Plagiarism

Choose from Resources Below

The information on this page reflects the explanations of plagiarism given by the Council of Writing Program Administrators, a national organization for writing professionals interested in building and running writing programs.  The Council's full statement on plagiarism can be found below and at http://www.wpacouncil.org/node/9.

• Definition of Plagiarism
  The Council describes the most recent understandings of plagiarism in academic settings, distinguishing between intentional and unintentional acts of plagiarism.
• Causes of Plagiarism
  The Council provides some reasons why students intentionally plagiarize and some explanations for how students unintentionally fail to properly credit outside sources.
• Student and Faculty Shared Responsibilities
  The Council outlines the core responsibilities of students, faculty members, and administrators in mutually promoting academic honesty and integrity in the classroom.
• Best Practices
  The Council summarizes key practices that contribute to intellectual integrity in the classroom, including addressing plagiarism explicitly, developing learning activities that promote academic honesty, applying citation guidelines in context, and appropriately responding to acts of plagiarism.
• Entire WPA Plagiarism Statement
  The Council of Writing Program Administrators' full statement on plagiarism can be found here.