Plagiarism and Essay Writing
Western University has strict guidelines about plagiarism and other scholastic offences. For example, in order to pass an essay course the student must exhibit some minimal level of competence in essay writing and the appropriate level of knowledge of the content of the course. Further, you must demonstrate the ability to write clearly and correctly. Work presented in English in any subject which shows a lack of proficiency in English and is unacceptable for academic credit, will either be failed or, at the discretion of the instructor, returned to the student for revision to a literate level. All instructors in the Department of Economics take proficiency in English into account when assigning grades.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, plagiarism is defined as taking and using another person’s thoughts and writings as one’s own. If you use results that other researchers have derived or ideas they have expressed in their work, you must acknowledge the contributions of these authors. Therefore, to avoid plagiarism, the Department has adopted the guidelines used in the Chicago Manual of Style.
Western University uses software for plagiarism checking. You may be required to submit your written work in electronic form for plagiarism checking.