Detecting Plagiarism

Clues

• Visual clues

  Unusual formatting (Web site page numbers or URL; grayed out letters or words); mixed citation styles; strange or poor layout; sections or sentences that do not relate to each other

• Content clues

  References to graphs and charts that are not there or books not in the library; not correct type of paper (descriptive, narrative, etc.); not on assigned topic; bibliography doesn't use correct style or includes no recent sources; reference made to historical events as if they were current; jargon or advanced vocabulary used; Web sites listed are inactive; contains reference to its paper mill origin

• Student knowledge of paper content

  Can students summarize main points? Provide copies of cited material?