Plagiarism and Collusion:
Plagiarism means using the exact words, opinions, or factual information from another source without giving that source credit.
Writers give credit through the use of accepted documentation styles, such as parenthetical citation, footnotes, or end notes; a simple
listing of books, articles, and websites is not sufficient. Plagiarism is the equivalent of intellectual robbery and cannot be tolerated in an
academic setting. Student writers are often confused as to what should be cited. Some think that only direct quotations need to be
credited. While direct quotations do need citations, so do paraphrases and summaries of opinions or factual information formerly unknown
to the writers or which the writers did not discover themselves. Exceptions to this include factual information that can be obtained from a
variety of sources, the writers' own insights or findings from their own field research, (what has been called common knowledge). What
constitutes common knowledge can sometimes be precarious; what is common knowledge for one audience may not be so for another.
In such situations, it is helpful to keep the reader in mind and to think of citations as being "reader friendly." In other words, writers provide
a citation for any piece of information that they think their readers might want to investigate further. Not only is this attitude considerate of
readers, it will almost certainly ensure that writers will not be guilty of plagiarism. See the GMU Honor Code
for more details on plagiarism and its consequences.
Specific Needs:
If you require accommodation based on a disability, I would like to meet with you privately after class on the first or second day to be
sure you are properly accommodated. If you need a faculty contact sheet, call the Disability Resource Center at 703-993-2474.
