Category: Avoiding plagiarism

Original Text:

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.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word:

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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word:

When Sean Corcoran was economist at New York University, he studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston.  While there, he discovered that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points.

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.

As an economist at New York University, Sean Corcoran studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston.  His findings included that 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.

During his time as an economist at New York University, Sean Corcoran performed studies in New York and Houston that tested each city’s teacher evaluation systems.  Among his findings of teachers in New York City, he concluded that the average margin of error was approximately 28 points (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.

During his time as an economist at New York University, Sean Corcoran performed studies in New York and Houston that tested each cities’ teacher evaluation systems.  Among his findings of teachers in New York City, he concluded that the average margin of error was “plus or minus 28 points” (Ravitch 270).

Works Cited

Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270

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: Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

Sean Corcoran, an economist from New York University, studied the teacher evaluation programs in New York City and Houston. He found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was about 28 points.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

It is difficult to trust any performance rating if the chances of getting a similar rating next year are no better than rolling a dice.

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.

A teacher who gets a certain ranking at one point in their career may be more prone to recieve a different score the next year. (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 may be troublesome to fully trust any performance evaluation if recieving a similar performance evaluation the following year is merely a task of probability.” (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.

Dr. Sean Corcoran, a graduate of University of Maryland at College Park (Economics) and current researcher at NYU studied the systems of evaluating teachers in both New York State and Texas, “He found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points…”

Diane Ravitch goes on to explain this phenomenon further:

“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…” (Ravitch, 270)

 

 

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.

Original source: Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books. Print.

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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,” 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.

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Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word:

An alarmingly error-prone measure, estimates the value-added and other “growth” models.” These measures attempt to isolate the “true effect” of an individual teacher through his or her students’ test scores.

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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.

An alarmingly error-prone measure, estimates the value-added and other “growth” models.” These measures attempt to isolate the “true effect” of an individual teacher through his or her students’ test scores (Ravitch 270).

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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.

Ravitch notes that, although some of the measures taken to identify a teacher’s success within her student’s test scores are considered to be effective, there are other measures that may have a margin of error (Ravitch 270).

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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.

Ravitch notes that, even though some of the measures taken to identify a teacher’s success within her student’s test scores are considered to be effective, there are other measures that “are alarmingly error-prone in any given year” (Ravitch 270).

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Works Cited

Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

There will never be stability in these evaluations, some of which will show genuine changes in performance.  It is hard to trust any performance evaluation if the odds of getting the same rating the following year are the same as tossing a coin.

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.

There will never be stability in these evaluations, some of which will show genuine changes in performance.  It is hard to trust any performance evaluation if the odds of getting the same rating the following year are the same as tossing a coin. (Ravitch 270)

Ravitch, Diane.  The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition.  New York: Basic Books, 2010.  Print.

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.

The rankings will always be inconsistent and some of the data will show real differences in performance.  Since the odds of getting the same rating the following year is solely up to chance, it is hard to rely on any performance evaluation. (Ravitch 270)

Ravitch, Diane.  The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition.  New York: Basic Books, 2010.  Print.

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.

The rankings lack consistency, and the data will show variations in student performance.  Furthermore, performance ratings are unreliable because “the odds of getting the same rating next year are no better than a coin toss” (Ravitch 270).

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

“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.” (Ravitch 271)

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

The value-added scores tend to change between years. A teacher who gets a particular spot in year one is likely to get a different spot the next 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.

“The scores tend to change between years. A teacher who gets a particular placement in year one usually gets a different placement the next year.” (Ravitch 271)

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.

Sometimes the scores for teachers can go up or down in different years. In some instances teachers ranked highly in one year can be ranked very low in the next year. (Ravitch 271)

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.

According to Ravitch, “the value-added scores also fluctuate between years.” Sometimes the scores for teachers can go up or down in different years. In some instances teachers ranked highly in one year can be ranked very low in the next year. (Ravitch 271)

Objective: In order to avoid plagiarism, one must first learn how to plagiarize. Each of the five paragraphs: the first three show different ways of plagiarizing, while the last two demonstrate how to paraphrase properly.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

Ex. 1: Diane Ravitch says that Sean Corcoran, an economist at New York University, studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston. She says he found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

Ex 2: Ravitch uses results from an economist named Sean Corcoran from New York University, who studied teacher evaluation systems and found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points, to prove that the scores were unreliable for others to judge the actual performance of the teacher.

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.

Ex 3: Ravitch uses results from an economist named Sean Corcoran from New York University, who studied teacher evaluation systems and found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points, to prove that the scores were unreliable for others to judge the actual performance of the teacher.

Works Cited:

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Basic Books, 2010.

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.

Ex 4: Through her own interpretation of Sean Cocoran’s analysis of teacher evaluations, Ravitch affirms that the “margin of error” when evaluating teachers in New York City is too high to accurately evaluate the teachers, and proves to be too inconsistent when comparing the scores over the years [1].

[1]:Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition (New York: Basic Books, 2010), 270-271.

Works Cited:

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Basic Books, 2010.

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.

In her novel, Diane Ravitch confirms that the system used to asses teachers is very unreliable and has too much of a gap to accurately evaluate them. Ravitch uses economist Sean Cocoran’s assertion that “the average ‘margin of error’ of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points” in order to prove that the system used in very inaccurate and unreliable [2].

[2]:Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition (New York: Basic Books, 2010), 270-271.

Works Cited:

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Basic Books, 2010.

Objective: In order to avoid plagiarism, one must first learn how to plagiarize.

In this post, I show different ways of plagiarizing, while the last two demonstrate how to paraphrase properly. 

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: Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System.New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

 

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

When evaluating teachers in New York and Houston, the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points. Also, these rankings are instable from year to year. It is difficult to trust performance ratings if the odds of getting the same rating next year are no better than a coin toss.

 

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

An NYU economist, Corocoran, found that the average “margin of error” in ratings of New York teachers was plus or minus 28 points. This is startling, because if you think about it, a teacher in the 43^rd percentile could actually range from the 15^th to the 71^st percentile.

 

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.

Using test scores to rank teachers is invalid due to instability. Some changes may shed light on real changes, but the chance of the same rating is a 50/50 shot (Ravitch, 271).

 

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.

There are many difficulties and holes in the attempt to rank teachers using students’ test scores. The changes of scores from year-to-year could illustrate improvement; however, this change could be easily due to chance (Ravitvh, 270-271).

 

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.

Measuring teacher performance is a difficult task to attempt. Using students’ test scores is prone to issues. Year-to-year changes could be accounted for by chance or improvement, but differentiating cause may be difficult (Ravitch, 271). NYU economist Sean Corcoran looked at teacher evaluation systems and “found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points” (Ravitch, 270). This gives a 56-point range a teacher could fall in when looking at their percentile ranking. This wide, and therefore not informative, range and instability from year-to-year create difficulties in ranking teachers based on student-scores.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

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. The average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

The ways in which teachers are evaluated in New York City and Houston have an average margin of error of plus or minus 28 points. For example, if some teachers ranked in the 43rd percentile were compared with other teachers, they may be as low as the 15th percentile or as high as the 71st.

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.

The ways in which teachers are evaluated in New York City and Houston have an average margin of error of plus or minus 28 points. For example, if some teachers ranked in the 43rd percentile were compared with other teachers, they may be as low as the 15th percentile or as high as the 71st (Ravitch 270-71)

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.

There are inherent errors found in how teacher performance is measured that are so large these measure can be seen as ineffective and unreliable. In some places, ranges of up to 28 points of difference in how these teachers are tested on their adequacy can be found. Thus, the question arises, how can these measure be trusted if there is such a high degree of variability in the results (Ravitch 270-71)?

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.

In looking at the ways in which teacher performance is measured, one can’t help but see that there are certain unreliable aspects to the methods. In a study performed by an economist at NYU, Sean Corcoran, “He found that the average “margin of error” of [the measure of] a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points”(Ravitch 270-71). In addition to the level of variability on every test, the performance of the teachers changed each year. These two factors provide the basis for why this measure of the performance of teachers in quite unreliable (Ravitch 270-71).

 

Original Text:

“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.”

Original Source:

Original source: Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

Example 1: 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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

Example 2: These value-added scores also fluctuate throughout the years. If an educator’s students get particular scores one year, these students are likely to get a different ranking the year after.

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.

Example 3: These value-added scores also fluctuate throughout the years. If an educator’s students get particular scores one year, these students are likely to get a different ranking the year after. [1]

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.

Example 4: Ravitch notes that, even though these scores are curved and inflated, there is still oscillation with each new class. Similarly, teacher’s success rates will not necessarily be as elevated with each class he/she instructs. [1]

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.

Example 5: Ravitch notes that, even though these scores are curved and inflated, there is still oscillation with each new class. Essentially, these scores will naturally “fluctuate between years” (Ravitch, 271). Similarly, teacher’s success rates will not necessarily be as elevated with each class he/she instructs.[1]

[1] Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

 

 

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word

Diane Ravitch argues against using student test scores to decide if an individual teacher is effective. She reports that Sean Corcoran, an economist at New York University, found that that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points.

 

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word

The evidence of Corcoran says that there is an average “margin of error” of plus or minus 28 points, making it unpredictable to judge a teacher from year to year because between each year these value-added scores may change, causing these results to be instable. These flaws make it challenging to trust the results of the student test scores.

 

Example 3: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, and include citation

Diane Ravitch uses the evidence of economist Sean Corcoran to prove that the “margin of error” between teachers to too large and that the scores fluctuate between years. As a consequence, this makes the value-added scores to be hard to trust.

Works Cited:

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Basic Books, 2010.

 

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

By using the evidence presented by an economist at New York University, Sean Corcoran, Ravitch proves that the “margin of error” is too large to have a teachings ranking actually hold merit. Furthermore, this “margin of error” varies each year as well as the rankings of teachings, there by creating unreliable data.[1]

Works Cited:

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Basic Books, 2010.

 

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

Diane Ravitch makes a case that the value-added scores to judge teachers are unreliable. With the evidence from an economist from New York University, which states that “the average ‘margin of error’ of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points”,[2] which means that the rankings of teachers is invalid.

Works Cited:

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Basic Books, 2010.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

Instability will always exist in the rankings. Although real performance changes will be reflected it is problematic to have faith in a performance rating system in which a coin toss would give you the same odds of getting the same rating 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.

Instability will always exist in the rankings. Although real performance changes are reflected it is problematic to have faith in a performance rating system in which a coin toss would give you the same odds of getting the same rating the following year. (Ravitch 271)

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.

While a margin of error is to be expected in the results of any survey, in examining the teacher evaluation systems in both New York City and Houston economist Sean Corcoran found a statistic that diminishes the amount of confidence one could have in these systems. The New York City margin of error was plus or minus 28 points. (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.

While a margin of error is to be expected in the results of any survey, in examining the teacher evaluation systems in both New York City and Houston economist Sean Corcoran found a statistic that diminishes the amount of confidence one could have in these systems. The New York City margin of error was plus or minus 28 points meaning that “a teacher who has ranked at the 43^rd percentile compared to his or her peers might actually be anywhere between the 15^th percentile and the 71^st percentile.” (Ravitch 270)

 Work Cited

Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

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.

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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

An economist at New York University, Sean Corcoran, studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston. In his results he found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points.

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.

According to Sean Corcoran, an economist at New York University who studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston, 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.

According to NYU economist Sean Corcoran’s findings, there is a flaw in the teacher evaluating system in New York City, therefor causing a teacher’s ranking, compared to others, to fall anywhere from plus 28 or minus 28 points (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.

After studying the teacher evaluation systems in New York and Houston, NYU economist Sean Corcoran reported “that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was either plus or minus 28 points” (Ravitch 270).

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,” 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.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

The value-added scores also vary between years. A teacher who obtains a particular ranking in year one is likely to get a different ranking the following year. There will continuously be instability in these rankings, some of which will reflect “real” performance changes.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

No measure is faultless, but the approximations of value-added and other “growth models,” which try to separate the “true effect” of a particular teacher via his or her students’ test scores, are disturbingly prone to error in any given year. Economist at New York University, Sean Corcoran, examined the teacher assessment systems in Houston and New York City.

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.

He discovered that the mean “margin of error” of a teacher from New York City was plus or minus 28 points. Thus, a teacher who has tiered at the 43rd percentile contrasted to his or her contemporaries may perhaps be anywhere between the 15th percentile and the 71st percentile (Ravitch 271).

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.

Although there is no way to properly evaluate a teacher, the value-added and other variations of “growth models” are especially detrimental and prone to error—regardless of the year (Ravitch 271). For example, Sean Corcoran, an esteemed economist at New York University, carefully assessed the systems used to evaluate teachers in a number of public schools consisted within both New York City and Houston, Texas districts (Ravitch 271).

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.

Because of how the system essentially functions, there is a strong likelihood that there will be no stability in teachers’ rankings (Ravitch 271). Fundamentally this means that although a teacher may receive one particular ranking in his or her first year, the teacher is most likely not going to receive the same ranking the ensuing year (Ravitch 271). Due to this sort of instability, only some of the rankings will truly “reflect ‘real’ performance changes” (Ravitch 271). Consequently, the system is incredibly faulty and it is no longer a system evaluating teachers’ performances—rather, a system that evaluates the teachers’ luck (Ravitch 271).

 

Works Cited:

Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

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Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

If a teacher gets a specific ranking in his or her first year it is probable that he or she will score differently the following year.  These rankings will always be unstable, and only some of them will reflect serious performance changes.

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.

If a teacher gets a specific ranking in his or her first year it is probable that he or she will score differently the following year.  These rankings will always be unstable, and only some of them will reflect real performance changes (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.

Generally, the ranking a given educator achieves after their first assessment is not indicative of future rankings, as only a portion of these scores can be relied upon to demonstrate the teacher’s true progress – or lack thereof (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.

Generally, the ranking a given educator achieves after their first assessment is not indicative of future rankings. These scores are widely considered to be unreliable, and only some of these rankings “will reflect ‘real’ performances changes” (Ravitch 270).

Works Cited

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York:
Basic, 2011. 270-71. Print.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

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.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

Instability in these rankings will always exist, some of which reflects real changes in performance. However, it is hard to be convinced by such a rating if the chances of receiving the same rating next year are not greater than a coin toss.

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.

Instability in these rankings will always exist, some of which reflect real changes in performance. However, it is hard to be convinced by such a rating if the chances of receiving the same rating next year are not greater than a coin toss (Ravitch 270-271).

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.

In her book, Ravitch discusses the instability of teacher performance rankings and how difficult it is to determine their accuracy, given how greatly they can change from year to year. She concludes that such ratings are too unreliable to be taken seriously (270-271).

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.

In her book, Ravitch discusses the instability of teacher performance rankings and how difficult it is to determine their accuracy, given how greatly they can change from year to year. She concludes that such ratings are too unreliable to be taken seriously because “the odds of getting the same rating next year are no better than a coin toss” (270-271).

Original source: Diane Ravitch, The Death and Life of the Great American School System. New York: Basic Books, 2011, pp. 270-71.

Example 1: Plagiarize the original text by copying portions of it word-for-word.

Sean Corcoran, an economist at New York University who studied the teacher evaluation systems in New York and Houston found that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28 points.

Example 2: Plagiarize the original text by paraphrasing its structure too closely, without copying it word-for-word.

Professor Corcoran, an economist at New York University, researched the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston. He concluded that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28points.

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.

Professor Corcoran, an economist at New York University, researched the teacher evaluation systems in New York City and Houston. He concluded that the average “margin of error” of a New York City teacher was plus or minus 28points. (Ravitch 270-271).

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.

According to economist Sean Corcoran, value-added scores are unreliable in the sense that the ranking a teacher receives varies by year (Ravitch 270-271).

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.

Based on Ravitch’s analysis of economist Sean Corcoran’s studies, she argues “A teacher who gets a particular ranking in year one is likely to get a different ranking the next year.” (Ravitch 270).

Works Cited

Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education. New York: Basic Books, 2011. Print.