The article, Plagiarism and Technology: A Tool for Coping with Plagiarism discusses online plagiarism detection systems and if they would be smart for teachers to use and also whether or not using a detection system would lower the student’s use of plagiarism. A study was done on 129 research papers by college students throughout five semesters. The students were told that their papers would be electronically checked for plagiarism before they turned them in.
The results of the research showed that fifty percent of the papers had some form of plagiarism in them. The first semester is the semester where the most students plagiarized. This could have been because in the following semesters, the students were told that some of papers in the first semester had plagiarism in them. It was discovered that students are less likely to plagiarize if they think they will be detected.
According to this article, it would be a good idea for instructors to use a plagiarism detection system. It does not take too much time. It was also shown that if students know that they will be downgraded for plagiarizing and that it can be easily detected, they are less likely to plagiarize.
Question: If you used a plagiarism detection system as a teacher, would you tell your students that you were going to use it before they handed in their papers?
If I used a plagiarism detection system as a teacher, I would definitely tell them that I was using it before they handed in their papers. It is only fair to them. They need to know their expectations (that you don't allow plagiarism) and that you will use an online tool to help detect plagiarism.
ReplyDeleteI would let the students know up front that I do not tolerate plagiarism and would use the necessary tools needed if I felt a paper or information had been plagiarized.
ReplyDeleteRachel
I would tell my students, because I think they deserve the right to know exactly what will be done with their papers and how they will be graded. No teacher wants to set their students up for failure, so a little heads up to the students can go a long way.
ReplyDeleteI would definitely tell my students ahead of time if I used a plagiarism detector. I think that it is only fair to the students that they know ahead of time. This way they can also be extra careful in making sure they cite their sources properly.I believe it would be totally unfair to not tell them.
ReplyDeleteGreat question! I think maybe the first time I would not, just to weed out my students who are trying to slack off in my class. After that time I would remind the students that I do check each paper for plagiarism.
ReplyDeleteIf you tell your students that your going to use it, they will be less likely to plagiarize to begin with, so I would say no. If your going to use it, do not let them know.Besides, your checking it before they turn them in, so they would have a chance to rewrite it.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to be teaching 2nd or 3rd grade, so I honestly don't think too much of what I expect them to do will have them plagiarize in my class assignments. But if I were going to use it, then I would not only tell the students, but their parents as well.
ReplyDeleteThis way it is a collaborative effort in both school and at home to make sure students are not just copying and pasting things into their papers.
I think people forget that it isn't just all the students fault for plagiarizing things, there are multitude of factors that play into it.
I would inform my students about plagiarism and how serious it is. Most likely I would go along with my idea before about making a class discussion or debate about it so that students fully understand what it is. The consequences would be clear to understand. If I then caught a student plagiarizing I would set up time with that student and explain to them once again what plagiarism is, they would be required to rewrite the paper and given their first and only warning. If that student is caught again there will be a meeting with the parents and the consequences will be set. Although there are different levels of severity for plagiarism I need to make sure that my students know what it is and that they are following the rules. It can be a very serious problem in the future if they are not given the proper tools at a young age to stop it.
ReplyDeleteI would tell my students that I am using it and make sure they understand the consequences of getting caught.
ReplyDeleteI would tell them just because i dont know its right to set them up for failure like that. I know this is a weak argument because they should know that there not supposed to whether Im using a cross reference check or not. I just would rather prevent them from even attempting it anyway i can before it actually happens.
ReplyDeleteNo, I would not tell students. I feel that if they are going to cheat and I can catch them that will be the only way they will learn. Not only do we need to teach students academic information but we also need to support making good decisions without having to be told.
ReplyDeleteYes, I see nothing wrong with informing my students ahead of time that I would be using such a device. In addition, I would show them ways to avoid plagiarism. The students will learn more by really having to think about what they are writing rather than simply cutting and pasting someone else's thoughts, or semi-copying what someone else has written.
ReplyDeleteYes I would, because I think students need to know what I expect. Students should always think that they will be caught plagiarizing because it is a serious offense.
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