Internet usage among college students for academic purposes is higher than ever, yet the majority of students still do not subject themselves to the temptations of Internet plagiarism.
Many students, as well as professors, across the country are convinced large numbers of students often plagiarize, while statistics show this is, in fact, false. In a recent study, only 24.5 percent of students admitted to “cutting and pasting” at some point from the Internet without citing the source.
Students are taught word-for-word copying is unethical, but many students are unaware of all of the facets of plagiarism.
“Sometimes we don’t even realize that we are plagiarizing. Many of us get confused about what is and isn’t acceptable to write,” University of Wisconsin-Madison freshman Carrie Campbell said.
At UW, few professors have had to deal with many serious plagiarism offenses, while some have never had a problem.
“So far, I have not had to confront issues of student plagiarism,” said Sharon Dunwoody, professor and director of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication. “Like most faculty, I am clear about the negative outcomes of confirmed plagiarism in my syllabus.”
Not only does Professor Dunwoody make the penalties clear to her students, but she said she also tries to avoid putting them in situations where an act of this sort would be easy or tempting.
“I now try to design assignments that will minimize the chances that someone will be able to use a web text. I also now talk in class about how to use the World Wide Web as a research tool,” she said.
With the increase in Internet usage, many professors are integrating this relatively new tool into their teaching procedures. Some professors send e-mail reminders as well as provide their lecture notes online.
Yet, the majority of students still prefer the traditional classroom setting to the idea of an online course, the report said.
“For most courses, [the Internet] will remain a tool, but an increasingly important tool,” UW Journalism Professor Jack Mitchell said. “I assume more courses will be offered primarily online, but I doubt they will ever become the norm.”
In a recent survey, only 6 percent of students questioned had taken a course online for school credit. An online lecture may seem more appealing to some, but a majority of students seem to be sticking to the classroom.
“It’d be pretty sweet to be able to sit back and watch a lecture over the Internet. I haven’t ever taken an online class, but I guess I’d try it,” UW sophomore Tyler George said.
Some professors said they believe an online course would essentially “take away” much of the learning that takes place in the classroom.
“
Much is learned from the live discussions that occur in class that could not be replicated in an online environment,” journalism Professor Hemant Shah said.
