Speech Choir and Ignite Competition

Today April 21, 2016. In this day, speech choir competition along with the Ignite speech was held at Asia Pacific College's Auditorium. All in all there were 10 contestants or participants. But of course life must go on after the competition I went home and lie down in my bed. It was a good lose Why? Because I know that everyone did their best in the competition besides it's just a competition and there are many more competition that we can join and win hopefully. It's not the end of the world if we lose in a competition right. It was a good experience for us because we became more solid. Our block became more close to each other. We needed to be cooperative so that our speech would be perfect and that's what we did. Although we did not win but for ourselves we won the championship.  You see everyone wants to win but of course it's a competition so there's no way that no one will lose. That's life sometimes we win sometimes we lose. It's not fair if we always win same if we always lose.
I know the feeling when a speaker should have his/ her speech for only 5 mins. and they should follow the slides and use transitions to perfectly introduce a new topic. I know that fortunately I'm done with my Ignite speech and I would say that it is not really scary when you're talking in front of the audience. You don't have to memorize words per words all you have to do is read and read and read until you familiarize your speech.

Here are some tips on how to deliver a speech:

1. Gratitude is always the best place to begin.
Any and every gig is an honour. Thank the host, and thank the audience for the possible mountains they moved to show up and listen to you.
2. Being prepared is an act of love. And intelligence.
Even if you can improv with the best of them, do a complete run through in advance, and a written key points list of your talk. I like to do a verbal run through in the tub the day before (the tub is my second office, really,) and I do a key points list the morning of the event.
3. Lead with your best stuff.
Make an entrance. Put forth your Big Point right away. Start with your best story, your funniest joke, your guiding theory. Don’t make them wait to see you shine. Grab ‘em from the get-go.
4. Know who you’re talking to.
A co-presenter and I gave a talk to a group of underprivileged single moms. My co-presenter talked about shopping at Tiffany’s and Saks. They turned on us. It was ugly. Along this same line…
5. Research your audience.
Guy Kawasaki is great at this. At a presentation in Vancouver last year, he sported a Vancouver Canucks jersey, made some good jokes about the event organizers, and told some personal stories that related to the organization’s mission.
6. Actively respect your audience.
A playwright friend of mine commented on an actor’s performance: “You could tell she didn’t like the character that she was playing. And you’ve always got to find something to love about who you’re playing to make it real.” Same goes for your audience. You won’t always be presenting or pitching to your tribe, to people you “like”—find the common ground and put your love there.
7. Never, ever admit to fatigue.
I heard a very popular author open his talk, to a packed theatre, with “I’m quite tired, I’ve been on the road for a few days.” Instant downer. It made us feel guilty for keeping him up past his bedtime, or ticked that we spent $50 to hear a jet-lagged psychologist. I’ve done gigs on two hours of sleep, in the middle of a professional tragedy, stoned on Sinutab. You get up there and you SMILE, no matter what. You can collapse when you get off stage.
8. Stay in the lead as long as you’re on stage.
A few weeks ago I was speaking to a ballroom of university business students at The Four Seasons Hotel. As I was leaving the stage, a woman at the back of the room raised her hand. I’d just handed back my mic, but I gestured to take her question. She proceeded to tell me that I was dressed like a slob and not setting a good example to the students about personal branding. Not kidding. (And I looked HOT, BTW.) You could have heard a pin drop. Heckled! First time for everything.
“And how have you come to be here tonight?” I asked her. I figured she sneaked in. She mumbled something about being a mentor, and then she made a dash for the door, carrying her various tattered shopping bags. “Well,” I said to the stunned audience. “Now you have an example of what elegant is and what elegant isn’t. And that’s branding.” I didn’t exhale until I got in my car.
9. Plan your finish.
Wrapping up can be the hardest part of a talk because you’ve either used up all of your good stuff, you’ve gone over time, or you have space to fill. Hold on to your closing gold nugget so you can leave on a high note either way.
10. Believe that people are rooting for you.
It’s vastly true that every single person watching and listening to you wants you to be amazing. They want a great experience. No one likes to see someone bomb. They really do want you to win.
11. Go easy on the apologies.
This is a tricky one, because elegance is the numero uno concerno. But things like, “Sorry to keep you waiting,” “My apologies for the technical snafu,” can create more snags in your fabric. Sometimes, most of the time, it’s better to just keep going. An ice skater doesn’t apologize for slipping. She keeps skating, distracting you with the next great move.
12. Dress up.
When you’re on stage being well dressed says, “I cared about you enough to polish it up.” Sunday best.
13. Affirm, pray, focus, ommm.
Whether it’s a staff meeting you’re leading or a concerto performance, a short pre-show ritual pulls your energy into your center. Before I take the stage I say this quickie prayer, “Help us shine.” That’s it. That covers me, the audience, and the world in one fell swoop.
14. Ask questions.
Frame your stories into questions and you’ve created a conversation.
15. Know how you want to feel when you’re done your presentation.
Ultimately, you can’t really control what the audience does and if try to, you’re likely to fumble. I’ve had what I thought were hilarious stories that didn’t get so much as a giggle. And I’ve had low-engagement audiences that swarmed me after I got off stage. You just don’t know.

Public speaking competition

 Today April 20, 2016. A Public speaking competition was held at Asia Pacific College's Auditorium. Now there were 30 participants during the competition but only 9 will be left for the finals. Each has their designated room to go to for the elimination round. Of course we can't leave the venue coz' we're going to be marked as absent if we do that. So while waiting for the final participant the APC speaks prepared some games related to the event. I know that everyone  was scared to be called as a representative for their block. That's why I even prayed and hoped that I will no be called. According to research that one of the most fears a person could have is the fear of Public Speaking.

Fear of public speaking is the most common of all phobias. It's a form of performance anxiety in which a person becomes very concerned that he or she will look visibly anxious, maybe even have a panic attack while speaking. Over time, people try to protect themselves by either avoiding public speaking or by struggling against speech anxiety. Now after the games. We got back into the event. Fortunately there 9 blessed, lucky speakers who surpass the elimination round. They spoke different examples regarding on the topic given to them. Some exemplified their life with their parents. Some spoke about fairy tale, past relationship etc... After all the speakers are all good since they deliver it with all their might.  

Creative Storytelling and Confessions of a Bookaholic Competition

This event was held last March 30, 2016. During the Soma week. Anyway, the program was really good although some groups were a bit boring. It is boring because of some reason like almost all of them are not that prepared so well like they are just reading and some blocks, they’re actions is not that clear or more just like they got nervous because they are so many people in the auditorium. At least they give an effort. Yet still the event come out great. Some of them were really great and caught my attention.

For the creative storytelling it gives me chills and bring back memories way back when I was a child. They were telling stories about legends and acting out so that they can get the audience attention by doing anything that will catch our attention of course since it is criteria in rating their performance. All the teams were giving their best shot and showing on who they really are to entertain the audience as much as they could. They acted out the Legends about the garlic and numerous legend etc.. They wore costumes and used props for their performance to deliver it magically to us. Confessions of a bookaholic? For every contestant that spoke on the stage, I can see their feelings towards the book because of their reaction towards to us. As they confess they are encouraging us at the same time to read book so that we will gain some knowledge in it. They talked about how they got so caught up in a book that they can’t seem to find a way out. They love everything about their book as I can see from them. You can see it in their eyes how they love books and how they appreciate it. Well I myself will say I need to read a book!

Who wants to be a millionaire

 In this event it was held last March 8, 2016 and well everybody was excited about this event since it will be a fun filled event as our professor had said to us Ms Eliz Reyes ad miss Nina Javier. And also, I have classmates from ECE 151 that joined the Who wants to be a millionaire. They got 7 out of 10 in the Easy questions. Which is not bad? Atleast they are the chosen ones in our block ECE151.

For me, it is a good and brainy game. Because even though you are an audience you too can learn something new. As well as the participants if they didn’t got the correct answer.

In this event it has the same mechanics as the real game. Though they added a twist and matched it with our English term since it is all about English? Right? Being one of the students who are currently enrolled in the English term, instead of asking question from the Mathematics, History, Science, Music and Art categories they asked questions all coming from English. They ran through series of questions from the English category like authors, books and etc..

The questions went easy, moderate and difficult. Some of them even tried to guess and hope for the best that it would be right so that they could win. Who wouldn’t want to win anyway? Whoever wins the first place would go home with a trophy and a cash prize of 3000 pesos and the second place I don’t know already.

The crowd was cheering for their respective representatives, hoping that their representative will win in this event. The game had ended and we went home with our brains fed with new knowledge in this event. Thank You! And congratulations to the winner of Who wants to be a millionaire.

Paddington

Paddington is a 2014 British-French live action/computer animated family comedy film directed by Paul King, written by King and Hamish McColl, and produced by David Heyman. Based on Paddington Bear by Michael Bond, the film stars Ben Whishaw as the voice of the title character, along with Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Peter Capaldi and Nicole Kidman in live-action roles. It received a Empire Award nomination for Best British Film.

Paddington is a family movie that really is for everyone, meaning neither kids nor grown-ups will squirm with boredom. Based on a series of Michael Bond books begun in 1958 and illustrated by Peggy Fortnum, the movie likewise tells the tale of a Peruvian bear, in duffel coat and floppy red hat, adopted by a London family. How satisfying to report that the cinematic Paddington emerges as an irresistible charmbomb that has a nice habit of sneaking up on you instead of conking you on the head. Paddington, voiced with genuine feeling by Ben Whishaw (a substitute for the originally cast Colin Firth), is introduced living the good life in the rainforest. Then, boom-squish, an earthquake hits and Paddington takes a cargo ship to London, where he dreams of a new beginning. Without too much fuss, the bear arrives at Paddington Station and is quickly adopted — at least temporarily — by the Brown family: blustery dad Henry (Hugh Bonneville, on leave from Downton but still very lord of the Abbey), his sweet wife Mary (the pricelessly appealing Sally Hawkins) and their two scrappy, moody children, Judy (Madeleine Harris) and Jonathan (Samuel Joslin). After a few guttural roars, the bear starts talking and in very British tones. Paddington has no super powers, though he does fly over London, but he does work his way into our hearts and minds. It's all very droll and quietly, memorably dazzling. "Please Look After This Bear" are the words written on a tag around Paddington's neck. Smart audiences will do as instructed. 


source: http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/paddington-20150114

Zombadings

Zombadings (or Patayin sa Shokot si Remington) is a spoof on comics culture. It is also a fairy tale romance set in the town of Lucban. Essentially it is a coming of age comedy about a little boy, Remington (he begins very young indeed) yelling out loud whenever he notices the queer behavior of local town shokis – the historical term in the 50s and 60s for queer kids. Remington, alert to spot abnormal looks and behavior, unable to understand quirky and queer mannerisms, is the town crier who bellows “Bakla!” (Gay) instead of “Tulong!” (help) at every boy, teenager, or passer-by that crosses his gaze. In the world of fairy tales, he is the little boy in “The Emperor’s New Clothes” who pinpoints and articulates reality. He is yesterday’s gay-dar.  

 Remington’s growing attraction to the city girl, Hannah. As his attraction and desire increases, the curse proportionately works on him via daydreams and images of confusion and distraction that pull his behavior into the world of bekemon, the most current patois of gay language, which used to be called sward-speak. At its current development of sophistication in vocabulary—what used to be recognizably a language of repressed neurotics inventing terms for emotional release, bekemon has become Esperanto—a new language that deserves punctilious translation into grammatically correct Cinemalaya English subtitles. It is probably meant as a joke by the producer-writers, but works against the comedy. Eugene Domingo has to explicate it when she utters, “I don’t understand it. But it is funny.” In the process, the humor is dissipated into awkwardness, and repartees are made lame, killing tempo and rhythm. Remington is drawn to speak and behave like a teenage boy gradually losing control over his maleness into queerness, climaxing in a funny fantasy love scene on a staircase with his best friend, Jigs (Kerbie Zamora). The two male lead characters, Martin Escudero and Kerbie Zamora are very good, because at this early stage in their careers, they’re fresh, unmannered, and still un-self-conscious! So they succeed in giving the impression that they’re not acting, just being themselves. Martin’s quick shifts from queer to manly is hilarious!  

source: http://kyotoreview.org/book-review/review-zombadings-1-patayin-sa-shokot-si-remington/ 

Sana Dati

Sana Dati is a 2013 Filipino romantic drama film written and directed by Jerrold Tarog. The story of Andrea Gonzaga (Lovi Poe) set to marry a man whom she doesn’t know if she loves or not (TJ Trinidad). Enter, a young 21 year old wedding videographer (Paulo Avelino) whose mysterious presence turns Andrea’s whole wedding in disarray. The film similarly starts with the past. Memories of the main characters intersperse continuously and constantly with the present, at times intrusively so. As Lovi Poe’s character prepares unenthusiastically for her wedding, she is also trying to grapple with her doubts and emotions that are as alive, if not more, than her current reality.

The entire movie shows her struggle between moving on from her feelings of what-could-have-been and her thoughts of what her life could be with a man whom she is uncertain if she really loves. "Sana Dati" is not a film about winners. It is not about the fictional poet, named after Spanish director Julio Medem, who wrote the most beautiful verses about the feeling of being in love prior to dying. It is not about Andrew, who, like fictional Medem, died with a heart overflowing with love. The heart of "Sana Dati" lies with the losers, the ones we tend to forget when the most intense statements about love have already been declared. It is about Andrea, whose life goes on despite the tragedy of her one true love perishing. It is about Robert, who is about to marry a girl who does not love him. It is about Andrew, who stirs trouble in somebody else’s romantic affairs.

Sana Dati is a visually stunning romance drama with hints of light humor. Its expertly photographed scenes evoke emotion and convey information at an unhurried pace. Past, present and the possibilities of the future collide with each other all throughout the movie—making scenes appear seemingly scattered and confusing. 

Follow your passion.. He did!

Jon Santos went to our school in Asia Pacific College last march 11, 2016 and held an event in Auditorium. We had the honor listening to Jon Santos Speak. He was invited by the English Resource Center ( ERC ) to share about life and his career path.

Jonathan Adriano Santos (born January 18, 1966), more popularly known as Jon Santos, is a Filipino comedian, actor, and impersonator who has done more than 50 different impersonations such as Ate Vi and Juan Flavor, probably two of his most famous impersonations. And also he impersonation Sen. meeryam, Sherap Estrada, Pres. Gloring and may more. He is one of the three Philippine show business personalities (the other two being Maila Gumila and Amanda Griffin) who have Argawanon blood.
In the Philippine scene, nobody is anybody until he or she is done by Jon Santos. Having perfected the art of costume and make-up, Jon becomes the person; a better version in fact, because it’s a much, much funnier version. Even bureaucratic bores who somehow land on the news become hilarious, endearing creatures in the hands of Jon Santos (Actually, in the hands, face, body and voice of Jon). So just think what a riot he creates with the already colorful or absurd. 

In a Philippine Entertainment Portal article, the article goes to say that “only a select few can be so hilarious that they’re famous for whom they’re not in real life. Performers like Willie Nepomuceno, Tessie Tomas, and Jon Santos have all been successful in this field. It’s a wonder that they can perfectly imitate not just one but various personalities in different fields” and he was listed as the top 3 in the industry, ranking below Willie Nepomuceno and Tessie Tomas, both of whom were Jon Santos’s mentors. The article further states that Jon is ”one of the few actors who can impersonate a man or a woman with perfect ease and gusto”.

He further became more famous that ever when he revealed in a 2008 interview that he had been married to an Italian-American management expert for three years and that they were married in Canada, which allows gay marriage.

https://allaboutargao.wikispaces.com/Jon+Santos

Turn Left, Turn Right

"Turn left, Turn right"

Kaneshiro is John Liu, a struggling violinist who lives alone in a Taipei apartment far too cushy for someone of his dubious occupation. Despite being played by Takeshi Kaneshiro, John is a shy loner who has practically no friends. Instead, he's a too-kind romantic whose heart beats for a girl he's never really known. That girl was an unknown crush from some high school trip, who has magically transformed into Eve Choi (Gigi Leung), a struggling translator who also lives alone in a Taipei apartment far too cushy for someone of her dubious occupation. Eve is also a dreamy loner, who longs to translate Polish love poems instead of knocking off the latest paperback blockbuster for her publishers. She also has a longtime crush: for a boy who once helped her on some high school trip. That boy magically transformed into Takeshi Kaneshiro, etc., who besides longing for her happens to live RIGHT NEXT DOOR. Yep, the two star-crossed lovers live in adjoining apartment buildings separated by one brick wall, and the only reason they never meet is because every day one turns right and the other turns left.

     Luckily that all changes within the first twenty minutes of the film. The two happen by the same park fountain, where they proceed to help one another when their respective paperwork (translations for Eve, sheet music for John) gets knocked into the fountain. What they discover all too soon is that each is the other's long-desired other. That quick revelation turns into a dream-date day, as the two spend their time playing with local pets, teasing local babies, and riding the carousel at the park to their hearts' content. They also, laugh, mug and generally giggle to reams of tinkly piano music. It's good that Johnnie To handles things with a light, ironic touch, as it makes things seem less saccharin than they probably really are. The performers are attractive, the music pleasing, and the art direction atmospherically sound. The preceding twenty minutes of parallel narrative devices (John experiences something, Eve experiences her version of the same event, and the two miss each other on the street) seems to float by, and the film, while not creating any real drama, looks to have some promise. The lovers seem poised to match their destinies with their desires—what more could any movie romantic want?

     Sadly, IT ALL GOES TO HELL. Not the film necessarily, but the characters get booked on the express to potential lover hell. Eve and John part ways quickly after their date, managing to trade only phone numbers and not their actual names. You see, it starts to rain and their landlords turn up, and the characters want to avoid them, so they part quickly and hastily scribble their phone numbers down, but the numbers get smudged by the rain, and both catch mega-bad colds, which means THEY CANNOT CONTACT EACH OTHER. Despite the fact that they live right next door to one another, they have no idea how to find the other, and as the two continue to grow sicker, their parallel lives grow increasingly despondent and predictable. Basically, if you see one thing happen to one character, then you know the exact same thing will happen to the other. While amusing, such devices can grow old rather soon.

In its defense, Turn Left Turn Right has some cleverness and quirky appeal for its "parallel lives" narrative devices, which help the film stay afloat even as those same devices start to grow stale. Johnnie To's efficient direction keeps things moving, and even when the quirkiness gets tired (and it does), there is some amusement to be gleamed. All in all this movie has a great story and had a great lessons to learn. 

Anti Smoking Campaign

a Non- Smoking Campaign seminar was held at Asia PAcidfic College. I am not a smoker but the seminar let me saw the possible outcomes of smoking and make me want to make my smoker friends realize what smoking does to them. I think this kind of projects can help the society is simple way. In simply not smoking. Why? because when someone is smoking it's not just him or her who inhale the smoke but also the people that surrounds them it is called Seconhand Smoking. I believe that  it's more hazardous than the smoker.

The speaker  made me realized that as soon as possible youth should stop smoking for them to have a better life in the near future. He's like an instrument of God to spread the good words... 

According to the Department of Health (DOH) The national survey, conducted by the Social Weather Stations, Inc. (SWS) in March 2014, aimed to assess the effects of RA 10351, otherwise known as the Sin Tax law, a year after its implementation. The household survey, with 1,200 respondents nationwide, revealed that the law succeeded in reducing smoking prevalence among population sub-groups, particularly the youth and the poor.

The study showed that the prevalence of smoking for those belonging to Socio-Economic Class E or the very poor dropped from 38% in December 2012 to 25% in March 2014. Across age groups, smoking prevalence among those belonging to the 18 to 24 year-old age group as also reduced from 35% in December 2012 to 18% in March 2014. 

I hope there will be more seminars that can help the students in building themselves in  being part of the society.

Media Literacy: Mobilizing the Millennials as Socially Responsible Prosumers

What is essential to comprehend is that media education is not about "ensuring" kids from undesirable messages. Albeit a few gatherings urge families to simply kill the TV, the truth of the matter is, media are so imbued in our social milieu that regardless of the possibility that you kill the set, despite everything you can't escape today's media society. Media no more simply impact our way of life. They ARE our way of life.

Media proficiency, in this manner, is about offering understudies some assistance with becoming capable, basic and proficient in all media shapes so they control the translation of what they see or hear instead of giving the elucidation a chance to control them.

To end up media educated is not to remember truths or insights about the media, but instead to figure out how to bring up the right issues about what you are watching, perusing or listening to. Len Masterman, the acclaimed creator of Teaching the Media, calls it "basic self-rule" or the capacity to think for oneself.

Without this basic capacity, an individual can't have full nobility as a human individual or activity citizenship in a majority rule society where to be a resident is to both comprehend and add to the level headed discussions of the time. 

Media proficiency speaks to an important, inescapable, and sensible reaction to the complex, regularly changing electronic environment and correspondence cornucopia that encompass us.

To wind up an effective understudy, capable national, profitable specialist, or equipped and principled customer, people need to create skill with the inexorably complex data and amusement media that address us on a multi-tangible level, influencing the way we think, feel, and carry on.

Today's data and stimulation advances convey to us through an effective blend of words, pictures, and sounds. All things considered, we have to build up a more extensive arrangement of education aptitudes offering us to both some assistance with comprehending the messages we get and successfully use these devices to outline and disseminate our own messages. Being proficient in a media age requires basic speculation aptitudes that enable us as we decide, whether in the classroom, the front room, the working environment, the meeting room, or the voting stall.

At long last, while media proficiency raises basic inquiries regarding the effect of media and innovation, it is not an against media development. Maybe, it speaks to a coalition of concerned people and associations, including instructors, religious gatherings, medicinal services suppliers, and national and shopper bunches, who look for a more edified method for comprehension our media surroundings. 

Filipino Author: Bob Ong

Who is this Bob Ong guy? What are his works? How did he contributed to our Filipino Literacies?

Bob Ong is one of the well-known Filipino Author. He wrote ABNKKBSNPLAko?!, Mac Arthur, and more.

 

Back then and until now, His identity is such a mystery to many. His books are so fun and exciting to read that he’s readers get carried away and doesn’t even mind who he really is. I have read his book ABNKKBSNPLAko?! And it was kind of cute he how he tells everyone what’s like when he was young. Everyone can relate to his books because it showed reality and what people are experiencing in their lives.

When I was in high school, my classmates would go all the way just to collect his books. Some will have a trade with the other classmate the book that they haven’t read.

His books are totally eye catching, why? Because his books title are not that ordinary. It makes people curious about his books.

According to Wikipedia "Bob Ong (born February 1975) is the pseudonym of a contemporary Filipino author known for using conversational Filipino to create humorous and reflective depictions of Philippine life.His actual name is unknown.  

 The pseudonym Bob Ong came about when the author was working as a web developer and a teacher, and he put up the Bobong Pinoy website in his spare time. The name roughly translates it "Dumb Filipino," used fondly as a diminutive term."Although impressed," Bob Ong notes, "my boss would've fired me had he known I was the one behind it." When someone contacted him after mistaking him as an actual person named Bob Ong, his famous pseudonym was born. The site received a People's Choice Philippine Web Award for Weird/Humor in 1998, but was taken down after former President Joseph "Erap" Estradawas ousted after the Second People Power Revolution.""

Parasyte

Parasyte centers on a 17-year-old male named Shinichi Izumi, who lives with his mother in a quiet neighborhood in Tokyo . One night, worm-like creatures called Parasites appear on Earth, taking over the brains of human hosts by entering through their ears or noses. One Parasite attempts to crawl into Shinichi's ear while he sleeps, but fails as Shinichi is wearing headphones, and enters his body by burrowing into his arm instead. In the Japanese version, it takes over his right hand and is named Migi , after the Japanese word for 'right';

Because Shinichi was able to prevent Migi from travelling further up into his brain, both beings retain their separate intellect and personality. As the duo encounter other Parasites, they capitalize on their strange situation and gradually form a strong bond, working together to survive. This gives them an edge in battling other Parasites who frequently attack the pair upon realization that Shinichi's human brain is still intact. Shinichi feels compelled to fight other Parasites, who devour humans as food, while enlisting Migi's help.

At the end Shinichi was able to kill her mother who was a parasite already at that time . It's not easy to kill someone that is important to you especially your mother but if it's the right thing to do then you should face it. Just like Shinichi did .

Plagiarism

Plagiarism has always concerned teachers and administrators, who want students’ work to repre­sent their own efforts and to reflect the outcomes of their learning. However, with the advent of the Internet and easy access to almost limitless written material on every conceivable topic, suspi­cion of student plagiarism has begun to affect teachers at all levels, at times diverting them from the work of developing students’ writing, reading, and critical thinking abilities.

This statement responds to the growing educational concerns about plagiarism in four ways: by defining plagiarism; by suggesting some of the causes of plagiarism; by proposing a set of respon­sibilities (for students, teachers, and administrators) to address the problem of plagiarism; and by recommending a set of practices for teaching and learning that can significantly reduce the likeli­hood of plagiarism. The statement is intended to provide helpful suggestions and clarifications so that instructors, administrators, and students can work together more effectively in support of excellence in teaching and learning.

What Is Plagiarism?

In instructional settings, plagiarism is a multifaceted and ethically complex problem. However, if any definition of plagiarism is to be helpful to administrators, faculty, and students, it needs to be as simple and direct as possible within the context for which it is intended.

Definition: In an instructional setting, plagiarism occurs when a writer deliberately uses someone else’s language, ideas, or other original (not common-knowledge) material without acknowledg­ing its source.

This definition applies to texts published in print or on-line, to manuscripts, and to the work of other student writers.

Most current discussions of plagiarism fail to distinguish between:

1. submitting someone else’s text as one’s own or attempting to blur the line between one’s own ideas or words and those borrowed from another source, and
2. carelessly or inadequately citing ideas and words borrowed from another source.

Such discussions conflate plagiarism with the misuse of sources.

Ethical writers make every effort to acknowledge sources fully and appropriately in accordance with the contexts and genres of their writing. A student who attempts (even if clumsily) to identify and credit his or her source, but who misuses a specific citation format or incorrectly uses quota­tion marks or other forms of identifying material taken from other sources, has not plagiarized. Instead, such a student should be considered to have failed to cite and document sources appropri­ately.

What are the Causes of Plagiarism and the Failure to Use and Document Sources Appropri­ately?

Students who are fully aware that their actions constitute plagiarism—for example, copying pub­lished information into a paper without source attribution for the purpose of claiming the informa­tion as their own, or turning in material written by another student—are guilty of academic mis­conduct. Although no excuse will lessen the breach of ethical conduct that such behavior repre­sents, understanding why students plagiarize can help teachers to consider how to reduce the op­portunities for plagiarism in their classrooms.

• Students may fear failure or fear taking risks in their own work.
• Students may have poor time-management skills or they may plan poorly for the time and effort required for research-based writing, and believe they have no choice but to plagia­rize.
• Students may view the course, the assignment, the conventions of academic documenta­tion, or the consequences of cheating as unimportant.
• Teachers may present students with assignments so generic or unparticularized that stu­dents may believe they are justified in looking for canned responses.
• Instructors and institutions may fail to report cheating when it does occur, or may not enforce appropriate penalties.

Students are not guilty of plagiarism when they try in good faith to acknowledge others’ work but fail to do so accurately or fully. These failures are largely the result of failures in prior teaching and learning: students lack the knowledge of and ability to use the conventions of authorial attri­bution. The following conditions and practices may result in texts that falsely appear to represent plagiarism as we have defined it:

• Students may not know how to integrate the ideas of others and document the sources of those ideas appropriately in their texts.
• Students will make mistakes as they learn how to integrate others’ words or ideas into their own work because error is a natural part of learning.
• Students may not know how to take careful and fully documented notes during their re­search.
• Academicians and scholars may define plagiarism differently or more stringently than have instructors or administrators in students’ earlier education or in other writing situations.
• College instructors may assume that students have already learned appropriate academic conventions of research and documentation.
• College instructors may not support students as they attempt to learn how to research and document sources; instead, instructors may assign writing that requires research and expect its appropriate documentation, yet fail to appreciate the difficulty of novice academic writ­ers to execute these tasks successfully.
• Students from other cultures may not be familiar with the conventions governing attribu­tion and plagiarism in American colleges and universities.
• In some settings, using other people’s words or ideas as their own is an acceptable practice for writers of certain kinds of texts (for example, organizational documents), making the concepts of plagiarism and documentation less clear cut than academics often acknowledge and thereby confusing students who have not learned that the conventions of source attri­bution vary in different contexts.

What are our Shared Responsibilities?

When assignments are highly generic and not classroom-specific, when there is no instruction on plagiarism and appropriate source attribution, and when students are not led through the iterative processes of writing and revising, teachers often find themselves playing an adversarial role as “plagiarism police” instead of a coaching role as educators. Just as students must live up to their responsibility to behave ethically and honestly as learners, teachers must recognize that they can encourage or discourage plagiarism not just by policy and admonition, but also in the way they structure assignments and in the processes they use to help students define and gain interest in topics developed for papers and projects.

Students should understand research assignments as opportunities for genuine and rigorous in­quiry and learning. Such an understanding involves:

• Assembling and analyzing a set of sources that they have themselves determined are relevant to the issues they are investigating;
• Acknowledging clearly when and how they are drawing on the ideas or phrasings of others;
• Learning the conventions for citing documents and acknowledging sources appropriate to the field they are studying;
• Consulting their instructors when they are unsure about how to acknowledge the contributions of others to their thought and writing.

Faculty need to design contexts and assignments for learning that encourage students not simply to recycle information but to investigate and analyze its sources. This includes:

• Building support for researched writing (such as the analysis of models, individual/group con­ferences, or peer review) into course designs;
• Stating in writing their policies and expectations for documenting sources and avoiding plagia­rism;
• Teaching students the conventions for citing documents and acknowledging sources in their field, and allowing students to practice these skills;
• Avoiding the use of recycled or formulaic assignments that may invite stock or plagiarized re­sponses;
• Engaging students in the process of writing, which produces materials such as notes, drafts, and revisions that are difficult to plagiarize;
• Discussing problems students may encounter in documenting and analyzing sources, and of­fering strategies for avoiding or solving those problems;
• Discussing papers suspected of plagiarism with the students who have turned them in, to de­termine if the papers are the result of a deliberate intent to deceive;
• Reporting possible cases of plagiarism to appropriate administrators or review boards.

Administrators need to foster a program- or campus-wide climate that values academic honesty. This involves:

• Publicizing policies and expectations for conducting ethical research, as well as procedures for investigating possible cases of academic dishonesty and its penalties;
• Providing support services (for example, writing centers or Web pages) for students who have questions about how to cite sources;
• Supporting faculty and student discussions of issues concerning academic honesty, research ethics, and plagiarism;
• Recognizing and improving upon working conditions, such as high teacher-student ratios, that reduce opportunities for more individualized instruction and increase the need to handle papers and assignments too quickly and mechanically;
• Providing faculty development opportunities for instructors to reflect on and, if appropriate, change the ways they work with writing in their courses.

Best Practices

College writing is a process of goal setting, writing, giving and using feedback, revising, and ed­iting. Effective assignments construct specific writing situations and build in ample room for re­sponse and revision. There is no guarantee that, if adopted, the strategies listed below will elimi­nate plagiarism; but in supporting students throughout their research process, these strategies make plagiarism both difficult and unnecessary.

1. Explain Plagiarism and Develop Clear Policies

• Talk about the underlying implications of plagiarism. Remind students that the goal of re­search is to engage, through writing, in a purposeful, scholarly discussion of issues that are sometimes passed over in daily life. Understanding, augmenting, engaging in dialogue with, and challenging the work of others are part of becoming an effective citizen in a complex society. Plagiarism does not simply devalue the institution and the degree it offers; it hurts the inquirer, who has avoided thinking independently and has lost the opportunity to participate in broader social conversations.

• Include in your syllabus a policy for using sources, and discuss it in your course. Define a policy that clearly explains the consequences of both plagiarism (such as turning in a paper known to be written by someone else) and the misuse or inaccurate citation of sources.

• If your university does not already have one, establish an honor code to which all stu­dents subscribe; a judicial board to hear plagiarism cases; or a departmental ombud­sperson to hear cases brought between students and instructors.

2. Improve the Design and Sequence of Assignments

• Design assignments that require students to explore a subject in depth. Research questions and assignment topics should be based on principles of inquiry and on the genuine need to dis­cover something about the topic, and should present that topic to an audience in the form of an exploration or an argument.

• Start building possible topics early. Good writing reflects a thorough understanding of the topic being addressed or researched. Giving students time to explore their topics slowly and helping them to narrow their focus from broad ideas to specific research questions will person­alize their research and provide evidence of their ongoing investigations

• Consider establishing a course theme, and then allow students to define specific questions about that theme so that they become engaged in learning new ideas and begin to own their research. A course theme (like “literacy” or “popular culture”) allows students and in­structor to develop expertise and to support each other as they read, write, and engage in their research. Grounding the theme in a local context (such as the campus, or the neighborhood or city where the campus is located) can provide greater relevance to students’ lives. Once stu­dents have defined a topic within the course theme, ask them to reflect frequently on their choice of topic: about what they already know about the topic when they begin their research; about what new ideas they are learning along the way; and about what new subjects for re­search they are discovering.

• Develop schedules for students that both allow them time to explore and support them as they work toward defined topics. As researchers learn more about their subjects, they typi­cally discover new, unforeseen questions and interests to explore. However, student research­ers do not have unlimited time for their work—at some point, they must choose a focus for their papers. Conferences with students (sometimes held in the library or computer resource center) are invaluable for enabling them to refine their focus and begin their inquiry.

• Support each step of the research process. Students often have little experience planning and conducting research. Using planning guides, in-class activities, and portfolios, instructors should “stage” students’ work and provide support at each stage—from invention to drafting, through revision and polishing. Collecting interim materials (such as annotated photocopies) helps break the research assignment down into elements of the research process while providing instructors with evidence of students’ original work. Building “low-stakes” writing into the research process, such as reflective progress reports, allows instructors to coach students more effectively while monitoring their progress.

• Make the research process, and technology used for it, visible. Ask your students to con­sider how various technologies—computers, fax machines, photocopiers, e-mail—affect the way information is gathered and synthesized, and what effect these technologies may have on plagiarism.

• Attend to conventions of different genres of writing. As people who read and write aca­demic work regularly, instructors are sensitive to differences in conventions across different disciplines and, sometimes, within disciplines. However, students might not be as aware of these differences. Plan activities—like close examinations of academic readings—that ask stu­dents to analyze and reflect on the conventions in different disciplines.

3. Attend to Sources and the Use of Reading

• Ask students to draw on and document a variety of sources. Build into your assignments additional sources, such as systematic observation, interviews, simple surveys, or other data­gathering methods. Incorporating a variety of sources can help students develop ways of gath­ering, assessing, reading, and using different kinds of information, and can make for a livelier, more unique paper.

• Consider conventions. Appropriate use of citations depends on students’ familiarity with the conventions of the genre(s) they are using for writing. Design activities that help students to become familiar with these conventions and make informed choices about when and where to employ them.

• Show students how to evaluate their sources. Provide opportunities for students to discuss the quality of the content and context of their sources, through class discussions, electronic course management programs or Internet chat spaces, or reflective assignments. Discuss with students how their sources will enable them to support their argument or document their re­search.

• Focus on reading. Successful reading is as important to thoughtful research essays as is suc­cessful writing. Develop reading-related heuristics and activities that will help students to read carefully and to think about how or whether to use that reading in their research projects.

4. Work on Plagiarism Responsibly

• Distinguish between misuse of sources and plagiarism. If students have misused sources, they probably do not understand how to use them correctly. If this is the case, work with stu­dents so that they understand how to incorporate and cite sources correctly. Ask them to re­write the sections where sources have been misused.
• Ask students for documentation. If a student’s work raises suspicions, talk with him or her about your concerns. Ask students to show you their in-process work (such as sources, sum­maries, and drafts) and walk you through their research process, describing how it led to the production of their draft. If they are unable to do this, discuss with them the consequences of plagiarism described in your syllabus (and, perhaps, by your institution). If you have talked with a student and want to pursue your own investigation of his or her work, turn to sources that the student is likely to have used and look for evidence of replication.
• Use plagiarism detection services cautiously. Although such services may be tempting, they are not always reliable. Furthermore, their availability should never be used to justify the avoidance of responsible teaching methods such as those described in this document.

5. Take Appropriate Disciplinary Actions

• Pay attention to institutional guidelines. Many institutions have clearly defined procedures for pursuing claims of academic dishonesty. Be sure you have read and understood these be­fore you take any action.
• Consider your goal. If a student has plagiarized, consider what the student should take away from the experience. In some cases, a failing grade on the paper, a failure in the course, aca­demic probation, or even expulsion might achieve those goals. In other cases, recreating the entire research process, from start to finish, might be equally effective. source