What is plagiarism?

To demonstrate an act of plagiarism, I started by looking for inspiration on the internet and copied the paragraph below which explains plagiarism very clearly;

What Is Plagiarism?

According to the University of Oxford, “Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement.” 

“When you are writing an essay, you should make sure that your idea is original and not copied from somewhere else. This can be a very serious offense, especially in schools and universities where the students are held responsible for their actions of plagiarism.”

You will note that the original author has quoted Oxford University and acknowledged the University as their source, therefore, they have not committed plagiarism.

However, if I leave the two quoted paragraphs as they are, without providing my source on the internet, then I have committed plagiarism!

To avoid this, I must acknowledge my internet source which is; 10 Tips to Avoid Plagiarism in Your Papers and Written Work – Owlcation

Plagiarism and exam malpractice

AQA has the following advice for students carrying out NEA projects;

“Coursework

Follow this general guidance to avoid malpractice in your coursework and other non-exam assessment.

  • Only submit work that is your own.
  • Never lend your work to anyone. You can get in trouble if they copy you, even if you didn’t know they had or intended to.
  • Make sure you know how to reference other people’s work. If you want to quote someone or use someone else’s words, make sure you show or reference where the quote has come from, otherwise it could be seen as plagiarism. Check with your teachers which referencing or citation style you should use. The key is to be consistent.
  • Type your own work for submission. If you need help to do this, make sure you acknowledge that someone else has helped you. Speak with your exams officer for more information about access arrangements.

Speak to your teachers if you’re worried about any of these points.”

You should try to work with your tutor, especially at the draft stage of your NEA, so that they can check that you are using original ideas and that you are properly citing sources in your work.

What happens if we detect plagiarism?

The Oxford Open Learning Trust uses a professional plagiarism checker to ensure your work both as a draft and your final submission is not plagiarised. If we find concerning amounts of plagiarism we are compelled to report this to the examination board.  They may discount your NEA marks and may ban you from the exam entirely.