Paraphrasing 07.29.2013

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing: Restating Another Work in Your Own

Words

Prepared by Dr. Andree SwansonAC Swanson Group, Highlands Ranch, CO

Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

Academic WritingAcademic Writing

1Image(s) from Microsoft Clip Art.

What is paraphrasing?

Why do we use paraphrasing?

Citing your source

Include the in-text or parenthetical citation

No need to include page or paragraph number

Reducing the number of quotes in a paper

2Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

Question You’ve been asked to paraphrase a

paragraph for a paper? How do you do it?

3Image(s) from Microsoft Clip Art. Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

Answer You are turning the words that you read into your

own words.

You avoid:

Including your opinion

Using a quote from the source

It is as if you are translating the words from the

author’s to yours.



Question You can easily put the section that you want

to use in quotes, cite the source, and then

avoid plagiarism; however, your faculty

member says: “You need to avoid too many

long quotes”. So, what do you do?


Answer

You need to put the work in your own

words

Otherwise you are stealing someone else’s work

A good paraphrase is exact, complete, and in

your own words

You must cite your source


Remember… there is no new

information in the world

Unless you are working on your

doctoral dissertation and coming up

with new concepts, theories, and

material, you are presenting someone

else’s ideas in your research paper or

thesis.


Think like an auditor…

What does this mean? It is your paper trail to your resource.

If you find a citation within the text, you can

be assured (if done right), that there will be a

corresponding reference on your Works Cited

(MLA) or Reference (APA) page.9Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

Here is an example using an exact quote

The teacher entered into a contract with

the school district to work at a specific

school. “The classical definition of a

contract is a legally binding agreement

made between two or more person” (Carby-

Hall, 2003, p. 24). 10Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

Here is an example using a paraphrase

The teacher entered into a contract with the

school district to work at a specific school. A

contract is a compulsory agreement between

at least two people. A contract can be held up

in court. It is a legal document (Carby-Hall,

2003). 11Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

The teacher entered into a contract with the school district to work at a specific school. A contract is a compulsory agreement between at least two people. A contract can be held up in court. It is a legal document

(Carby-Hall, 2003).

Note that the page or paragraph number is not included when you paraphrase.


Essentially the ONLY time that you should use a quotation is when your source states: an opinion that someone

may question,

presents a vivid description of a personal feeling or personal historical event,

defines a term,

makes a statement that you cannot reasonably paraphrase,

or makes a statement that you want to argue against in considerable

detail.


Pay attention to how many quotes that

you use. If more than 5-10% of your paper consists

of quotations, you must have very sound

justification for having so many quotes. Avoid placing one quote after another.


Scholarly journals normally indicate that if

more than 30% of the information in your

paper comes from any single source, then

you must co-author your paper with that

other author. This is a major reason that you must use

more than one source for your paper

and/or presentation. 15Copyright © AC Swanson Group 2009 - 2013

Avoid the temptation to read an article and copy that

author's thought pattern (ideas) into your own paper. This is similar to creating a computer program that has

a similar look and feel" to another program without

obtaining permission. Many companies have lost millions of dollars for such

acts. The written version is called plagiarism and also has

cost authors their reputations and/or substantial lawsuit

settlements.


When in doubt, ask your faculty

member. He/she will be able to

coach you through the process of

paraphrasing.



Education

Paraphrasing 07.29.2013