The goal of this activity is to give us practice avoiding plagiarism by paraphrasing and crediting sources correctly. Below are 3 examples of plagiarism that might go unnoticed and two examples of how to properly paraphrase and cite the author of the source.
Original text:
No measure is perfect, but the estimates of value-added and other “growth models,” which attempt to isolate the “true effect” of an individual teacher through his or her students’ test scores, are alarmingly error-prone in any given year. Sean Corcoran, an economist at New York University, studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston. He found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points. So, a teachers who has ranked at the 43rd percentile compared to his or her peers might actually be anywhere between the 15th percentile and the 71st percentile. The value-added scores also fluctuate between years. A teacher who gets a particular ranking in year one is likely to get a different ranking the next year. There will always be instability in these rankings, some of which will reflect “real” performance changes. But it is difficult to trust any performance rating if the odds of getting the same rating next year are no better than a coin toss.
Original source: Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books. Print.
Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.
No measure is perfect, but the estimates of value-added and other “growth models” are error-prone in any given year.
Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.
The value-added scores also vary every year. A teacher who gets a ranking one year is likely to get a different ranking the following year.
Example 3: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, and include a citation. Even though you cited it, paraphrasing too closely is still plagiarism.
Sean Corcoran an economist conducted a study on the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston. His results showed the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points (Ravitch 270).
Example 4: Properly paraphrase from the original text by restating the author’s ideas in different words and phrases, and include a citation to the original source.
It is problematic to rely on performance ratings because they dont necessarily reflect real changes. The odds of seeing changes are similar to those received from a coin toss (Ravitch 270).
Example 5: Properly paraphrase from the original text by restating the author’s ideas in different words and phrases, add a direct quote, and include a citation to the original source.
A teacher who “has ranked at the 43rd percentile compared to his or her peers might actually be anywhere between the 15th percentile and the 71st percentile (Ravitch 270)”. The value-added scores and rankings vary. There is a possibility for a teacher who receives a high ranking one year to receive a lower ranking the next year and vice versa (Ravitch 270).
This was a great activity and it made me more aware of what is considered plagiarism even when one might not think so.
This exercise demonstrates that you correctly understand key differences between plagiarizing versus properly paraphrasing sources, and I’m glad that you appreciated the activity. Here are some additional comments to improve your writing:
In example #3, add commas like this: “Sean Corcoran, an economist, conducted a study on. . .”
In example #5, the page citation should appear outside the quotation, like this: “. . . and the 71st percentile” (Ravitch 270).