the challenge of plagiarism in the digital world

perry share itsligo 24 march 04

brilliantly innovative or one

of the most blatant acts of plagiarism ever

conceived ?

(Amazon.com)

plagiarism or satire?

creativity or theft?

the realignment of [existing] elements in transformative

recombination (Livingston-Webber, 1999: 265)

• rap music• TV advertising• zine culture • fashion• Hollywood film

• pop art• posters• T-shirts• cartoons• websites

institutional plagiarism

speechwritingghostwritingphotocopying

software piracyacademic writing

teaching materials

intellectual property

[the law] forms an airtight protective seal around the brand, allowing it

to brand us, but prohibiting us from so much as scuffing it

(Klein, 2000: 176)

cultural appropriation

(someone else’s) Material Girl?

Madonna Bourdin

©copyright law reifies existing ways of

perceiving art, and in so doing, stifles, rather than encourages,

creativity

Pfohl (2000: 196)

Creative commonsa new approach to IPR

plagiarism: good or bad?

whether theft, lie, fraud, freeloading, deafness to the voice of God,

cultural vandalism, or whatever combination, plagiarism is a

falsification of self

(Swanson, 2000: 141)

a moral or an ethical issue?

theft: plagiarism as stealingorigination

scalecontextualisationdisciplinary skills

teaching & learning

engagementutilitarianismmarketisationself-interest

technology

assessment

by its nature plagiarism threatens the value and integrity of what is

being taught. It threatens students’ engagement with

learning and, unless addressed, could undermine the worth of

awards students earn (Carroll, 2002: 13-14)

responses

1. ignorance is bliss!2. techno-fix3. reconsidering assessment

ignorance is bliss!

reporting a plagiarizer and filing charges against a student can be a painful, time-

consuming experience for faculty . . . the worst course of action is to turn a blind eye to students who plagiarize.

Ignoring plagiarism undermines the value of education, it undermines the

university, and it undermines the academic community

(University of Alberta, nd)

techno-fix

reconsidering assessment

explain plagiarismoutline consequencesidentify expectationsassign specific topics

track writing – drafts, bibliographies &coral presentations

require specific types of sourcesencourage concision

www.turnitin.com/research_site/e_preventing_p.html

knowledge = power

what is a tertiary education for?hierarchical power relations

a paternalistic, caretaking ideology(Lynch, 1999: 219)

students’ positioning within the system

influence over T&L?

students don’t get to decide what they want to cover in their courses,

it is outlined to them.

you just have to go with whatever lecturers put before you

[ITS student 2004]

influence over course content

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influence over delivery

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the way forward?

student input should be taken more into account as it would make ‘us’

part of the college, unlike just being told what to do.

Also if we worked with our lecturers to get a mutual goal we would

become more involved and interested in the work given

conclusion

reframe the question of plagiarism

as one about how students are included in a

democratic discourse about the construction and

communication of knowledge

read more

www.itsligo.ie/staff/pshare/assessment/links.htm

you can read the whole paper from here – also links to other

plagiarism resources