Is it Really Yours? An article on plagiarism in school

 

                As teachers, we usually give out projects to the students. Especially now that the grading system has been transformed into a new system whereby a product (project) is required for each subject as a separate grading component. As such, teachers are on the look-out for unscrupulous projects which are submitted by either lazy students or those who just cannot get the lesson right.  In either case, these students turn in a project, be it written or otherwise, which are not of their own creation. They present a project made by somebody else and pass it as their own or make direct quotations verbatim and not citing who the author is or giving an idea made by somebody else and pass it as their own.  As teachers, we should be vigilant and cautious that no student does this in our own subject. We have a term for this. We call it plagiarism. According to Wikipedia, plagiarism is the "wrongful appropriation" and "stealing and publication" of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions" and the representation of them as one's own original work.^[1][2] The idea remains problematic with unclear definitions and unclear rules

                As a precautionary measure, our student handbook categorically forbids any student to turn in something which is not his or hers.  The handbook has also scheduled a penalty for such an act.  I have been in the academe for more than thirty years and I have witnessed how students have violated this part of the student handbook. When I was still the Lower Level Coordinator, which I believe is the counterpart of today’s SFO or to be more direct, the Student Prefect of Discipline, I have had, in one or two occasions, been confronted with a case of plagiarism.  There was even a case where almost the whole class was charged with the offense. I do not exactly recall now how the turn of events went but I know that the students received a spanking (figuratively, of course) for what they did.

                How should we handle a case of plagiarism? What we should always remember is that we are a school, a learning institution entrusted with the education of the young. We are not dealing with professionals who have a sense of full responsibility for their actions. These are minors to whom we have been given authority to form their education for them to have a well-meaning, well-lived future.

                Having said that, what is my opinion on erring students? My personal belief with regard to plagiarism committed by students is very simple.  For the school to focus on being punitive sanctions does not address the problem. It would even seem that teachers are trying to get back on the students, some sort of vengeance, if you would.  A harsh observation but could be a possible argument used by the offending child’s parents against the teacher.  More than anything else, it may even send the wrong signal to the student. Let us take an offending child meted out a three-day suspension because of the said misdemeanour. What does (s)he think after the sanction has been served? (S)He might think it was relatively easy.  After all, a three day suspension is nothing but a reprieve from the classroom. Hence, said student is off the hook easily and still has not learned to do the assigned task properly. What would I have done?  I would simply just hand back the project, tell the student that he/she turned in a wrong paper or project and give him/her time to repeat and do it correctly. I will tell the student that I know for a fact that (s)he did not write/create the project and tell him/her why. If it is a term paper, I will tell him the parts which are plagiarized, show him where it could be found (remember, the burden of proof lies always on the accuser) and teach him/her the proper way of doing the project. If after this, the student still turns in a paper or project that is not his/her own, I hand the same back and refuse to accept the work until it is done properly.  It may be a long, tedious process but I would have taught the offending child an important lesson in life rather than giving him punishment for a deed which (s)he is bound to repeat again and again for after all, it is just a matter of serving a three day sentence and for something nobody taught him/her to do properly.

All my own!

What is plagiarism? Ajay, who writes for the Manila Bulletin's Technorama (I couldn't establish the link at this time, sorry) section featured the Blogkadahan members about their take on the issue which appeared on Sept. 25 issue. Here, the blogkadahan members were one in defining the word, albeit said differently, and condemn the practice as it is very unproductive.

Anyway, one of the greatest sins a student can do during his lifetime is to plagiarize. Plagiarizing is the act of passing somebody else's work as your own. This can be in the form of copying actual words or ideas. Merely paraphrasing the sentences is a form of plagiarism. In this day and age of computers, to plagiarise is so tempting. Why not? All you have to do is "copy and paste"! How many high school students have done that? I guess a lot. But that doesn't make it right. Plagiarism is a crime which teachers should be conscious about in checking what the students submit to them.

Sometimes, students miss the point. What is important with research work is not only the substance you learn from the information gathered but more importantly, the learning of the process. Data gathering is an art in itself. One has to gather enough materials so as to be able to form a substantial conclusion. i don't know how teachers give the assignment but if I remember correctly, my teachers used to say, "Okay, make a research on the life of Jose Rizal... Compare and contrast his life with that of Andres Bonifacio... and then those powerful, USE YOUR OWN WORDS."

Honestyly, at the time, I didn't exactly know what that meant. I have heard those words quite often that it kind of lost its meaning. Since there are high school students reading this (I hope) I'll try to do it using a metaphor. In making your research, picture yourself as having seen a film and narrating the entire story to a friend. Now, I'm sure all of us have done that, right? You see a movie that you really liked, you tell your best friend how you liked the film. You are ecstatic. First you tell him/her a summary of what happened in the story. How the protagonist was beaten up at the start and how good triumphs over evil in the end. Then, you realize your friend does not yet share your enthusiasm, so you give comparisons like, "Yes, it's better than Harry Potter I and give reasons why you think so!" Then, if you have more time and you have a good listener, you go on deeper. You analyse the film. you talk about the persuasions of the characers - "IN YOUR OWN WORDS"

Well, in making your research, the books that you read would be the film. You synthesize these, compare the points where the authors agree and take note if there are conflicting accounts, make up your mind and write about what you think it is all about. Should you need to copy a phrase, do not forget to cite the source. You could either use footnoting or incorporate it in the text. ex. George Bernard Shaw (1956:p. 10) said: "I dream of things not here today and wonder why." (note, the year and page is bogus)

Remember, education is not really all about Math or Science or whatever subject there is. More than anything, it is about teaching you how to think! In like manner, research is not only about learning the content, what is more important is learning how to do it. hope that helped.

Giving credit where credit is due!

AS you know, I have been an Art teacher for the past twenty years. As an Art teacher, allow me to share some misconceptions about my profession. First, while it would seem that I am teaching my students to draw or paint, that is really not the main focus of my lessons. I believe it is unfair for a student to receive a failing mark simply because he/she does not have the talent for drawing. Any student of mine would tell you that I am not very stingy with grades. As a matter of fact, during a reunion party, several alumni who said hello intimated that my subject was their ticket to make their average higher.

There are several ways where one can receive a very good grade from me. When I say high, I really mean high. Grades ranging from 92 - 100. Yes, I even give a grade of 100. There are only two criteria for a student to get within this range. First, that the work is truly outstanding or, a relatively mediocre work but which I know was done diligently and with a lot of effort by a student to meet the requirements of the project. At the other end of the scale, a student can also fail in my class. This may be seldom but a student will if: 1) he/she failed to submit the project and no attempt has been done to make up for it, or 2) he/she submitted something which is not his/hers.

I had been telling my students that I would prefer for them to hand in the ugliest (if there is such a thing) piece of art work as long as they made it for they would still pass, even get a good grade for it rather than submit an excellent project but was made by somebody else. More than anything, I have to teach them the value of hard work and gaining confidence and self-respect and pride over their capabilities.

Claiming somebody else's project as yours is wrong. That is intellectual dishonesty or to be blunt about it, thievery. And it has a name. It's called plagiarism. The reason I'm writing this is because it seems that there are people who think they can do away with murder and go unnoticed in the internet. I'm talking about Sassy's food blog being stolen and passed off as somebody else's. You can read the article here Sure, it's as easy as copying and pasting a work to another window but is the facility by which it can be done a license to plagiarize? Surely not! How hard is it to acknowledge the real owner of the piece? And that is all that is required;. That we give credit to where credit is due! As a result of this phenomenon in pinoy blogging, a fellow blogger condemns the practice lest other unscrupulous people would have any idea of doing the same. You can read the Cat's take on the subject here.

It really amazes me how someone can steal another's work and put the same on his website. Where's the dignity in that? Does one feel pride in the accolades of people who do not know that what they aer applauding for was stolen? How would a plagiarist feel if suddenly he/she is found out? As far as I'm concerned, there are two people who can answer these questions now. And you know who you are! Shame on you. Had you been my students, you would have gotten a zero in my class...Blogging Ethics 101!