If you use other people’s content in your assessments without acknowledging them by referencing, it is a form of plagiarism. Learn more about plagiarism and referencing, here.
When writing assessments they must be your own work. You may also need to refer to other sources to back up your ideas and statements. This is done by using a system called referencing. Referencing is when you acknowledge that you have used other people’s words, ideas or images in your assessment.
For information and examples on formatting references, and using paraphrases and quotations see:
How to reference
Watch this video to get an overview of what referencing is:
What to reference
You must reference any source you refer to in your assessment, i.e. ANY words, ideas, facts, theories, images or information taken from ANY source requires a reference. This includes:
- books
- articles
- reports
- webpages
- images
- videos
- etc.
Referencing is needed when:
- You have used information from another source and put it into your own words.
This is called a paraphrase. - You have copied the words exactly from another source
This is called a direct quote, or quotation
Why you need to reference
You need to reference to:
- show where you found the information you used
- acknowledge the creator(s) of that information
- allow your readers to find the information you have used
- avoid plagiarism
APA referencing
There are many different referencing styles, each with its own set of rules. For Open Polytechnic assessments use the American Psychological Association 7th edition referencing style. This is commonly known as APA 7.
APA referencing:
- is a system that determines the style and format for how to write your references
- uses a reference list and in-text citations to acknowledge and identify sources.
Guide to APA referencing (PDF 395.11 KB; opens in a new window)
When to reference
You must reference every time you use:
- the words, opinions and ideas of others, no matter where you find, read, watch or hear them
- direct quotes and paraphrases of the words, opinions and ideas of others
- data, statistics, tables, graphs, code, audio and video material, illustrations, photographs or any other type of image.
You don’t need to reference when using:
- your own ideas (unless you included them in an earlier assessment)
- common knowledge – this means something that lots of people will know, or information that can be easily found in many sources.
Here’s an example of what would be considered common knowledge:
The world started with the big bang.
Check out the Scribbr website’s section on common knowledge and have a go at the Common Knowledge test.
What is plagiarism
If you don’t reference when you use someone else’s work, it is plagiarism.
Plagiarism is when you use someone else's work and present it as your own, even if you do it unintentionally. It includes:
- not acknowledging sources
- copying the work of another learner
- copying from textbooks, online resource or other work without correct citation
- not acknowledging sources, including your own work used for other purposes.
What the Open Polytechnic does about plagiarism
The Open Polytechnic regards plagiarism as cheating. We use similarity detection software to identify plagiarised work.
Learner misconduct involves any form of unacceptable or improper behaviour by learners, including misconduct during assessment (cheating).
Learners who assist or encourage another person to act in a manner that constitutes misconduct are dealt with as if they had committed misconduct themselves.
Learners suspected of academic misconduct are informed and the process is followed as stated in the Academic Statue section 13.
You can find the Academic Statute here
If you are found guilty of plagiarism, you will lose marks and could incur even more severe penalties. You could also be penalised if you allow another learner to copy from you.
See our Academic integrity page to learn more about being honest, respectful and ethical in your study and assessments.
Got a question?
If you want to talk with someone about referencing and avoiding plagiarism, contact The Library and Learning Centre | Te Whare Pukapuka Wāhanga Whakapakari Ako.