their reference sections.

But for more immediate help, a good online source for citation styles information with examples is maintained by Purdue University's Online Writing Lab, also known as OWL. A Google search for APA citation case law retrieves this page from retrieves this results from OWL: Legal References (APA). It details a large range of legal reference types.

When in doubt, search for help!

A Fourth BAD APPLE Challenge

Just added, another BAD APPLE Challenge:

• Challenge 4: North Shore Whale Watching
  

 

Here's a trustworthy tourism site with a section on whales in Lake Superior.

All four challenges are available without a subscription. Try them out today!

https://21cif.com///tutorials

Do you have a page or site you'd like to nominate for this evaluation tutorial? We're going to add a fifth challenge soon. Let us know if you have one to recommend.

Two New BAD APPLE Challenges

 Two new BAD APPLE Challenges have just been added to our Website:

• Challenge 2: All About Explorers
• Challenge 3: CBS News Hoax Sites

 

Both provide a mixture of GOOD and BAD APPLES to sort out. Can the sites be trusted? How can you know?

For a limited time, both Challenges are available without a site subscription. Try them out today!

https://21cif.com///tutorials/evaluation/badapple/

Bad Apples

 

Introducing the (re)release of Bad Apples, a series of do-it-yourself evaluation tutorials.

With the demise of Adobe Flash, a lot of interactive games and tutorials on the 21st Century Information Fluency site were forced into early retirement. Over time, many of these resources were rewritten so they work on current Internet browsers. 

We're pleased to announce the return of BAD APPLES, a series of challenges to strengthen investigative searching.

Presently, one challenge is available and it doesn't require an annual membership.  Challenge #1 features New Zealand Golf Cross, a site that's been around since 1998. To play, individuals research six apples (elements that determine credibility):

1. Authorship
2. Publisher
3. Freshness
4. Bias
5. Backlinks
6. Fact checking

A player then drags each apple to either the GOOD APPLE or BAD APPLE basket, depending on their assessment. One point is earned for each correct assessment. A comprehensive analysis of the site provides insights into what makes the site trustworthy or not as well as these strategies for conducting an effective investigation:

1. How to find valuable information on a site
2. How to determine site ownership
3. How to determine the 'last modified' date
4. How to detect types of bias
5. How to find external reviews of site content
6. How to fact check and where to look, including Google Scholar 

Once learned, these skills apply to all Internet content.

Ready to play?  Start Here: https://21cif.com/tutorials/evaluation/badapple/

Watch for more Challenges to come!