Plagiarism, Licensing, and the Proper Use of Digital Textbooks

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Chapter 12 Plagiarism, Licensing, and the Proper Use of Digital Textbooks

ABSTRACT This chapter explores ways to avoid plagiarism in digital textbooks’ use and development. Traditionally, the plagiarism recommendation refers to books and articles. How about textbooks? However, to avoid plagiarism it is important to make sure that licensing in digital textbooks’ use and development is properly used. For licensing to be a benefit for learning, it is important to note that it may impose additional costs. This chapter reflects and includes in discussion the issue on licensing, specifically the Creative Common (CC) license of open educational resources. Secondly, it considers how the Creative Common License could improve the proper use of digital textbooks. Finally, it explores how the use of digital tools can allow students to learn more effectively.

INTRODUCTION There are many types of plagiarism. On Wri- teCheck blog can be read that The University Plagiarism refers to the acts of “turning in someone of Pittsburgh’s undergraduate plagiarism policy else’s work as your own; copying words or ideas (University of Pittsburgh, 2008) lists examples from someone else without giving credit; failing to of plagiarism. The following are a few examples put a quotation in quotation marks; giving incor- of the many manifestation of plagiarism, cited at rect information about the source of a quotation; University of Pittsburgh actual site with reference changing words but copying the sentence structure to Gaunt, Troubadours and Irony, Cambridge: of a source without giving credit; copying so many Cambridge University Press (1989, p. 23): words or ideas from a source that it makes up the majority of your work, whether you give credit • Copying the text verbatim without enclos- or not” (Plagiarism.org, 2014). Oxford University ing it is quotation marks and acknowledg- defines plagiarism as “to copying or paraphrasing the source; ing of other people’s work or ideas without full • Rearranging the elements of the source acknowledgement” (Oxford University, 2014). text without proper acknowledgment;

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-8300-6.ch012

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• Selective copying elements of the source • Plan ahead: budget enough time to search text without proper acknowledgment; for sources, to take notes and to think about • Paraphrasing without proper how to use the sources in essay; acknowledgment; • Don’t cut and paste: file and label your • Reproducing information that is neither sources: open a separate file on computer self-evident nor common knowledge with- for each source; include the full citation for out providing proper acknowledgment; the print source or the full URL; back up • Incorporating an idea brought up in con- to files; versation into your work without proper • Keep your own writing and your sources acknowledgment; separate; • Using in your own work ideas or mate- • Keep your notes and your draft separate at rial from another student’s work on a all stages of writing process; similar or identical subject without proper • Paraphrase carefully in your notes; ac- acknowledgment; knowledge your sources explicitly when • Asking or paying someone more proficient paraphrasing; that yourself to vet your work without ac- • Avoid reading a classmate’s paper for knowledging that individual’s contribution; inspiration; • Using on-line translators or interpret- • Don’t save your citation for later; ers, or translating or interpreting software • Quote your source properly: always in completing your work without proper use quotation marks for directly quoted acknowledgment; material; • Asking or paying someone to produce or • Keep a source trail in notes and in each to complete a piece of work, or purchas- successive draft of essay; ing a paper from a Web-based essay ser- vice constitutes plagiarism, as does taking This chapter is interested in exploring the key Web-based material in one language and aspects of plagiarism and the ways to avoid it. translating, or having it translated, into an- This chapter will focus, therefore, on the role that other without proper acknowledgment. licensing choice can play in terms of proper use of digital textbooks. For the purpose of this paper, In Harvard Guide to Using Resource (2014) it was used the term “open textbook” to mean an can be read that it is not enough to know why openly-licensed textbook offered online by its plagiarism is taken so seriously in the academic author(s) or through a non-profit or commercial world or to know how to recognize it. More open-licensed publisher. The open license sets up important is to know how to avoid it. The best open textbooks apart from traditional textbooks way to solve this issue is 1) to understand what by allowing students to read online, download, or it happiness when is written a paper and 2) to do sometimes print the book at no additional costs. follow a method that is systematic and careful. Some models allow users the choice to use free There are some guidelines: online access or low-cost alternative formats such as print, audio, or e-book. Usually the open • Keep track of your sources; print electronic textbooks are faculty-written and peer reviewed sources; just like printed textbooks. • Keep sources in correct context;

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