Why Students Plagiarize and Consequences of Plagiarism - Assignment Example

Plagiarism: Definition, Reasons as to Why Students Plagiarize and Consequences of Plagiarism Abstract The challenge of plagiarism has over the years grown to now become a major concern for most administrators and teachers who require that their students’ work accurately represents their own individual effort and reflects the general outcomes of whatever it is they have been learning. The issue of plagiarism is seen to be further compounded by the rapid growth and usage of the internet, a factor that has served to provide students with what can largely be considered to be almost unlimited access to a large volume of written material touching on almost every possible topic. This paper seeks to try and identify exactly what is meant by plagiarism, the reason as to why it is so extensive and the probably effects of plagiarism on students and institutions. Introduction According to Anderson (1998), plagiarism can essentially be defined as the act of using another person’s words without undertaking to give the person any of the credit that is due to that person. Plagiarism is seen to have its root set in the traditional Western civilization of concept of property ownership. During the historical period of the Greco-Roman era, it was common to find orators and authors frequently borrowing from one another, however, the discovery of such theft was usually met with a lot of public ridicule and sarcasm. Intellectual property protection can be deemed to be primarily concerned about money and the freedom for an individual to develop various ideas into a number of products and works that will be found to be of immense benefit to society. To encourage discovery and creative development among its citizens, the law is designed so as to give an originator an certain amount of time within which he will be allowed to control both the content and disbursement of any of the products which might happen to result from his idea. In the event that someone happens to seat al use this original material, they are liable to be charged with infringement of property. Why is Plagiarism So Extensive within Higher Education? There are a number of reasons as to why plagiarism is found to be so extensive among students within higher education. In a study conducted on a sample size of 5000 students the results of the study suggested that an estimated three-quarter of the sample group admitted to having engaged in some form of academic cheating. The large number of students in the sample group recorded as having previously plagiarized supports the notion that while it is possible to reduce plagiarism in the various institutions of higher learning, it is nevertheless impossible to completely eliminate it. 16 percent of the students in the study cited the reason as to why they plagiarized was a result of the belief that they would not be caught, students were aware of the rather immense pressure that the university staff were under as a result of teaching and marking the results of large number of students and believed that they could be able to safely take the chance with submitting plagiarized work (Neville 2010). Some of the other reasons cited as to why students engage in plagiarism include: Making the Grade: In the research study, 59% of the students cited getting better grades as being the reason as to why they engaged in plagiarism. Higher education students are constantly under a lot of enormous pressure from peers, family and instructor to actively compete for the few educational and job opportunities available. These opportunities might variously include; admission to prestigious universities, scholarships and places in the ever shrinking job market. The common perception among most students is that education is one of the many components to their eventual success and not an active process that is valuable in itself. Because of this, students often tend to focus on the making good grades on their assigned research projects as opposed to focusing on the skills that they learn in conducting the research (Neville 2010). Poor Planning: 54 percent of the sample group cited bad time management and laziness as being the reason behind as to why they plagiarized. Students are not always able to correctly judge the amount of time it might take them to produce a research paper on a given assignment. As a result of their being overwhelmed by the assigned task or not being aware of the actual extent of work that will be involved in a research paper, students often put off important tasks until the very last minute when they find themselves having no sufficient time to be able to produce an original work of their own (Neville 2010; Park 2003). Unintentional Plagiarism: 29 percent of the students were recorded as claiming that the plagiarism happened unconsciously. While students might at times be honestly trying to produce an original work and avoid plagiarism, it is often found that even the most well-intentioned writer might unwittingly at times tend to appropriate the work of other writers without being granted any proper authority or granting the originator credits for the work (Park 2003). One of most common reasons that is cited for cases of inadvertent plagiarism among students is simply a case of the concerned students ignoring to use the proper citation forms. Another common reason as to why students might happen to inadvertently plagiarize is a result of the students attempt to paraphrase but end up unintentionally plagiarizing a paper (Neville 2010). Impact of Plagiarism on the Student and Institution Plagiarism can have a large number of consequences ranging from professional and legal consequences to personal and ethical consequences. Plagiarism can involve a large number of individuals and includes not only students, but also professionals, authors, academics and journalists. In the event that a student or individual happens to be verified as having plagiarized any work, it is most likely that the concerned student will always be regarded with constant suspicion. There have been a large number of cases whereby individuals have lost their jobs and credibility as a result of their plagiarizing other people’s work. Some of the effects of plagiarism on students and institutions include: Suspension and Expulsion: In most institutions of higher learning, cases of plagiarism on the part of the student are commonly punished by their being either suspended or expelled from the institution (Phillips and Bostian 2011). Destroyed Reputation: Professionals and academicians that are found to have plagiarized other people’s work often have not only their reputations, but also the reputation of the institution that they were working at getting destroyed. Plagiarism can result in the concerned individual being asked to step down from serving in their current position and in extreme cases, these individuals can be fired from their jobs. Legal Repercussions: Plagiarism can attract very serious legal repercussions with plagiarists being liable to criminal prosecution for the infringement of intellectual property (Phillips and Bostian 2011). Monetary Liabilities: Persons who commit plagiarism can legally be sued resulted and if convicted, they can be fined large amounts of money so as to provide with originator of the original work with monetary restitution. Strategy for Avoiding Plagiarism in my Studies In order to effectively avoid plagiarism in my studies, I will ensure that I always properly cite my work so as to provide due credit to any authors that I might happen to refer to. I will also ensure that I allocate enough time for my research papers so as to avoid the possibility of running out of time and being overwhelmed by my work forcing me to result to plagiarism because of fast approaching deadlines. I will also ensure that I study hard so as to always be able to make good grades and avoid the temptation of attempting to plagiarize any work so as to help boost failing grades. Conclusion Plagiarism can be seen to be critically undermining the entire notion of students and academics always having to maintain academic integrity, a premise on which the entire academic world can arguably be seen to be grounded. It is important for students, journalists, professionals, authors and academicians to understand exactly how they can be able to avoid the different forms of plagiarism so as to effectively shield themselves from the devastating consequences that can result from plagiarism. While all knowledge is heavily dependent on previous knowledge (Ambrose et al. 2010), it is important for individuals to always acknowledge the debt that they owe to those whose thinking has served to help them with their research. References Anderson Judy. 1998. Plagiarism, copyright violation, and other thefts of intellectual property : an annotated bibliography with a lengthy introduction. Jefferson, N.C. ; London : McFarland, cop. Neville Colin. 2010. The complete guide to referencing and avoiding plagiarism. Maidenhead : Open University Press/McGraw Hill. Ambrose A. Susan; et al. 2010. How learning works : seven research-based principles for smart teaching. San Francisco, CA : Jossey-Bass. Park Chris. 2003. In Other (People’s) Words: plagiarism by university students—literature and lessons. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, Vol. 28, No. 5. Phillips Harry and Bostian Patricia. 2011. The Purposeful Argument: A Practical Guide. Cengage Learning. Read More