Plagiarism: Home

Campus library services and materials are available. Need books? Need to use a computer with Internet? Need to print and/or make copies?

Come by or call or email your campus library for assistance.

LIBRARY HOURS
Monday - Thursday  7:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Friday  7:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Saturday & Sunday​  CLOSED

COLLEGE WIDE PHONE NUMBER
(800)648-3271

FAYETTE CAMPUS LIBRARY   EXT# 5141 
(Located on the East Wing of Complex)
Mary Harris - Librarian
mary.harris@bscc.edu
Lesley Whitehead - Library Assistant
lesley.whitehead@bscc.edu
HAMILTON CAMPUS LIBRARY   EXT# 5356
(Administration Building)
Tammy Sanders - Librarian
tammy.sanders@bscc.edu
JASPER CAMPUS LIBRARY   EXT# 5748
(Irma D. Nicholson Library Building)
Rebecca E. Whitten - Librarian
rebecca.whitten@bscc.edu
Pat Bowden - Library Assistant
pat.bowden@bscc.edu
PICKENS CAMPUS LIBRARY   EXT# 5646
​(Adjacent to Main Office)
Stephanie Butler - Part-time Librarian
stephanie.butler@bscc.edu
SUMITON CAMPUS LIBRARY   EXT# 5242
(1200 Building - 1st Floor)
Rebecca E. Whitten - Librarian
rebecca.whitten@bscc.edu
Alaina Browning - Library Assistant
alaina.browning@bscc.edu

Bevill State Community College -- Student Technology Loan Program

Beginning on the first day of class, and throughout the semester, currently enrolled students can check out laptops from their campus library.  Laptops are checked out for the entire semester and are required to be returned on the last day of final exams. 

ALL students (new and returning) will need to bring the following required items with them to the Library to check out a laptop: 

• Current Semester Bill/Statement from Business Office and SIGNED by Business Office – statement must show either a zero ($0) balance or enrollment in the payment plan
• Current Semester Schedule – maybe printed out in the Library at no cost but it MUST BE A PRINTOUT – Showing screenshots on phones and/or other devices do not fulfill this requirement
• IDENTIFICATION
  • New students – Current Driver’s License or BSCC ID Card
  • Returning Students – BSCC ID CARD

The College Libraries cannot hold laptops for students
All student laptops are available on a "first-come first-serve" basis ONLY

If you have any questions, please contact your campus library. 

We hope everyone has a great semester!

WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?

Plagiarism is defined by Joan M. Reitz in the Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science (ODLIS) as being the “copying or closely imitating the work of another writer, composer, etc., without permission and with the intention of passing the results off as original work.” Within the field of publishing, copyright law states literary theft is a criminal offense.  In academic arenas, specifically within colleges and universities, students who engage in plagiarism have severe penalties imposed upon them as it is considered an ethical and moral issue.

Plagiarism can be avoided by simply documenting the source(s) used. 

WHAT CONSTITUTES PLAGIARISM?

• Purchasing and/or downloading a paper, such as from a research service or term-paper mill, and submitting it as your own work
• Submitting another student’s work, with or without that student’s consent or knowledge, as your own work
• Copying any portion of another individual’s work without proper acknowledgement
• Copying material from a source, supplying proper documentation, but leaving out quotation marks or failing to indent properly
• Paraphrasing ideas and language from a source without proper documentation

WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES FOR PLAGIARISM?

Plagiarism can have serious consequences.  A student committing plagiarism may receive a zero on the plagiarized assignment, fail the course, and/or face expulsion from the school.

HOW DOES A STUDENT AVOID PLAGIARISM?

A student needs to always give credit where credit is due by acknowledging the sources used within the assignment, in a bibliography and/or works cited list.  

WHAT DOES “CITING A SOURCE” MEAN?

Citing a source means giving credit to someone or something when what you use is not your own original work.

WHEN SHOULD A SOURCE BE CITED?

• When using another individual’s idea, opinion, and/or theory
• When using use any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings, pictures, sounds, etc., or any other piece of information which was obtained from any source
• When using quotations of another individual’s spoken or written words
• When paraphrasing another individual’s spoken or written words

WHAT NEEDS TO BE INCLUDED WHEN YOU CITE A SOURCE?

• Who wrote and/or created it
• What it is called
• Where and by whom it was published or produced
• When it was published or produced

It does not matter where information is found, whether it is a book, an interview, an electronic resource, or from the Internet. When using the work of others, credit must be given.  When in doubt, cite your source!

READ THE SOURCE IN ITS ENTIRETY

• It's easy to take something out of context if you only read a portion of it! If you read the entire source, you should have a better feel of the author's meaning.

TAKE DETAILED NOTES AS YOU READ

• Anytime you note something word-for-word, immediately place it in quotation marks. Also note what page or section you found it on.
• On each page, make sure you note the original source and the date you accessed the source. This will make citation much easier, especially if you are working with multiple sources or doing research over a long stretch of time.
• Try not to mix your own thoughts and commentary with excerpts from your source. Keep them on separate pages, draw two columns on your page, or switch your pen color.
• If you find it difficult to take notes with electronic sources - or if you find yourself drawn to the copy-paste method - print out your sources and deal with them in print form.

RETURN TO YOUR NOTES LATER

• In order to do this, you must not procrastinate on your projects. If you don't have sufficient time, you won't do your best work, and it may lead you to make poor decisions when including your sources. Remember, if you get caught plagiarizing, the situation or your intentions won't be an excuse. Build in time to synthesize and properly work in your sources.
• Identify which sources are best for inclusion. Understand when you have to cite. Then decide whether you should directly quote, summarize, or paraphrase. If you are directly quoting, double-check your notes against the source for accuracy. If you are summarizing or paraphrasing:
  • Make sure the source is fresh in your mind, but not right in front of you. If you see the original text, you are more likely to want to use their terms and sentence structure.
  • Check your writing against the original. Remember, you should have changed the sentence structure and the language but the meaning of the source should still be the same. Any language that is unique to the source should be placed in quotation marks or removed. You may find it necessary to do several edits.

CONSULT WITH THE EXPERTS

• If you need a second opinion, ask!  Ask a librarian or your professor. 

Source: Butler University Libraries and Center for Academic Technology

• GOOGLE DRIVE 

  Drive starts you with 15 GB of free Google online storage, so you can keep photos, stories, designs, drawings, recordings, videos – anything.

• QUIZLET 

  Quizlet is a flashcard app that allows you to make multiple sets so you can make a new set for every class! Not only that, but it is also easy to sync between all your devices. It also has a function where it will create tests for you out of your flashcards.

• CHEGG (Study Blue) 

  As the leading student-first connected learning platform, Chegg's mission is to help every student achieve their best, in school and beyond. Get step-by-step Textbook Solutions or ask homework questions to get expert answers, plus textbook rentals, writing & citation help, exam prep and more.