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Understanding & Preventing Plagiarism: A Guide for Students

This presentation explores the factors contributing to student plagiarism and provides tips on how to prevent it. Topics covered include e-plagiarism, checking suspicious papers, and strategies for creating unique assignments.

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Understanding & Preventing Plagiarism: A Guide for Students

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  1. Understanding& PreventingPlagiarism Barry Cull, Information Services Librarian, HIL E. Joy Mighty, Associate Professor, Management Teaching Seminar UNB Faculty of Administration December 6, 2002

  2. Part I: Understanding Student PlagiarismA Trip to the Dark Side…. Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  3. Presentation Overview • How did we get here? – Some factors contributing to student plagiarism • “E” is for “easy” – How e-plagiarism is done • I think this one smells – How to check out a suspicious paper Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  4. “If you steal from one author, it’s plagiarism; if you steal from many, it’s research.”- Wilson Mizner (1876–1933), U.S. dramatist Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  5. Some Contributing Factors • Idea that material on the internet is not intellectual property worthy of proper citation • Lack of consistency among citation style guides, especially for online sources • Ease in the online environment Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  6. Students’ misunderstanding of the concepts of collaboration, fair use, and plagiarism • Students’ tendency to procrastinate • Students’ “consumer mentality” – here to get a job vs. here to learn • Source: • Auer, Nicole and Ellen Krupar. “Mouse Click Plagiarism: The Role of Technology in Plagiarism and the Librarian’s Role in Combating It.” Library Trends 49.3 (2001): 415-432. Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  7. e-Plagiarism: How It’s Done • General Websites • Paper Mills • “Coles Notes” Sites • Newsgroups, Listservs, Chat • Online Library Sources Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  8. General Websites There is something out there on virtually any imaginable general topic. For example, let’s look for information on “child labour”. Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  9. Paper Mills There are many sites, offering a wide range in price (starting a $0) and quality. Some examples: www.cheathouse.com www.academictermpapers.com www.planetpapers.com Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  10. “Coles Notes” Sites These study guides cover much more than Shakespeare. The major sites include: www.sparknotes.com www.cliffsnotes.com Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  11. Newsgroups, Listservs, Chat These can be a quick and easy way to get a little too much help from “experts”. A searchable Usenet newsgroup directory: groups.google.com Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  12. Online Library Sources 8,000 e-journals, a dozen fulltext databases, online encyclopedias, all free to students: e-Journals directory: www.lib.unb.ca/eresources/e-Journals.php Fulltext databases: www.lib.unb.ca/eresources/e-Reference.php Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  13. Paper Checking Turnitin.com Checking the “public” web Checking key library sources Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  14. Checking the “Public” Web Plug a questionable and unique phrase from the paper into general search engines: www.google.com www.altavista.com Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  15. Checking Key Library Sources Plug a questionable and unique phrase from the paper into the database: CBCA & Business Source Elite via www.lib.unb.ca/eresources/e-Reference.php Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  16. Bibliography for Instructors Available at: http://www.lib.unb.ca/instruction/PlagiarismBibliography.html Instruction Services - www.lib.unb.ca/instruction

  17. Now let’smove over into the light. Joy will talk about prevention.…

  18. “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” (Proverb)Part II: Preventing Plagiarism E. Joy Mighty & Barry Cull Teaching Seminar Faculty of Administration December 6, 2002

  19. Make Assignment Unique • Provide highly specific topics. Change: • “The globalization of the fast-food industry” • “Employment Equity: do we really need it?” • “Implementing the Kyoto Accord” • “Marketing on the Internet” • Change topics from semester to semester

  20. Make Assignment Clear • Be specific about expectations • Individual v collaboration? • This course only? • Explicit prohibition against uploading to paper mills • Require documentation of all help received • Provide both oral and written guidelines on collaboration

  21. Require Specific Components • Sources from 3 books, 2 Web articles, 1 personal interview, 2 journal articles etc. • Discussion of a specific book/article • A graph or table of data collected by student • A certain % of sources published in given time frame e.g. last year • Response to specific idea discussed in class

  22. Require Process Steps • Break assignment into pieces with different due dates and marks (point-spreading) for sections in progress, e.g.: • Explanation of topic chosen • Research plan • Outline • Annotated bibliography • Draft(s) • Final version

  23. Require Copies of Sources • Require attachments of articles/Web pages/book pages cited or used. • Have them highlight the words quoted or otherwise cited

  24. Require Interaction and Feedback • Peer-editing or quality circles • Oral reports: in class or in office conference • Metalearning (reflective) essay • Short in-class piece on most important thing learned, problems faced, research strategies followed, most fruitful research technique etc.

  25. Other Individual Strategies • Don’t allow last-minute changes in topics • Caution students to save notes and drafts • Avoid short lead times for assignments • Reduce importance of assignments that students perceive as “busy work” • Have a healthy discussion of AI at the beginning of each term; teach referencing conventions • Incorporate library instruction into course • Require an integrity statement

  26. Faculty-Wide Considerations?? • Provide resource for secure assignment submission and return • Collaborate on staggering due dates • Focus on learning/problem solving and take emphasis off grades • Develop an honour code for students in collaboration with Business & MBA societies

  27. References • Harris, R. A. (2001). The plagiarism handbook: Strategies for preventing, detecting and dealing with plagiarism. Los Angeles, CA.: Pyrczak Publishing. • www.AntiPlagiarism.com. Accessed at 7:55 p.m., December 4, 2002.

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