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Upper Merion Area High School Plagiarism Policy
We, the community of Upper Merion Area High School, understand and value intellectual property. Plagiarism is not only dishonest but also stunts the learning process and teaches students that they can succeed through dishonest means. Therefore, we strive to teach students the importance of documenting the ideas and words of others in all formats. In order to do so, we must not only teach the ethics and mechanics of documentation, but also hold students responsible for the ethical use of the ideas and words of others.
All teachers are expected to provide the instruction and support necessary for students to use research ethically. All students are expected to demonstrate integrity and honesty in the submission of all work and to document accurately, regardless of the information that is ultimately presented (summary, paraphrase or direct quotation) or the medium used (written, oral or visual). Plagiarism in any form is unacceptable.It is the student’s responsibility to:
- Ask questions and seek help from the teacher and librarian;
- Submit only his/her own work;
- Follow the Upper Merion Area High School Research format, MLA 7th edition available on the Library Homepage. This includes using NoodleTools for source citation.
- Use Works Cited and Works Consulted pages accurately and appropriately
- Use in-text documentation accurately and appropriately
- Direct copying of the work or ideas of another submitted as the student’s own, including copying from that of another student or adult, or from an electronic or print source
- Lack of appropriate in-text documentation. Paraphrasing without documentation is plagiarism.
- Documentation that does not check out or does not match the Works Cited or Works Consulted list
- Work turned in on the final due date without any evidence of research or creative process or that is obviously inconsistent with student’s previous work
- Since a plagiarised assignment is not the student's work, it cannot be graded as a measurement of the student's learning. The student will be expected to complete the assignment again, for credit, under increased supervision and support of the teacher.
- A meeting with the student, parents and assistant principal with the purpose of preventing future occurrences of plagiarism may occur.
- Disciplinary consequences for plagiarism depend on the complexity of the assignment and severity of the plagiarism. The consequence of a first-time offense is a Saturday detention or in-school suspension. The progressive discipline code will be followed for subsequent offenses.