Can we always blame students for internet plagiarism? By Kathy Saretzky

The article “Cyber Ethics: The New Frontier,” by Janna J. Baum discusses the issue of students committing ‘cyber crimes’ including hacking, internet plagiarizing, and violating appropriate ‘netiquette.’ The author and the teachers interviewed express their surprise and disgust with the increasing number of students cutting and pasting pieces of internet documents into their own work and failing to cite them properly. However, the statistics do not surprise me at all. Many students have not been taught what plagiarism actually is.

For instance, in my high school practicum last year, I was assisting senior-level students in writing research papers from their research online. I was shocked to see that most of the students were cutting and pasting chunks of information directly into their own work, with no citations at all. When I asked my sponsor about this, she told me that she was not teaching them about plagiarism, as she wanted the students to simply write a research paper without worrying about other details like citations. Many of these students will be going on to university next year, and they could be facing big trouble if they are not taught about plagiarism soon, as this matter is taken very seriously by university instructors.

I wonder if there is a place in the curriculum yet for teaching about ‘cyber ethics’ such as plagiarism, as it appears that some teachers may not be making students aware of this important issue. What do you think are some things that teachers can do to ensure students are fully informed ‘cyber citizens’?

Cyber ethics sites for teachers:

http://www.cybercrime.gov/rules/kidinternet.htm
http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech055.shtml
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/05/09/cyber.ethic.conference.idg/
http://www.cybersmart.org/for/teachers.asp

Kathy Saretzky

Technology as a Scapegoat for Plagiarism?

Welcome to Mariah Michaud's Blog

Technology as a Scapegoat for Plagiarism?

The article, "CyberEthics: The New Frontier," written by Janna J. Baum, focuses on a new dilemma of many students "using poor judgment when using information and communication technology" (54). Th use of new technology has lead may educators to remodel the monitoring of student work. For example, a recent study of 47,000 elementary and middle school students revealed that "48% of juveniles do not consider hacking to be a crime (54). " The Internet has given the general public, of all ages, the opportunity to become lazy in their own thinking. Many members of society are conscientious of their thinking skills and often feel intimidated and claim other people's work as their own.

To help combat plagiarism in the classroom, Baum, has created five steps to help educators teach the "ethical uses of information and communication technologies" (55). Firstly, she suggests to initiate a Cyberethics curriculum. Secondly, ensure you teach Cyberethics in your classroom. Thirdly, use the Internet as a tool to teach Cyberethics in your classroom. Fourthly, create an acceptable use policy with students. Ensure they understand and are fluent with these expectations. Lastly, have students make a pledge to become responsible and honest web users. These outlined steps will help eliminate your future students from inappropriately claiming another person's work as their own.

The responsibility of combating students from plagiarising is the job of both the student and the teacher. As educators we need to ensure our students understand the consequences of their actions. Students need to recognize it is there job to be careful when quoting other people's work.

Questions:

What other things can teachers do to prevent students from falling victim to plagiarism?
Has the Internet "brought about a change in core values of students?"

Resources for Teachers on Educating Students on Cyberethics:

http://www.cybercrime.gov/rules/lessonplan1.htm
http://www.cteresource.org/publications/featured/cyberethics/
http://www.cybersmart.org/for/teachers.asp

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