Teaching English Language

Teaching English Language

From Plagiarism to Paraphrasing: Graduate Students’ Approaches for Referencing Materials in Academic Writing

Document Type : Original Article

Author
English Language Unit, Preparatory Studies Center, University of Technology and Applied Sciences, Salalah
10.22132/tel.2025.480532.1698
Abstract
Proper citation practices have become crucial for maintaining academic integrity, yet graduate students frequently struggle with efficient paraphrasing and referencing. This paper explores the importance of paraphrasing to maintain academic integrity as well as to prevent graduate student plagiarism. A qualitative case study was conducted on 20 fourth-semester graduate students at an Indian university to obtain data collected on the same. Thematic coding was used to analyze the interviews to determine how the respondents have understood the importance of paraphrasing in the aversion of plagiarism. Findings revealed that students notice that paraphrasing is one of the strategies one should use to prevent plagiarism, yet they are not sure about their ability to use this strategy. Most of the respondents preferred specialized instruction and feedback as a means of helping them to improve their paraphrasing skills. This study establishes that teaching strategies will help students improve their skills in paraphrasing, so they can rely on fewer resources and become more independent academic writers. These findings show how crucial it is to provide educational institutions with comprehensive paraphrasing education.
Keywords

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Volume 19, Issue 2
July 2025
Pages 89-137

  • Receive Date 26 September 2024
  • Revise Date 25 August 2025
  • Accept Date 29 September 2025