Graduate Academic Writing Analysis

This is for psychology, education, and social science bibliographies. APA style specifies the names and order of headings, formatting, and organization of citations and references, and the arrangement of tables, figures, footnotes, and appendices, as well as other manuscript and documentation features. It uses parenthetical citation within the text, listing the author’s surname and the year of publication of the work, which is more or less same as that of (MLA) style’s parenthetical citations. It lists sources at the end of the paper, on a References Page. Listing electronic sources of information is detailed in (APA) style than in (MLA) style. APA style uses Harvard referencing, also known as the author-date system of citations and parenthetical referencing, keyed to a subsequent list of References.

This goal of this experiment was to learn what plagiarism is and how to prevent it as well as practice summarizing and citing in order to avoid plagiarism.

When it comes to research, sources are the lifeblood of the paper. Plagiarism is when sources are either stolen directly, or rephrased in a paraphrase or summary, without giving credit to the author or source in-text and/or in the works cited. To avoid plagiarism in this class and classes beyond this one, I will first add the source to my works cited as soon as it is used, as well as using signal phrases and in-text citations to properly cite the source.

I have had little experience with both academic and professional writing in my life. In high school, I had received mediocre passing grades in English classes. My professional writing consists of a few emails to colleagues throughout the day as well as disseminating information to my subordinates on a dry-erase board during pre-shift meetings. However, as I continue my education, I am beginning to see my confidence increase as my relationship with writing grows.

Referencing is an essential part of academic writing as it provides authors with credit for their ideas. Referencing is a requirement of academic writing, which when done correctly, will acknowledge the contribution of words or an idea (Grellier & Goerke, 2014, p, 68) into the piece of writing which is being created. However, failure to reference will incur instances of plagiarism. Grellier and Goerke (2014) state that individual institutions will have a policy on plagiarism and will treat it very seriously (p. 68). Penalties may apply and stringent testing for plagiarism will be in place. Therefore, it is imperative that individuals become familiar with correct referencing practices and apply them appropriately. It is critical to understand

In academic writing, presenting a high standard of communication is crucial. Both the content of expressing an idea and the formatting document are equally important in scholarly writing. Areas that needs special attention when writing academic are but limited to are content, organization, grammar, and style.

When going to college most, if not all students, will be told to write academically in several classes, especially English classes. It is a way of writing beyond what is taught in elementary, middle, and high school classes. It is how people who are seeking professionalism through higher education must write. Whether it be to inform othwrs of something they have learned, or to pose an argument for something that they either agree or disagree with. When a student is told to use academic writing they are expected to first find a subject or topic that they are going to write about, take a stance on the subject, decide whether they would like to argue another people's stance or inform their classmates, then they must compile information from reliable sources pertaining to the topic they are going to write about, determine who their audience is, and then find the correct and proper tone in which they need to use throughout the paper. This way of writing consists of summarizing the primary information and all that is known, evaluating all the information that has been

In spite of the shifts in technology and increased ease with which plagiarizers can operate, academia remains staunch in its stance against the theft of other’s intellectual property. At all educational levels, teachers still stress the importance of using proper citations and the administrations of various high schools and colleges have strict anti-plagiarism policies. However, the methodologies of teachers and administrators have changed to fit the times. In high school, many English teachers spend entire weeks teaching their students the proper methods of citation on paper and using online resources. Likewise, school officials explain to their students on a yearly basis the negative consequences of plagiarizing works while providing them with the

organization of the essay provided some merits but the overall essay unity was not achieved.

If you borrow ideas from printed sources or from people you have spoken to or heard speak, be certain to cite the sources of those ideas, even when paraphrasing. Include separate cover and reference pages that is formatted as per APA guidelines. At least two professional references (other than your textbook) must be included in your paper. Medical dictionaries and encyclopedias are not to be included as one of the two minimum references. For information in formatting per APA guidelines, visit Kaplan’s Writing Center.

In this paper, every OPINION from someone else has been acknowledged in a parenthetical citation. I realize that the mere presence of a parenthetical citation does not avoid plagiarism. If I have used the exact words, phrases, clauses, or sentences of someone else, I have enclosed that information in quotation marks. If I have summarized the opinions of someone else, I have not enclosed the summary in quotation marks; but I have stated those opinions in my own words. I have also introduced the summary and used a parenthetical citation to acknowledge the source.

Throughout the 15 years of my academic career, academic writing has become a much larger part of the curriculum. The writing assignments have gone from simple, one- line sentences describing a picture to a simple, 3- paragraph persuasive essay on the state exams in high school; all the way to a 25 page comprehensive research essay during my freshman year at East Stroudsburg University. As the years and assignments progressed, I developed a set of writing weakness and strengths that still shape the way I write today. Additionally, I have had many opportunities to experience the different styles of writing available. Both of those factors will help me achieve the rigorous goals that I have set for myself and this class.

Nowadays, plagiarism has become a widespread problem in academic writing. A survey conducted by Donald McCabe, revealed that 36% of 63700 surveyed undergraduate students admitted to “paraphrasing/copying few sentences from the internet source without footnoting it” (qtd in “Facts and Stats”). Two schools in North America, George Brown College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are quite strict about plagiarism. Even though each school have roughly similar definitions of plagiarism, they differ in the procedure they apply as well as the focus of their policies.

During this course, learning APA formatting for papers has been instrumental. This style of formatting is commonly used in academic writing assignments due to its general universal uniformity and ability to properly credit the sources from which the paper is refer to from. Appropriate uses of references are annotated by using in-text citations that align with the reference list located on the last page of a paper. Together, they allow the reader to verify where the information has been obtained. In addition, to having the ability to confirm material, APA style of writing assist the writer in avoiding plagiarism by accurately stating where the information in a paper was received.

Cases of plagiarism have risen over the last several years, mostly due to easier access to computers and the internet. Students sometimes do not realize that when using information from the internet that it also needs to be cited. Also due to the many different or confusing rules for citing information, students sometimes may feel overwhelmed and they do not end up citing the information due to lack of knowledge. The education system needs to be more aggressive towards making students aware of what plagiarism is and is not. They also need to give more information to the students regarding how to properly cite information. Students and teachers need to work closer together regarding the possible ways that can be considered plagiarism and the proper way to cite information to avoid being accused of plagiarism.