Alexis Anderson
Staff Writer
Due to the massive amount of information and resources available on the Internet, plagiarism and copyright infringement are serious issues faced by college students desperate to make A’s in their courses. However, colleges and universities including Jackson State want students to understand that to deliberately take someone else’s work without giving them credit violates the principles of collegiate conduct.
A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in September of 2011 found that most college presidents (55%) say that plagiarism in students’ papers has increased over the past 10 years. Among those who have seen an increase in plagiarism, 89% say computers and the Internet have played a major role.
Daoying Liu, a JSU instructor at the Richard Wright Center for writing, rhetoric, and research, said that it is important that college students know the difference between deliberate and unintentional plagiarism.
“Whether you summarize, paraphrase, or use researched information, it is vital that you use the proper citation when crediting someone’s work. This is a good way for students to learn respect for others work. A lot of students who write at the center don’t use the right citations or give the sources for their research. Some students plagiarize because they don’t want to take time to write their work appropriately, students just want to copy and paste,” said Liu.
Preselfannie McDaniels, Assistant Professor of English at JSU stated there are a number of reasons why college students choose to plagiarize.
“I think it depends on the student. I had a student who told me she never attempted to plagiarize because she was too afraid that she was going to get caught, excluding the fact that it was morally and academically wrong. Sometimes, students are lazy; some don’t understand the material given to them. There are students who aren’t confident enough to think analytically. They don’t realize their potential or have confidence in their work,” said McDaniels.
McDaniels also stated that after getting familiar with a student’s work, she can easily spot plagiarism.
“I use google.com, http://www.safeassign.com and http://turnitin.com to check for plagiarism. I give all of my students a warning, if they are found plagiarizing, I will give them a failing grade and a second chance to rewrite their story or choose another assignment. We have MLA documentations, workshops, handouts, and I give examples and feedback in class. I let the first paper be the draft, granting them the opportunity to review their mistakes. The faculty wants to encourage students to become better researchers, but they have to understand they must give credit where it’s due,” said McDaniels.
Many JSU students agree that the university should crack down on the prevalence of plagiarism.
“Plagiarism is a lazy man’s excuse of becoming successful. It happens more often in college, they (students) don’t want to put in the time and effort. Plagiarism is a form of educational cheating, some students feel like they won’t get caught,” said Jarrett Adams, a sophomore biology/pre-med major from Atlanta, Ga.
Kelly Randall, freshman sociology major from Kosciusko, Miss. who attends Milsaps
College, believes more should be done to teach students about plagiarism before college.
“Nowadays, students are lazy, the Internet has endless sources. Most of the time, people have similar ideas to the writers and researchers, so they don’t see the need to cite their work. They seize that time to take advantage. It’s 50/50, some of it is the teachers fault for not recognizing it and other times, students aren’t educated. They should be taught earlier in high school that it is unacceptable,” said Randall.
Jackson State Students should be aware of the following policies concerning academic dishonesty that can be found in 2013-2014 Student Handbook:
2.25 Digital and Electronic Copyright Infringement. Digital or electronic use of copyrighted materials without authorization from the owner of the copyright
Sanction: Fine of $50-$250 + Probation +removal of privileges; Termination of network access; suspension
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