Got caught plagiarizing

[enayes]

I'm in college and I got caught plagiarizing from wikipedia on a small assignment in one of my classes. I have to meet with the teacher. My plan is to say that I accidentally submitted an unfinished copy of my paper (it was submitted online) and that I had proper citations and quotes on my final copy. Any suggestions?

[simcjt]

Depending on the subject of the paper the best thing to do would be to own up to it.

Doing my field work with high school students I've already heard lame and crazy excuses for cheating after a month. Can't imagine how insulting it is for a vet professor.

[StateProperty]

I wouldn't have made it through college without wikipedia

[iamgine]

Never admit it. Most professor will look for any excuse to let you go. Even if they know you do it on purpose, they wouldn't want you to get into serious trouble just for plagiarizing. If you admit it, then their hands are tied and they have to report you.

[enayes]

It was a small paper on RTI (response to intervention), so its not like it was some long essay where my personal opinion was being asked. We just had to research the topic.

[Riddler]

How big was the body of text that was plagiarized?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II


Although Japan was already at war with China in 1937,[2] the world war is generally said to have begun on 1 September 1939, with the invasion of Poland by Germany, and subsequent declarations of war on Germany by France and most of the countries of the British Empire and Commonwealth. Germany set out to establish a large empire in Europe. From late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or subdued much of continental Europe; amid Nazi-Soviet agreements, the nominally neutral Soviet Union fully or partially occupied and annexed territories of its six European neighbours, including Poland. Britain and the Commonwealth remained the only major force continuing the fight against the Axis, with battles taking place in North Africa as well as the long-running Battle of the Atlantic. In June 1941, the European Axis launched an invasion of the Soviet Union, giving a start to the largest land theatre of war in history, which, tied down the major part of the Axis' military forces. In December 1941, Japan, which aimed to dominate Asia, attacked the United States and European possessions in the Pacific Ocean, quickly conquering much of the region.


Something the size of that?

[enayes]

I took the definition of RTI, and some other aspects of the program directly from wiki. I thought to myself while doing this that I should cite, but I was lazy and didn't feel like it. So I feel that is is a plausible excuse to say I gathered information, and cited everything at the end.

[LJJ]

Plagiarizing Wikipedia?

What is this? I don't even..

[Jailblazers7]

Say that you were the person who contributed the info to wikipedia so technically you were only plagiarizing yourself.

[DeuceWallaces]

You could be in doo-doo. You better write a better "final" version if you stick to your original story.

[Lebron23]

Say that you were the person who contributed the info to wikipedia so technically you were only plagiarizing yourself.


This

[Flagrant 2]

Say that you were the person who contributed the info to wikipedia so technically you were only plagiarizing yourself.
http://cdn.styleforum.net/5/5d/5dcbd53f_clap.gif

[SCREWstonRockets]

Cmon amateur Learn how to plagiarize correctly. That's why you right click and use the thesaurus to change some words. Problem solved.



Say that you were the person who contributed the info to wikipedia so technically you were only plagiarizing yourself.
Yea that would work......if your professor is 5 yrs old.

[simcjt]

Never admit it. Most professor will look for any excuse to let you go. Even if they know you do it on purpose, they wouldn't want you to get into serious trouble just for plagiarizing. If you admit it, then their hands are tied and they have to report you.
They normally bring administration involved when you are flat out lying and make it and you against them issue thus tying their hands.

You admit it take the f and move on. It was handled with the professor and is now done with. Depends on the school and professor with all other school related questions though.

[DeuceWallaces]

Yeah, I would do anything and everything to avoid escalating it to administration which could be cut and dry; you're expelled.

[Legend of Josh]

Bring with you a bag of McDoubles and be like ... "I got these cheeseburgers man!" then he'll be like "WHAT?!" ... and you say "... I said, I got these cheeseburgers man!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S01g4SwPpcM&feature=related

[rufuspaul]

Dude you should know by now that you should post your work in the OTC first and any non-cited facts will be pointed out quickly.

[dunksby]

Say that you were the person who contributed the info to wikipedia so technically you were only plagiarizing yourself.
You are not familiar with the rules then, you have to cite everything even if its your own work.

[Jailblazers7]

You are not familiar with the rules then, you have to cite everything even if its your own work.

I'm aware of the rule I was being sarcastic.

[Kebab Stall]

How people still get caught for plagiarism is beyond me.

When I was in high school, college and uni, all we ever heard was how you should not plagiarize and you will be caught. It's not hard to take a wall of text, manipulate it and make it your own OR better yet, just wrap some quotation tags around it put the source at the bottom.

[RoseCity07]

Say that you were the person who contributed the info to wikipedia so technically you were only plagiarizing yourself.

You can actually plagiarize your own work and get in trouble for it.

[highwhey]

You can actually plagiarize your own work and get in trouble for it.
:oldlol: as silly as it sounds it's true.

[Jailblazers7]

You can actually plagiarize your own work and get in trouble for it.

Yeah, I know the rules I've been writing research paper for the past two years. It makes the authors look like douches but its just part of the game lol.

[I<3NBA]

you have the right idea. just say you accidentally passed the unfinished version. this is you first offense anyway so they'll give you the benefit of the doubt.

[DukeDelonte13]

How does anybody plagiarize from wikipedia when the stupid cites are at the bottom of the page. Is one more additional cut and paste too much work? If you were my student I'd fail you.

[SayTownRy]

Cmon amateur Learn how to plagiarize correctly. That's why you right click and use the thesaurus to change some words. Problem solved.

yup. rewording and rephrasing is key. got me through several essay-intensive courses in college.

what is it 3 or 5 words in a row that constitutes plagiarism?

[Cowboy Thunder]

interested to hear about the follow up on this.

keep us posted.

[enayes]

interested to hear about the follow up on this.

keep us posted.

I'm meeting with my teacher tomorrow.

[GOBB]

:roll: You copied from wikipedia??? Come on, what are you mentally challenged?

[Cowboy Thunder]

In education, response to intervention (commonly abbreviated RTI or RtI) is a method of academic intervention used in the United States to provide early, systematic assistance to children who are having difficulty learning. RTI seeks to prevent academic failure through early intervention, frequent progress measurement, and increasingly intensive research-based instructional interventions for children who continue to have difficulty. It is believed that students who do not show a response to effective interventions are likely (or, more likely than students who respond) to have biologically-based learning disabilities and to be in need of special education.[1]
In terms of identifying learning disabilities, the RTI method was developed as an alternative to the ability–achievement "discrepancy model," which requires children to exhibit a discrepancy between their ability (often measured by IQ testing) and academic achievement (as measured by their grades and standardized testing). Proponents of RTI claim that the process brings more clarity to the Specific Learning Disability (SLD) category of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA 2004), while opponents claim that RTI simply identifies low achieving students rather than students with learning disabilities.



:bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown: Submit! :basketball

[moaz]

Plagiarizing from Wikipedia? :facepalm
Man you should be expelled just for doing that. At least use the wikipedia links to the subject, but wiki itself :no: .

[Cowboy Thunder]

:lol

Maybe you can explain that you plagiarized on purpose to discuss with administration and your professor your need for an I.E.P. in college.

This could have been the only comfortable way you felt you could reach out without shaming your family. :confusedshrug:

[Cowboy Thunder]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Response_to_intervention


For those wanting to learn more. Including the OP.

[mlh1981]

They have heard every excuse in the book. Just own up to your mistake.

[simcjt]

They have heard every excuse in the book. Just own up to your mistake.
Told him this twice but i doubt he'll listen if the situation is real.

[baseketball4life]

do what you said in the original post, should work like iamgine said professors will accept a lot of excuses as long as they make some sense especially on a small assignment like this one

[Cowboy Thunder]

Link him to this thread and own up to the truth

["Jesus"]

:roll: You copied from wikipedia??? Come on, what are you mentally challenged?

Exactly my sentiments.

[LBJMVP]

i honestly copy wikipedia all the time, though not quite plaugerizing.
i try to find information i didnt know, yet i could have easily known without any research and then i write it down in my own words.

so technically i get information from there, but not really copying.

wikipedia is actually a pretty good source of information, they have pages for almost anything you need.

[LJJ]

One thing you need to understand that if the person checking your work has any sense at all, they probably read wiki too. And even if you rephrase nicely, simply the specifics you touch upon will make it easy for anyone who read the same articles to recognize you've been using wiki.


I don't get it either. Once you learn how to properly use real sources, your work is going to be so much better and easier to write. It's win-win, it's just a trick you have to learn. At my college it's a trick you'll have to learn eventually anyway.

[enayes]

Met with my teacher today and all is well. She gave me a lecture on how you can't use wikipedia as a source and how I obviously copied and pasted from wiki. She didn't really buy my story of "submitting the wrong document", but she didn't seem to be upset with me. Told me I can redo the essay if I want to earn back the points I lost.

This particular teacher is pretty crazy, has a lesbo hippy thing going, so I might not have been as lucky if it were someone more strict. Still a big relief to not be in any serious trouble.

[gigantes]

interesting situation and thread. glad it worked out for you.

[Balla_Status]

Teacher? What is this, elementary school?

[LBJMVP]

Met with my teacher today and all is well. She gave me a lecture on how you can't use wikipedia as a source and how I obviously copied and pasted from wiki. She didn't really buy my story of "submitting the wrong document", but she didn't seem to be upset with me. Told me I can redo the essay if I want to earn back the points I lost.

This particular teacher is pretty crazy, has a lesbo hippy thing going, so I might not have been as lucky if it were someone more strict. Still a big relief to not be in any serious trouble.


your a lucky son of bitch. most professors give you a 0 on your paper and if your really unlucky they send you to dean and you could be kicked out for a semester

[enayes]

Teacher? What is this, elementary school?

:lol I'm going to school for elementary education, it's a habit i guess

[enayes]

your a lucky son of bitch. most professors give you a 0 on your paper and if your really unlucky they send you to dean and you could be kicked out for a semester

The paper was only worth 20 points out of 1000 total points for the semester. If it was a bigger paper I might have been screwed. At least I'll be more careful now.

[LBJMVP]

The paper was only worth 20 points out of 1000 total points for the semester. If it was a bigger paper I might have been screwed. At least I'll be more careful now.


so that 2% of your total grade. yah, then i wouldnt have been that worried to begin with. a professor has to be a total dick to get serious about that.

[johndeeregreen]

Plagiarizing Wikipedia?

What is this? I don't even..
This.:oldlol: What kind of defense is "I was going to cite Wikipedia but forgot"? Wikipedia isn't a legitimate source for a paper, and most reputable institutions have policies that align with that fact.

Next, what kind of idiot cites from the most frequently searched fact-finding website in the world?

[johndeeregreen]

so that 2% of your total grade. yah, then i wouldnt have been that worried to begin with. a professor has to be a total dick to get serious about that.
It's not a matter of what percentage it's worth. IIRC, where I went to school, a plagiarism offense could earn you an F for the semester, regardless of what the paper was worth.

[ILLsmak]

I'm in college and I got caught plagiarizing from wikipedia on a small assignment in one of my classes. I have to meet with the teacher. My plan is to say that I accidentally submitted an unfinished copy of my paper (it was submitted online) and that I had proper citations and quotes on my final copy. Any suggestions?

****ing nub.

lol. That's pathetic, really.

-Smak

[ILLsmak]

This.:oldlol: What kind of defense is "I was going to cite Wikipedia but forgot"? Wikipedia isn't a legitimate source for a paper, and most reputable institutions have policies that align with that fact.

Next, what kind of idiot cites from the most frequently searched fact-finding website in the world?

wow at 11,111 post. That's cool.

Anyway, the key to using wiki is to cite the sources of wiki.

-Smak

[hoopaddict08]

What kind of instructor allows you to cite wiki?

[Quickening]

What kind of instructor allows you to cite wiki?

He means citing the references at the bottom of the wiki page, as they will be links to legitimate sources.

I think.

[Simple Jack]

I used to buy papers all the time. Bought one for an intro level Philosophy course and was questioned by the teacher because the paper had some seriously advanced shit in it. Forgot to proofread that paragraph I guess but I ended up bullshitting and explaining it so all worked out well....moral of the story? Proofread the purchased/plagiarized papers before you hand em in.

[reppy]

How does anybody plagiarize from wikipedia when the stupid cites are at the bottom of the page. Is one more additional cut and paste too much work? If you were my student I'd fail you.

I could be wrong, but I think you're supposed to cite your original source. For instance, say whoever wrote the article cited a source from Some Prestigious Science Journal . . except they made a typo somewhere. You copy the quotation verbatim, typo included, and include the citation mentioned in the article you read on Wikipedia. Still plagiarism and you can get busted for it, too.


plagiarism: the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one's own original work, as by not crediting the author

The person or person(s) that created the Wikipedia article had to gather the information and cite them. When you cite the original source, you are attempting to imitate the thoughts/actions of the author(s) without doing the work.

Anyways, phew, didn't mean to be that long-winded or make it seem like I am coming down on you in particular. But anyone following your advice should realize that they can also get popped for that. Maybe it worked for you, but career paths can close over stuff like this.



Directed at no one in particular: Don't be ****ing stupid. Write your own damn papers. Shit, you might even learn something.

[ukballer]

Why is it so hard just to add, or remove, or change a few words in the text? 2-3 minute job at most, and would save you all this trouble you're in.

As for what you should do now, buy kneepads.

[chips93]

Why is it so hard just to add, or remove, or change a few words in the text? 2-3 minute job at most, and would save you all this trouble you're in.

As for what you should do now, buy kneepads.

im pretty sure most colleges have pretty advanced programmes that will still be able to figure out when you've copied something, even if you change bits

[ukballer]

im pretty sure most colleges have pretty advanced programmes that will still be able to figure out when you've copied something, even if you change bits

Maybe so, but even taking 10 minutes just to re-write the text completely but still have the basic principles, I wouldn't exactly consider it hard.

[SlayerEnraged]

Plagarism is the most overrated and cryed about subject all time. I can understand it being bad to copy an artists painting exactly, but why the hell does it matter if we don't change the wording of a definition or something like that?

[LBJMVP]

what if you dont plagarize, and you happen to write a couple sentences that are pretty similar to somthing else?

you cant prove you didnt plagarize, but you really didnt.

[shadow]

Met with my teacher today and all is well. She gave me a lecture on how you can't use wikipedia as a source and how I obviously copied and pasted from wiki. She didn't really buy my story of "submitting the wrong document", but she didn't seem to be upset with me. Told me I can redo the essay if I want to earn back the points I lost.

This particular teacher is pretty crazy, has a lesbo hippy thing going, so I might not have been as lucky if it were someone more strict. Still a big relief to not be in any serious trouble.


Glad it worked out. Next time just cite if you're copy pasting. If you're too lazy to do a biblio, then just cite in parenthesis next to the text.

[Balla_Status]

:lol I'm going to school for elementary education, it's a habit i guess

Nice. Gov't sponsored babysitting.

[DeuceWallaces]

Holy shit you were lucky if that's all that came of it. Learn your lesson. You could have easily been expelled at many schools.