IEEE Referencing

Putting the information and ideas from another’s work into your own works is called Paraphrasing. Paraphrasing rather than using direct quotations allows you to demonstrate that you really understand the concepts being discussed. It also allows you to integrate the information you are using more smoothly into the rest of the material.

Simply changing a few words, or rearranging the order the information appears in is not sufficient. Even though you will be providing a reference for the material used, without genuinely putting the information into your own words, you will be plagiarising the original work.

Tips for successful paraphrasing

1. Carefully read the relevant resources, and note any key points that you wish to use separately
2. Note each source used for later reference
3. Without looking at the original material, write out the idea in your own words
4. Use quotation marks if you have included any direct quotes.

If you use the same wording as the source document, this is called a quotation. These must be enclosed within double quotation marks in your work, and the relevant page number/s given.

For example:

Experts agree that "full 3D stacking can be advantageous for memory and processor applications" [7, p. 14].

Generally, it is preferable to try to put the information into your own words, and to reserve direct quotations either for including relevant facts and figures (that are not common knowledge) or for particularly memorable wording. Select quotations that give weight to your arguments, not ones that only repeat information that you have already given.

“What is Plagiarism”, by F. Pirillo, Creative Commons

Plagiarism is the intentional, or unintentional use of the work of someone else without proper acknowledgement.

This includes:

• copying or cutting and pasting material from books, periodicals, electronic resources, journals, study notes, the web, or any other source in an unchanged form and without acknowledgement
• copying the work of other students
• paraphrasing ideas from any work without acknowledgement
• collaborating with other students without authorisation when producing an assessment task.

To avoid plagiarism:

• write down  the source details from any document or work that use so you can refer to it later, and you know where your information has come from. For example journal name, web address and page numbers.
• Write source notes on any printout or copy that you make. 
• Use quotation marks if you quote directly from a work. It is not enough just to acknowlege the source.
• Use your own words and ideas, as well as some paraphrasing. Limit quotes to really important pieces of information, or facts and figures.
• Acknowledge all sources of information from which you have extracted or developed ideas for use in an assessment, even if you have put those ideas into your own words. It's still someone else's idea.