course materials

1. Assignment: Scholarly Writing and Plagiarism
Assignment: Scholarly Writing and Plagiarism ON Assignment: Scholarly Writing and
PlagiarismAs a nurse embarking on an advanced degree, you are developing the
characteristics of a scholar-practitioner, which includes strong communication skills.
Writing in a scholarly manner involves ing your thoughts with evidence from the literature
and appropriately using APA formatting.One of the challenges of scholarly writing is
paraphrasing the thoughts of others in your work. Paraphrasing, and correctly citing the
original author for his or her ideas, allows you to take the ideas of others, summarize them,
and incorporate them into your own writing. When summarizing the ideas of others, it is
important to avoid plagiarizing (copying the words and ideas of others as though they were
your own). In addition to expanding your knowledge of APA, this week’s Learning
Resources help you to distinguish between paraphrasing and plagiarizing. Assignment:
Scholarly Writing and PlagiarismTo prepare:Think about the sometimes subtle difference
between plagiarizing and paraphrasing.Read the following paragraphs, which were written
by Patricia O’Conner:A good writer is one you can read without breaking a sweat. If you
want a workout, you don’t lift a book—you lift weights. Yet we’re brainwashed to believe
that the more brilliant the writer, the tougher the going.The truth is that the reader is
always right. Chances are, if something you’re reading doesn’t make sense, it’s not your
fault—it’s the writer’s. And if something you write doesn’t get your point across, it’s
probably not the reader’s fault—it’s yours. Too many readers are intimidated and humbled
by what they can’t understand, and in some cases that’s precisely the effect the writer is
after. But confusion is not complexity; it’s just confusion. A venerable tradition, dating back
to the ancient Greek orators, teaches that if you don’t know what you’re talking about, just
ratchet up the level of difficulty and no one will ever know.Don’t confuse simplicity, though,
with simplemindedness. A good writer can express an extremely complicated idea clearly
and make the job look effortless. But such simplicity is a difficult thing to achieve because to
be clear in your writing you have to be clear in your thinking. This is why the simplest and
clearest writing has the greatest power to delight, surprise, inform, and move the reader.
You can’t have this kind of shared understanding if writer and reader are in an adversary
relationship. (pp. 195–196)Source: O’Conner, P. (2003). Woe is I: The grammarphobe’s
guide to better English in plain English. New York: Riverhead Books.Paraphrase this
passage from O’Conner using no more than 75–100 words. Remember that paraphrasing
means summarizing the essence of the original text. It does not mean creating a thesaurus-
based revision of the author’s original words or copying the piece, or any part of it, word for

2. word. For this activity, do not use any direct quotes.Turn your paraphrase into Grammarly
and SafeAssign.Review your reports.Review the other tools, resources, and services
available to you through the Walden Writing Center that your growth as a scholarly
writer.Consider which of these resources you find to be most useful.Review learning
resources on APA formatting rules and information within the Walden Writing Center on
APABY DAY 3Post a description of your experience of using Grammarly and SafeAssign and
share at least one insight you gained about paraphrasing and avoiding plagiarism as a
matter of academic integrity. Recommend at least one other online resource that s
scholarly writing, and explain your rationale. Lastly, share two APA formatting rules with
the class and a specific page number in the APA manual where this rule can be located your
Discussion assignment with specific resources used in its preparation using APA formatting.
You are asked to provide a reference for all resources, including those in the Learning
Resources for this course.Learning ResourcesREQUIRED READINGSAmerican Psychological
Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th
ed.). Washington, DC: Author.Chapter 4, “The Mechanics of Style”Chapter 6, “Crediting
Sources”Chapter 7, “Reference Examples”Walden University requires all students to use the
6th edition of APA formatting. These three chapters present an overview of how to properly
use APA formatting and provide numerous examples as a guide.Chapter 1, “Writing for the
Behavioral and Social Sciences”Section 1.10, “Plagiarism and Self-Plagiarism”Chapter 3,
“Writing Clearly and Concisely”Chapter 6, “Crediting Sources” (Quoting and
Paraphrasing)Section 6.01, “Plagiarism”Section 6.02, “Self-Plagiarism”These sections of the
publication manual cover the principles of expository writing, properly crediting sources,
and present strategies for avoiding the pitfalls of plagiarism.Document: APA Basics
Checklist: Citations, Reference List, and Style (PDF)This document provides helpful
information and links to APA resources available through the Writing
Center.Document: Citing a Discussion Posting in APA Style (Word document)The
information in this document focuses on how to cite a Discussion posting or response in
APA style.Document: Citing a Laureate Video in APA Style (PDF)The information in this
document focuses on how to cite a course media program in your text as well as create an
entry for a reference list in APA style.Document: Common APA Style and Formatting
Challenges (PDF)Document: Introduction to Scholarly Writing: Plagiarism and Academic
Integrity (Word document)This document supplements the information on plagiarism and
academic integrity presented in the related video program.Purdue University. (2012). The
Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL): APA style. Retrieved
from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/The OWL at Purdue is a quick
reference guide to properly using APA formatting. This is a valuable and comprehensive
resource.Walden University. (2012e). Walden University: Plagiarism. Retrieved
from http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/63.htmWalden University. (2012d). Walden
University: APA style. Retrieved from http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/APA.htmWalden
University offers a wide range of APA resources from a video tutorial to citation guidelines
and includes information on other APA style issues.Plagiarism, even when unintentional,
constitutes academic dishonesty and can jeopardize your professional reputation. Review
the information and resources presented by the Walden Writing Center for avoiding

3. plagiarism.Walden University. (n.d.). Grammerly. Retrieved
from http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/gr…Grammarly is a valuable tool
all Walden University are encouraged to use. You will this resource as you prepare for this
week’s Discussion.Academic IntegrityPlease review the Academic Integrity area located on
the Course Information page, particularly the SafeAssign Student Tutorial.REQUIRED
MEDIALaureate Education (Producer). (2012a). Effective online communication: Scholarly
writing in online discussion [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.Note: The approximate
length of this media piece is 5 minutes.This media program provides you with valuable tips
for writing scholarly Discussion posts in response to instructor-generated questions and in
response to your classmates.Laureate Education (Producer). (2012b). Introduction to
scholarly writing: Plagiarism and academic integrity [Video file]. Baltimore, MD:
Author.Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 5 minutes.Scholarly writing
requires ethical practice in every phase and form of the process—from the drafting of a
course paper to completion of a capstone project. Academic integrity is foundational to all
teaching and learning at Walden University. As a Walden student, you are required to follow
the guidelines of academic integrity as set forth in the Walden Catalog. This media program
will help you to do so.wal_nurs6001a_03_a_en_