Avril Trudeau & Marti SevierEnglish Bridge Program

Simon Fraser University

Paraphrasing for Academic Success

Overview 1. Warm up: Try your hand at paraphrase

2. AYK (activate your knowledge) and define paraphrase

3. Review current research on L1 & L2 paraphrasing

4. Agree on acceptable paraphrase

5. Explore L2 learner’s cultural perceptions regarding plagiarism and paraphrase

6. Share effective strategies to enable L2s to produce comprehensible paraphrase for academic success 7. Q & A

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Paraphrase in French: Putting yourself in your students’ shoes * Le français québécois… On parle français à Paris et à Québec, mais

avec des accents différents et certaines variations de vocabulaire et de grammaire. Les particularités du français québécois reflètent l’histoire de la région ou il s’est développé.

(see handout)

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ACTIVATE YOUR KNOWLEDGE

What is Paraphrase? Definition para·phrase (par′ə frāz ) noun:′

• a rewording of something spoken or written, usually for the purpose of making its meaning clearer

• the use of this as a literary or teaching device• an approximate rendering of a quotation, saying, etc.

whose exact words cannot be cited or recalled

Source: http://www.yourdictionary.com/paraphrase

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• a restatement • the same or different length as original• written with different words • often reorganized• faithful to the author’s intended meaning• reader-friendly

A paraphrase is…

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Why is paraphrase necessary?

A. As a learning strategy

B. To demonstrate understanding of the source text …

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C. To avoid academic dishonesty

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/417143/how_to_avoid_unintentional_plagiarism.html?cat=27

SFU Code of Academic Honesty

Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty in which an individual submits or presents the work of another person as his or her own. Scholarship quite properly rests upon examining and referring to the thoughts and writings of others. However, when excerpts are used in paragraphs or essays, the author must be acknowledged using an accepted format for the underlying discipline. Footnotes, endnotes, references and bibliographies must be complete.

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Plagiarism exists when all or part of an essay is copied from an author, or composed by another person, and presented as original work. Plagiarism also exists when there is inadequate recognition given to the author for phrases, sentences, or ideas of the author incorporated into an essay.

Source: www.sfu.ca/policies/teaching/t10-02.htm

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Culture and Copying

Increasing number of foreign students in western universities

• Chinese Students: Re-wording/paraphrase disrespectful to the ‘masters’.

• Middle Eastern students confused by the Western notion that one can 'own' ideas

• Japanese students: group supersedes individual effort (Sowden, 2005)

Both

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The problem of ‘acceptable’ and ‘unacceptable’ paraphrase for L2s = No standard agreement

Transgressive Intertextuality

Non-Transgressive Intertextuality

- Negative/punitive stance = you copy, you lose

- Academic literacy vs. academic dishonesty

- Ignorance is no excuse - Teach conventions, then apply strictures

- Textual ownership “originality & autonomy , independence & analysis”

- Intertextuality “ community & cooperation interdependence & synthesis” 11

CURRENT RESEARCH

Keck: The Taxonomy of Paraphrase Types• Near copy = 50% or more words contained

within unique links • Minimal revision = 20–49% words contained in unique links• Moderate revision = 1–19% words contained in unique links• Substantial revision = no unique links

Keck, C. ( 2006). Journal of Second Language Writing

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Example of ‘unique link’Original:• We should never lose sight of the fact that, despite

the power of culture, we are still limited by our biological structure, function and needs. [25 words]

Attempted Paraphrase:• We must not lose sight of the fact that, regardless of

the power of culture, we are Ø restricted by our biological structure, function and

needs. [14/25 = Near Copy]

(Excerpt from ‘Exploring Content’ , Smith, 2005)

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L1 & L2 Paraphrase

• Both copy from source texts without attribution.

• Both use approximately the same number of paraphrases but

• L2s use more ‘near copying’ than L1s. ( Keck, 2006)

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Shi: close paraphrase and total paraphrase

“reformulating syntax or changing wording of the original text’’

‘‘no trace of direct borrowing of two or three consecutive words from source texts’’.

Shi, L. (2004) Written Communication

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The task at hand

http://www.nu.edu/assets/img/NU/w3/peoGroup001.jpg

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Beyond the concerns about plagiarism, ELTs need to focus on:• growth in language competence• increased understanding of

- complex academic texts- new/unfamiliar concepts

• movement towards - synthesis of information- practical skills building - application of appropriate citing practices

Ultimate goals?

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Beyond avoiding plagiarism: why cite?

• To strengthen writing• To practice synthesis • To develop voice • To strengthen argument• To participate in the academy

Harris, R. (2004). Anti-plagiarism strategies for research papers. Retrieved March 2009, from w w w . v i r t u a l s a l t . c o m

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How can students prepare for paraphrase?

• Read extensively (Frodesen, 2002 )• Increase general knowledge base• Develop general & academic vocabulary • Learn and practice micro-skills of using

sources (Pecorari, 1998) - quoting, citing, paraphrasing, using

reporting verbs

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How to paraphrase

When paraphrasing, there are some basic steps to follow:

1.Underline. 2.Highlight.3.Rephrase.4.Review.

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How to paraphrase (cont’d.)

5. Keep the meaning.6. Re-structure.7. Provide synonyms. 8. Always cite.

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The English Bridge Program at SFU• +/-150 Ss/year - East Asian majority

• Entry level: IELTS 5.5 – 6

• Concerns with paraphrase

• Experience with plagiarism here

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Academic Skills in the English Bridge Program

Aims: • Develop academic reading skills• Teach research and citation skills• IELTS examination preparation

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The Independent Research Project

Academic Writing:

IRP, 6-8 sources

Academic Culture and Communication:

10 minute Powerpoint presentation based on IRP

Academic Skills:

Annotated Bibliography based on four source texts

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Paraphrasing in Academic Skills

• Stand-alone tasks– Process-based– Skills-focused

• Integrated into assignments– Deconstructing texts in daily work– Summary writing– IRP support/Annotated bibliography

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Mixed results

OriginalUnfortunately, most resource-rich countries do not see economic development follow their natural wealth. Rather, relatively resource-poor regions such as East Asia have grown much faster than countries in Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East that have considerable deposits of oil, natural gas, and minerals.

Student paraphraseThe countries which have poor resource have a depressed economic development of abundance resource, but they have grown slower than the resource rich countries such as East Asia.

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An analysis using Text-Lex CompareTOKENS Recycle Index: (18 repeated tokens : 28 tokens in new text) = 64.29 Of these, unique links (lexical words occurring only once in the original text) are

highlighted in yellow, while general links (lexical words occurring more than once) are highlighted in yellow and italicized.

Shared18 tokens13 types

001. have 3002. resource 3003. countries 2004. as 1005. development 1006. east 1007. economic 1008. grown 1009. of 1010. poor 1011. rich 1012. such 1013. than 1

Cobb, T. (2000) Text Lex compare, The compleat lexical tutor, http://www.lextutor.ca/text_lex_compare/

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A Sequence of Paraphrase Tasks

Phase 1: Deconstructing the text A. Looking at the source

B. Looking at main idea and support

information

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A Sequence of Paraphrase tasks, cont’d

Phase 2: Citing conventions

A. Identify purpose

B. Focus on reporting verbs

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A sequence of paraphrasing tasks, cont’d

Phase 3: Vocabulary: synonyms & substitutes

A. Identify technical terms

B. Underline key words or phrases

C. Find synonyms/substitute words

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A Sequence of Paraphrasing tasks, cont’d

Phase 3: Vocabulary: word families

Verb Noun Adjective Adverbacknowledge --

assignment

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A sequence of paraphrasing tasks, cont’d

Phase 4 : Guided rewriting: changing sentence structureOriginal:

Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty in which an individual submits or presents the work of another person as his or her own. (has committed)

Rewritten: When someone submits or presents the work of another as their own s/he has committed plagiarism.

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Conclusion : push & pull?

Push: NO CHOICE

- Avoid the risks of plagiarism

Pull: COMPELLING REASONS- Build reading and writing

skills- Expand critical

thinking/ability to synthesize

- Develop voice as a writer - Participate in academic

community

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Links for Paraphrase practice

Acceptable, not acceptable– Teaching Guide for graduate student instructors

– Paraphrase: Write it in Your Own Words

– Summarising and note-taking

– University of Houston Victoria

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Links for Citation General

Academic writing: Citing sources Citation builder Son of Citation MachineThe automatic bibliography and citation makerKnight Cite Citation Styles21st Century Information fluency

For Books Only Free automatic bibliography generator

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Links to Paraphrase, Summary and Synthesis

The links below offer interesting interactive exercises to try out with students during lab time or for online HW…

Reporting - paraphrase, summary & synthesis

More resources for you and your students:

Paraphrase and Summary

Paraphrase: Write it in Your Own Words

Reporting Verbs

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REFERENCESAngélil-Carter, S. (2000). Stolen Language? Plagiarism in Writing. Essex:

Pearson Education Limited.Chandrasoma, R., Thompson, C., & Pennycook, A. (2004). Beyond

plagiarism: Transgressive and non-transgressive intertextuality. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 3(3). Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15327701jlie0303_1

Flowerdew, J. & Li, Y. (2007). Plagiarism and second language writing in an electronic age. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 27

Frodesen, J. (n.d.). Developing paraphrasing skills: A pre-paraphrasing mini-lesson. Retrieved March 10, 2009 from www.ucop.edu/dws/lounge/dws_ml_pre_paraphrasing.pdf.

Frodesen, J. (2004). Developing paraphrasing skills through vocabulary knowledge and control

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References, cont’d

Introna, L., Hayes, N. , Blair, L. & Wood, E. (2003). Cultural attitudes towards plagiarism. Lancaster University. Retrieved February 2009, from www.plagiarismadvice.org/images/bin/lancsplagiarismreport.pdfKeck, C. (2006). The use of paraphrase in summary writing: A comparison of L1 and L2 writers. Journal of Second Language Writing, 15. Retrieved February 22, 2009, from www.sciencedirect.comPecorari, D. (1998). Process citing: avoiding plagiarism in student writing

Retrieved March 12, 2009, from www.brookes.ac.uk/schools/education/ eal/jl-archive/jl-bestof/31.pdfPecorari, D. (2003). Good and original. Plagiarism and patch-writing in second language writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 12(4) 317- 345. Retrieved March 12, 2009 from www.sciencedirect.comPennycook, A . (1996). Borrowing others' words: Text, ownership, memory, and plagiarism. TESOL Quarterly, 30(2). Retrieved March 14, 2009, from

http://www.ingentaconnect.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/content/tesol/tq/1996

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References, cont’d

Phan Le Ha, (2006). Plagiarism and overseas students: stereotypes again? English Language Teaching Journal, 60(1). Retrieved March 15, 2009 from

http://eltj.oxfordjournals.orgPincas, A. (2001). Culture, cognition and communication in global education.

Distance Education, 22(1). Retrieved February 2009, from http://www.informaworld.com

Liu, D. (2005). Plagiarism in ESOL students: is cultural conditioning truly the major culprit? English Language Teaching Journal, 59(3), 234-241. Retrieved March 15, 2009 from http://eltj.oxfordjournals.org

Shi, L. (2004). Textual borrowing in second-language writing. Written Communication, 21(2). Retrieved February 2009, from

http://wcx.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/21/2/171Shi, L. (2006). Cultural backgrounds and textual appropriation. Language Awareness, 15 (4). Retrieved February 2009,

from www.informaworld.com41

References, cont’d

Shi, L. (2008). Textual appropriation and citing behaviors of university undergraduates. Applied Linguistics 1 (24). Retrieved January

2009,from Oxford University Press 2008 . Shirley, S. (2004). The art of paraphrase. Teaching English in the Two Year College, 32(2), 186-188. Retrieved March 2009, from www.ncte.orgSowden, C. (2005). Plagiarism and the culture of multilingual students in higher education abroad . English Language Teaching Journal, 59(3) 226-233. Retrieved March 15, 2009, from http://eltj.oxfordjournals.org

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