Plagiarism in University - Report Example

Plagiarism in Reference style: APA 6th Edition Plagiarism in Introduction The paper evaluates the factors that lead students in universities and other post-secondary institutions to engage in unethical academic practices, especially plagiarism. Tertiary education encompasses learning that equips the students with knowledge enabling them to uphold academic integrity by practicing ethical academic writing, which recognises all intellectual property (Ting, Musa, & Mah, 2014, p. 74). For this reason, the scholarly works utilised in research must be appropriately cited to protect the ideas and knowledge of other people. However, it has become pertinent that practices that some institutions employ concerning managing plagiarism are too lenient, thus provides room for students to develop unethical practices that they carry on during their entire learning process. Plagiarism in tertiary institutions has become a contentious issue for the different stakeholders in the education sector because of the varied issues contributing to it. Ting et al. (2014) argue that some lectures or rather tutors’ attitudes and norms towards ethical academic practices have jeopardised the actualisation of academic integrity since they do not implement the plagiarism policies of their relevant institutions as required, thus have provided loopholes for the vice to grow among the students (p. 74). Tutors are the people that are in direct contact with the students, and thus relationships and attitudes towards ethical academic writing influence the overall impact of the plagiarism policies instituted (Ting et al., 2014, p. 74). An institution can have stringent regulations that protect intellectual property and agitate for anti-plagiarism, but if the lectures are not committed to the policies the entire effort and process can be presumed in vain since a number of the perpetrators of the vice get away with minor penalties. Some institutions have inefficient structures to fight academic plagiarism, thus providing loopholes and opportunities for students to engage in unethical writing (Hansen, Stith, & Tesdell, 2011). Ideally, the notion of academic integrity manifests conspicuously in tertiary institutions, and thus it is the duty of the tutors to teach the learners on issues related plagiarism and the need to maintain ethical educational practices. It is on this premise that learners can to understand the plagiarism policies of their schools and thus commit to abide by them. Therefore, in situations where the universities do not have elaborate structures that maintain ethical academic practices, then the students will engage in the vice because of lack of penalties and other repercussions as they will perceive the vice as a norm (Devlin & Gray, 2007). Park (2003) argues that inadequate research and writing skills contribute significantly to the rampant cases of plagiarism among college students. A number of learners in universities do not have the prerequisite skills that can enable them to conduct comprehensive research for their academic projects. Thus, they engage in copying and pasting other scholars’ intellectual property without proper attribution in their papers. The modern generation of learners no longer conducts their research in libraries and other places where huge volumes of knowledge are based. They opt and rely on the internet as the solution for all their academic needs. For this reason, assimilate information directly from internet sources assuming it is common knowledge (Park, 2003). According to Phan (2006), careless note taking and inefficient writing skills at times lead to plagiarism because students resort to copying concepts directly from their primary sources, thus in later dates when they are using their notes to accomplish academic tasks they are unable to distinguish between their ideas and those that were sourced from other people. However, in this case, the plagiarism committed is unintentional and can be avoided if the learners employ efficient writing skills throughout their learning process. Moreover, academic referencing takes different forms depending on the specific style that one utilises in a particular assignment (Ting et al., 2014, p. 76). Thus, most students get confused to employ the correct citation since the styles have varied rules that often override; hence, causing confusion to them. According to Bennett (2005), the pressure that the learners get from their parents as well as numerous academic obligations they need to satisfy with a limited amount of time is a significant cause of plagiarism among college and university students. In tertiary learning institutions, there is no structured manner in which students can compete; however, the competition crops when the best or top learners are awarded scholarships for their extemporary performance. The situation is made worse by financial constraints that are a major problem for a number of students, thus compelling them to strive hard to achieve the best grades possible to benefit from the scholarships. For this reason, a number of the students will opt for uncouth techniques to cheat their way to success by engaging in plagiarism and other forms of academic cheating to acquire good grades. Parents also mount undue pressure on their children to obtain individual degrees that are beyond their normal capabilities, thus subjecting the students to unorthodox means in order to achieve their parents’ aspirations Bennett (2005). Conversely, the commoditisation of education and knowledge has led to increased incidents of plagiarism (Erkaya, 2009). Education has lost its social value in the society and it is now perceived as a passport for the learners to earn good professional jobs on completion rather than a learning process that is supposed to develop the knowledge and skills of the learners to enable them to improve the well-being of the society (Erkaya, 2009). On that premise, students have developed the mentality that education is the sole determinant of their future life and thus if they fail in their college education, their future is plagued and they cannot secure better jobs. Thus, this perception has made them utilise all means possible including engaging in academic misconduct to achieve better grades that can earn them better jobs later on in life. A majority of the students will be striving to achieve perfection in their academic work and in so doing, they end up copying other people’s works without proper acknowledgement of the sources used (Erkaya, 2009). Poor organisational skills among the students are another cause that contributes to plagiarism cases in schools (Devlin, & Gray, 2007). Academic assignments are often accompanied by reasonable deadlines under which they are supposed to be completed. A majority of the learners often engage in secondary activities and only to embark on their assignments in last minute rush, thus get tempted to copy directly from other researchers work to beat the set deadlines. It is prudent to note that the ethical consideration in academics is crucial since it provides a level competing ground for all students without creating any form of an undue advantage. Additionally, ethical practices in academic enhance the integrity of the learning process, and this instils confidence in the educational systems as the learners can develop the best skills through the learning process. Conclusion It is evident that academic integrity needs to be upheld not only to protect the intellectual property of other people but also to provide a level ground of competition in the institutions to ensure no single students gets undue advantage by utilising uncouth techniques to acquire better grades. Moreover, it is clear a number of factors such as personal competencies contribute immensely to unethical academic writing. Ultimately, the factors that promote plagiarism in the institutions have been a contentious issue among stakeholders in the education sector since the quality and integrity of the skills and knowledge acquired in universities has been jeopardised. References Bennett, R. (2005). Factors associated with student plagiarism in a post‐1992 university. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 30(2), 137–162. Devlin, M., & Gray, K. (2007). In their own words: A qualitative study of the reasons Australian university students plagiarize. High Education Research & Development, 26(2), 181–198. Erkaya, O. R. (2009). Plagiarism by Turkish students: Causes and solutions. Asian EFL Journal, 11(2), 86–103. Hansen, B., Stith, D., & Tesdell, L. S. (2011). Plagiarism: Whats the big deal?. Business Communication Quarterly, 74(2), 188. Park, C. (2003). In other (peoples) words: Plagiarism by university students – Literature and lessons. Assessment & evaluation in higher education, 28(5), 471–488. Phan, L. H. (2006). Plagiarism and overseas students: stereotypes again? ELT Journal, 60(1), 76–78. Ting, S. H., Musa, M. K., & Mah, F. S. F. (2014). Plagiarism norms and practices in coursework assignments. International Journal of Education, 6(1), 73–89. Read More