What Are the Consequences of Plagiarism in Assignment? How to Avoid It?

What Are the Consequences of Plagiarism in Assignment? How to Avoid Plagiarism in Assignments?

Plagiarism is one of the major issues in academic writing. So, what damage does it cause to an assignment? In the United States, around 59% of students admitted that they had cheated at least once in their academic years. Now, if this tells us anything, then it’s the fact that plagiarism can be caused by laziness.

But, in this article, we’ll explore the roots of plagiarism, its types, its consequences, and how you can avoid it. So, let’s get started.

What Is Plagiarism: Three Main Types

Plagiarism happens when a writer uses another author’s words or ideas without giving them credit. It is a form of intellectual theft and might cause legal troubles. But, it is possible to use another writer’s work word-by-word, as long as you quote them directly or give them credit.

The origin of plagiarism and the term used to describe it helps us understand why it’s so unethical. For instance, the word plagiarize comes from the Latin word “plagiarius,” which means kidnapper or thief.

That’s why plagiarism is not just about stealing someone’s words; it can also be about stealing their ideas and passing them off as your own. This factor makes it unethical, ruins the writer’s reputation, and denies the original author their due credit. But, here are three main types of plagiarism to understand it better:

·       Patchwork/Mosaic plagiarism

It is a type of plagiarism that can be found in the form of sentences, paragraphs, or even entire essays. Mosaic plagiarism is a form of plagiarism that is not detected easily. The term mosaic plagiarism was coined by Professor Donald McCabe in his book “Plagiarism and College Culture.”

He defines it as “a form of plagiarism that is not detected by the software.” Mosaic plagiarism can be found in the form of sentences, paragraphs, or even entire essays.

·       Direct Plagiarism

The most common form of plagiarism is when someone copies another person’s work and tries to pass it off as their own. This is called “direct plagiarism”.

This happens when a writer doesn’t only deny the original author any credit but doesn’t make any changes either. This is considered the most unethical type, as it’s theft of entire intellectual property.

·       Accidental Plagiarism

Accidental plagiarism is a common problem in the world of content writing. It happens when a writer accidentally writes something that’s already written. Or when a writer forgets to quote or cite the original author.

5 Main Consequences of Plagiarism in Assignment

The consequences of plagiarism are far-stretching, from personal loss to career implications. Therefore, to sum up, a few major drawbacks of plagiarism, here are the five consequences of plagiarizing an assignment:

1.   Ruptured Reputation

The reputation of a student depends on a lot of things. And writing original and plagiarism-free essays, assignments, or other types of academic content is one of them. So, when you plagiarize, what happens?

Your reputation among your peers, teachers, and superiors gets ruptured. This doesn’t only cause a downward spiral in your studies but also brings down your name and trustworthiness.

2.   Lost Credibility

Speaking of trustworthiness, a credible writer always relies on research, understanding, logical arguments, etc., to write outstanding content. So, when a writer plagiarizes, they lose all that credibility.

The same goes for a student. When a student plagiarizes, their credibility goes out the window. So, from that point on, anything they write will be looked down upon as suspicious and possibly plagiarized.

3.   Plummeting Grades

When you fail an assignment because of plagiarism, it doesn’t only cause you that particular essay or research paper. Instead, it has long-term effects on your grade.

Many colleges and universities include quality assignments as a key determining factor in their grading system. So, when you plagiarize, you risk your grades plummeting.

4.    Long-term Career Implication

Besides learning and understanding, assignments help you get a grasp of your line of study. So, if you plan a career in the same field, you must understand things properly.

Plagiarism prevents you from that and causes long-term career implications. Thus, when the time comes, and you need a knowledgeable understanding of something, plagiarism would have long-prevented you from that.

5.   Harmed Learning Curve

Assignments help you learn much more than lectures or reading a book. They elevate your other skills, like:

• Research,
• Understanding,
• Formulating an argument,
• Getting your point across.

So, when students plagiarize their assignments, they harm their learning curve, preventing them from learning many things besides writing.

How to Avoid Plagiarism in Assignments

How to Avoid Plagiarism in Assignment: The best way to avoid any sort of plagiarism is to use a plagiarism checker, and then paraphrase your content before publishing your content. But, to ensure that you are not accidentally copying someone else’s work and passing it off as your own, it’s imperative to follow this process:

1.   Use a Plagiarism Checker

The first thing you’ll do is use a viable plagiarism checker to check for plagiarism in your text:

So, once you upload your content, you’ll have to scan it by clicking on “Check Plagiarism” and allowing it to scan the internet and other databases.

2.   Analyzing Percentage & Noting Down Source

Once the scan is down, the tool will tell you exactly how much duplicity there is in your assignment. So, what you need to do is:

1. Analyze the percentage
2. Locate the original source

Like this:

Once you click on the compare button, you’ll be brought to the source of plagiarized text:

Now, you need to note this down to remove plagiarism. So, take notes once you find the source.

3.    Paraphrasing the Text & Citing the Source

The next step is to paraphrase your text with a capable paraphrasing tool that offers multiple content tones. Therefore, you can use any you like, as long as the final result is as follow:

You’ll see this once you upload your content and ask it to paraphrase. Once done, here’s what’s next

So, once your content is paraphrased, you’ll have to cite the source. You can use any style, like APA, MLA, etc., depending on what your assignment requires.

Conclusion

List of Consequences of Plagiarism in Assignment there you have the five main consequences of plagiarism and a four-step procedure to avoid it. Now, the consequences are long-bearing and can cause a lot of trouble. Therefore You must learn How to Avoid Plagiarism in Assignments and follow this procedure that barely takes five minutes to ensure the originality of your content.