30 Paraphrasing vs Patchwriting
Paraphrasing
Paraphrasing means rewriting someone else’s idea in your own words without changing the original meaning while changing the structure of the original. A paraphrase is about the same length as the original.
Patchwriting
In patchwriting, a writer attempts to paraphrase but ultimately imitates the sentence structure or vocabulary of the source (Howard, 1993, p. 233). Patchwriting is a common mistake, but it is NOT an accepted form of writing in academia and is considered a form of plagiarism, even if you cite your source.
Difference between paraphrasing and patchwriting
Paraphrasing:
- Rewrite the text or idea in your own words but keep its meaning
- Substantially change the structure of the text
Patchwriting:
- Change a few words
- Replace words with synonyms
- Leave out a few words
- Change the order of phrases or sentences
Paraphrasing vs patchwriting: Example
Have a look at the original text on the left and compare it to the two restatements on the right. As you can see, in the first example the writer uses several exact phrases of the original (shown highlighted in yellow) and several synonyms or phrases that are very close to the original (shown in bolded purple). In addition, much of the structure of the paragraph is the same. This is an example of patchwriting, and despite a proper citation being included, an instance of plagiarism.
In the second example, the writer uses their own voice to express the idea of the original text. Besides a few individual words that would be difficult to replace, such as “baby boom” and “Canadians”, the original has been entirely rewritten and the structure has been changed significantly. This is an example of proper paraphrasing.
Exercises
Original Text.
Why did the baby boom happen? A likely explanation is that during those 20 years, Canadians knew they could afford large families. The postwar economy was robust, the future seemed full of promise, and young couples wanted to share that bright future with a big family. A second reason was the high immigration levels that prevailed during the 1950s.
Patchwriting = Plagiarism Text.
Foot and Stoffman (1996) theorize that a likely reason for the baby boom is that Canadians knew they were able to afford large families. Because the economy was healthy, young people saw a lot of promise in their future, which they desired to share with a large family. Another reason was the high number of immigrants.
Proper Paraphrase
Foot and Stoffman (1996) theorize that there were two main reasons behind the baby boom, namely immigration that remained consistently high and a thriving economy that made young Canadians feel optimistic and gave them the confidence that they would have the means to support the large family they desired.
Source: (Foot & Stofman, 1996, p. 20)
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Original Text We judge a foreigner’s knowledge of our language by the number and sort of mistakes he makes. We are inclined to think he knows our language quite well if he does not make many mistakes. It does not occur to us that he may be avoiding taking risks and confining himself to doing only what he knows he can do right.
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