Plagiarism on Campus

“I hate like death the situation of the plagiarist; the glass I drink from is not large, but at least it is my own.” Alfred de Musset, La Coupe et les lèvres (1832)

Defining plagiarism can be as tricky as detecting it. An age old problem, it continues unabated in the 21^st century. Digital tools have made it both easier to detect and easier to commit.

What is plagiarism? Authors Ed Stoner and John Lowery in their model Student Code offer a definition in the university setting as follows:

The term “plagiarism” includes, but is not limited to, the use, by paraphrase or direct quotation, of the published or unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgment. It also includes the unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person or agency engaged in the selling of term papers or other academic materials. [1]

Every university should make it clear to their students what constitutes plagiarism on the campus. The CUA Policy on Academic Honesty is the first place for academics at CUA to start in any discussion on the campus with students about plagiarism.

Around the country, a variety of steps have been taken by academics to combat plagiarism. One of the most successful has been suggested by Gary Pavela of the University of Maryland. Pavela suggests use of a modified honor code. In this paradigm, the student is encouraged to take responsibility for academic integrity. In conjunction with Donald McCabe, Pavela suggests Ten Principles of Academic Integrity . These include, in addition to giving the student the responsibility, clarifying expectations; promoting an environment of trust in the classroom; and defining and supporting campus wide academic integrity standards.

Another key innovative program is The Center for Academic Integrity , located at Duke University. Faculty and students are encouraged to take a look at this website.

Associate General Counsel Kathryn Bender offers the following tips to faculty for preventing plagiarism:

· Keep your awareness high; students are less likely to plagiarize when they know you are informed;

· Know what’s available online before assigning a paper; don’t give the same assignments/tests year after year;

· Be creative with assignments;

· Have students write about something local;

· Have students turn in several drafts and make comparisons;

· Include in-class discussions of papers;

· Collect writing sample during first few weeks of school;

· Show students where they can learn about proper methods of attribution; and

· Have students include annotated bibliographies.

A number of tools are available to detect plagiarism, and some of them are listed below. Note that those who study the subject of plagiarism believe that a coherent campus philosophy on academic integrity will give your students the best chance to thrive.

Tools for combating plagiarism:

On-line tutorials to help students learn about proper attribution:

http://www.indiana.edu/~istd/

http://library.umf.maine.edu/plagiarism/index.html

http://www.northwestern.edu/uacc/plagiar.html

http://www.hamilton.edu/academic/Resource/WC/AvoidingPlagiarism.html

Other online print resources

http://print.google.com/

http://scholar.google.com/

[1] Navigating Past the “Spirit of Insubordination” A Twenty-First Century Model Student Conduct Code With a Model Hearing Script, by Edward N. Stoner II and John Wesley Lowery, page 23.

Last Revised 18-Sep-06 09:50 AM.