Plagiarism is something we talk about a lot in school. Before you take this short integrity self-check, please review these basic ideas:
There are two main ways to use information from someone else without plagiarizing:
Directly quote the information and use quotation marks and give appropriate reference to the author and where the information originated.
Paraphrase the information into your own words but still give appropriate reference to the author and where the information originated.
Any information that is general knowledge, for example a date you learned and remembered from school–The Civil War ended in 1865–does not have to be referenced.
Any information that is not your original thought (other than what is said in the paragraph above) must be referenced or it is considered plagiarized.
Borrowing or purchasing information or papers is plagiarism.
Plagiarism is not only dishonesty but it is illegal.