Plagiarism FAQ

Promoting Proper Citation of Sources

How can I help my students build citation skills?

Improve recognition by providing examples and practice in proper citation of sources.
State which citation style you prefer and provide examples of proper source citation, improper citation.
Hold students accountable by grading for proper citation of sources.
Help students learn why proper citation of sources (including images) is important in the academic experience.

Promoting Academic Integrity, Deterring Misconduct

What steps can I take to minimize opportunities for plagiarism in my classes?

Help students recognize plagiarism and forms of academic misconduct.
Reward originality and proper citation.
Design assignments to be very specific to course content, to relate ideas, to apply knowledge, to require drafts, etc.

How can I prepare students for my expectations regarding academic citation?

State your and your department’s policy in your syllabus.
Make a contract with students.
Quote the relevant passage from the Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct:

3. Plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined as presenting someone else's work, including the work of other students, as one's own. Any ideas or materials taken from another source for either written or oral use must be fully acknowledged, unless the information is common knowledge. What is considered “common knowledge” may differ from course to course.

1. A student must not adopt or reproduce ideas, opinions, theories, formulas, graphics, or pictures of another person without acknowledgment.
   
2. A student must give credit to the originality of others and acknowledge indebtedness whenever:
   
3. Directly quoting another person's actual words, whether oral or written;
   
4. Using another person's ideas, opinions, or theories;
   
5. Paraphrasing the words, ideas, opinions, or theories of others, whether oral or written;
   
6. Borrowing facts, statistics, or illustrative material; or
   
7. Offering materials assembled or collected by others in the form of projects or collections without acknowledgment.

- IU Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct, "Part II Section 3, Plagiarism," 2005.

What steps do I take to penalize poor citation?

Use grading rubric that addresses proper citation as a requirement for completion of assignment.
Grade down for failure to comply with assignment requirements.

How can I manage matters of academic honesty in group assignments? Web-based assignments?

In group assignments, be excruciatingly specific about what you expect in terms of the completed assignment; require students to take responsibility for their part of the assignment; assign students to check the others’ sources; assign students to reflect on their group project.
In web-based assignments, require students to cite sources for material they acquire online, including images.
If you provide templates, make sure you include citations in your templates.

Detecting Similarities

How can I check student assignments against other students’ current and prior assignments for similarities?

There is currently no clear solution.

How can students check their own work for similarities to others?

Submit assignments to search engine or to online plagiarism detection service.

Where can I look (i.e. websites etc) to find text sources I suspect my students misquoted or did not properly cite in their papers?

Google www.google.com (Google limits to 10 words)
turnitin.com www.turnitin.com
IUB Library full-text journals

How do I compare text from one student’s assignment to another?

Submit to turnitin.com.
Use Find function of BBEdit or other text-editing software.

How do I best use an online service as a deterrent?

Inform students you will randomly submit assignment samples.
Require students to submit their assignments.

Whom do I contact to use an online anti-plagiarism service?

Contact TLTC staff members Madeleine Gonin or Kate Ellis at 855-7829.

Managing Suspected Cases of Academic Misconduct

What should I do if I suspect students have submitted work that is not their own?

Use search engines to match text strings.
Use online detection service to match text.
Meet with students, department chair, course coordinator, Directory of Undergraduate Studies, Dean of Students Office to express your concerns.
Follow and enforce your required policy and procedures on academic misconduct.

Help

How can I avoid spending so much time on issues of academic integrity?

Act to prevent academic misconduct.

What are my colleagues doing about academic integrity?

The Plagiarism Prevention Showcase discussed what other faculty have done to prevent plagiarism. View their discussion here.

What resources are available to help?

Online

IULIB citation format on website http://www.indiana.edu/~libugls/Publications/handouts.html

"Understanding Plagiarism" - Ted Frick, School of Education, IUB (helps students gauge their understanding of proper citation) http://education.indiana.edu/~frick/plagiarism/index2.html

String matching to check similarities
Google.com (up to 10 words)

Turnitin.com and other services

BBEdit or other text-editing software

Writing Tutorial Services online resources and course specific workshops.

Campus Writing Program information on Discouraging Plagiarism

TLTC online resources on Plagiarism Detection, Prevention, and Technologies

IUB Campus Resources

Office of the Dean of Students

Campus Instructional Consulting

Campus Writing Program

IUB Libraries

Teaching and Learning Technologies Centers

Writing Tutorial Services

Questions?

Send a message to: turnitin@indiana.edu

Call: Teaching & Learning Technologies Centers, 855-7829, ask for Madeleine Gonin or Kate Ellis