Plagiarism in the classroom

Plagiarism is defined as the unauthorized use or close imitation of another author and the representation of them as one's own original work (dictionary.com).

According to a study by Rutgers University in 1991, 66% of 16,000 students from 31 different universities have cheated. A 1997 study from the Psychological Record states that 36% of undergraduates have admitted to plagiarizing written material.

Plagiarism isn't always on purpose. Sometimes, students simply do not know how to cite their sources. That is why it is vital for teachers to instill proper referencing skills early on in the classroom.
However, there are those students who do copy maliciously, and professors are cracking down on the crime with quick zeros and sometimes more severe punishment, such as expulsion.

Online professors, though, find their virtual classrooms almost free of plagiarism, which is a surprise to all in the education field. These professors say that students in a traditional classroom are more likely to cheat than an online, because perhaps they do not know the guards and tricks that even traditional teachers have.
Some professors believe that students in fields such as sports, nursing, etc, are more likely to plagiarize because they feel they do not need to be able to write to effectively perform their job.

One way to stop students for plagiarism if talk to them explain what Plagiarism is and what are the consequences. Some students do not take in consideration the consequence because they do not think is a huge deal for them to do. Copying and pasting of paragraphs or even entire essays now can be performed with just a few mouse clicks. The best way to prevent plagiarism is to see student work in various stages. Students plagiarize either because they feel they have too much work or because they think they can't do the assignment. If you see early drafts of an essay, there is no way for a student to get around the work, so plagiarism wouldn't help.

References:

http://library.msstate.edu/content/templates/?a=393&/

http://www.classroomtechnology.com

http://www.nbcc.com

http://www.dictionary.com

http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring2000/Overbeck/stats.html

http://www.umuc.edu/ewc/faculty/avoidingplagiarism.shtml

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