Student Plagiarism and Strategy for Prevention - Essay Example

Plagiarism and Strategy for Prevention The advancement of technology has ensured that a whole lot of textual material is now available onlinewithin a few clicks of the mouse. This easy access has tremendous advantages because students and researchers across the globe can take advantage of referring to materials, which were earlier available only in certain libraries. On the other side, this has also made plagiarism easier than ever before (Underwood and Szabo, 2003). The Council of Writing Program’s Administrators (WPA) mentions that plagiarism happens when a writer deliberately uses someone else’s language, ideas, or other original (not common-knowledge) material without acknowledg­ing its source (Council of Writing Program Administrators, 2003). Nelson and Stepchyshyn have defined plagiarism as the use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as ones own original work (Stepchyshyn & Nelson, 2007). Plagiarism is not a new concept, passing off others’ writings and ideas as one’s own existed even before the internet came into existence. However, the easy access of a variety of materials has caused an increase in plagiarism and it has now become a great cause for concern for universities and academic institutions across the world. About two decades back, plagiarism did not have severe punishments or consequences. However, in today’s scenario plagiarism is very serious offence and can have numerous consequences that include expulsion from the academic institution or a job. Apart from that, the most serious consequence is that the loss of credibility of a writer. One key reason why students indulge in plagiarism could be lack of awareness. As Evan (2000) says, everyone seems to know that plagiarism is wrong, including those who commit the offence, but few know how to completely define it. Many students do not understand that even using their own previous works without citation is plagiarism. This increases the instances of unintentional or accidental plagiarism, where students are not aware of what qualifies as plagiarism. For some students, reproducing large chunks of others’ texts is a way of signalling they know of the existence of this information (Ryan, 2000). Therefore, it is clear that lack of proper awareness is one reason why there is an increase in plagiarism. Ensuring proper awareness and making the students familiar with the various aspects of plagiarism can make the students more conscious and thereby reducing the cases of unintentional plagiarism. Teaching appropriate citation and writing an effective bibliography is also essential. The other aspect of plagiarism is intentional plagiarism, where the students are aware of the fact that they are reproducing the material. In the modern world, the competition is very high and this atmosphere of intense competition makes student take an easier path. Very often, fear of failure, laziness and the pressure to perform well are the reasons as to why students indulge in this practice. In this context, the teachers and the members of the academic institutions have a bigger responsibility. There are numerous ways that the institutions can adopt to battle the menace called plagiarism. One crucial and critical way of ensuring that students do not indulge in Plagiarism is to communicate the criteria of evaluation very clearly. There should be enough stress on the fact that original work is always appreciated well. The students should be given enough opportunities to approach the teacher who could give them enough insights into particular topics, thereby encouraging a climate of fairness and honesty. The teachers and instructors also should design the assignments in such a way that there is less scope for plagiarism. For example, ensuring that the topics are changed frequently when compared to the previous terms, making the students write an abstract in the class before the assignment encourages the students to think own their own and write their own original content. If there is enough time, the teacher can also encourage each student to come for a discussion where insights can be shared regarding the topic of the assignment. The teachers also can make sure that the topics are designed in such a way that it is not easy to plagiarize. For example, in a topic, teacher’s can ensure that there is an element of subjectivity. Here, he students are encouraged to share any personal anecdotes or firsthand incidents. This encourages the students to think and be original with their work. In addition, the institution must ensure that the students have equal access to the resources in the institution (Singhal and Johnson, 1983). Very often, students resort to plagiarism because of lack of good reference materials. A good library with easy access of reference material will prevent the students from passing off someone else’s works as their own. It is also essential to encourage an environment where students feel that one can succeed even without resorting to plagiarism or dishonesty. For this, the teacher should ease off some amount of pressure that students face. There should be enough contexts, reason and logic provided behind any written assignment that the students be required to submit. This encourages the students to think and foster creativity that in turn encourages originality. The teacher also should provide the necessary time to turn in the assignments. The teacher also should show consideration to students who are battling some personal issues so that they do not resort to plagiarism. Small gestures like effective communication with these students, providing some extra time for genuine issues and building trust can go a long way in preventing these students from passing off a copied work as their original work. As a teacher and an academician, it is also important to ensure that one recognizes any stress that a student goes through. If a student has any writing difficulties, it is necessary that the teacher acknowledges the fact and explains that this difficulty can be overcome only by writing. In such cases, the help of a tutor or special educator can be taken (Granitz and Loewy, 2007). In addition, the student can be informed that there are effective ways of dealing with any last minute panic and that plagiarism is not the only way out. The teacher should also be aware on how to detect plagiarism. There are many online software tools that come in handy to detect if the material have been taken from any online resource. Apart from using their judgement and expertise, the teachers should make use of these tools to ensure that the material is original (Walker, 1998). In addition, once plagiarism is detected, the student should be confronted immediately. Postponing such a discussion only encourages further attempts at plagiarism (Tabachnick, Keith-Spiegel, and Pope, 1991). During such a discussion, it is important to give the students a chance to speak and then inform about the further action that will be taken. As the matter would be sensitive, it is important to maintain the required confidentially during the investigation process. Overall, it is a tough challenge before the universities and institutions to battle plagiarism. However, with some extra efforts, it is not impossible. Even though the teaching community should be extra vigilant and cautious, it should not result in an environment that is full of mistrust and suspicion (Das, 2003). The importance of trust and between the students and the teachers is essential in building a fair environment (Malouff and Sim, 1996). The academic institutions are the building blocks of any society and it is imperative that the students in these institutions are inculcated with fair values. These institutions should have mechanism set up to discourage any form of cheating or plagiarism without creating an environment of distrust or suspicion. References Malouff, J. M. and Sim, R. L. (1996). The name assigned to the document by the author. This field may also contain sub-titles, series names, and report numbers.Applying an Employee-Motivation Model to Prevent Student Plagiarism. The entity from which ERIC acquires the content, including journal, organization, and conference names, or by means of online submission from the author.Journal of Education for Business, 72 (1), p58-61 Ryan, J. (2000). A Guide to Teaching International Students. Oxford Centre for Staff Development: Oxford Brookes University. Singhal, A., and Johnson, P. (1983). How to Halt Student Dishonesty. College Student Journal, 17(l), 13-19. Stepchyshyn, V. and Nelson, R. S. (2007). Library plagiarism policies. UK: Association of College & Research Libraries. Tabachnick, B. G., Keith-Spiegel, P., and Pope, K. S. (1991). Ethics of Teaching: Beliefs and Behaviors of Psychologists as Educators. American Psychologist, 46(5), 506-515. Underwood, J. and Szabo, A. (2003). Academic offences and e-learning: individual propensities in cheating. British Journal of Educational Technology, 34, 467–47 Walker, J. (1998). Student plagiarism in universities: what are we doing about it? - Higher Education Research & Development. UK: Routledge Granitz, N. and Loewy, D. (2007). Applying Ethical Theories: Interpreting and Responding to Student Plagiarism. Journal of Business Ethics, 72 (3) 293-306 Online References Council of Writing Program Administrators, (2003). [Online]. available at: http://www.wpacouncil.org/node/9 . [Accessed on 31 October 2010] Das, S. (2010). [Online]. available at: http://www.the-scientist.com/article/display/14202/ Recovered on 31 Oct 2010. [Accessed on 31 October 2010] Evans, J. (2000). The New Plagiarism in Higher Education. [Online]. available at: http://www.warwick.ac.uk/ETS/interactions/vol4no2/evans.html [Accessed on 31October 2010] Read More