Effects of Plagiarism
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
Introduction
Plagiarism refers to the practice in which another person represents ideas, expressions, thoughts and language of an author as his/her work, and it has frustrated the attainment of educational objectives in higher institutions of learning in recent times. Students have been struggling with the challenge of academic writing, and they often fall victim to academic dishonesty and instances of plagiarism. Plagiarism, in all its forms, is a problem that disrupts academic domains (Mamechaoui, 2016). Academic dishonesty is a breach of ethics of the professionals. Educational institutions and facilities have long been fighting academic dishonesty. Instances of plagiarism are handled with discipline, although in some learning institutions instances of plagiarism are treated as a learning experience for the student. Intentional and unintentional cheating are always differentiated, and in some cases, the teacher has given the responsibility of handling cases of dishonesty by him/herself without reporting them to the administration of the institution. Many institutions are going for plagiarism detection services aiming to curb instances of dishonesty. The detection services tools are very effective though it’s tough to determine their effectiveness since there’s no standardized approach to handling dishonesty cases (Rodgers, 2009). The research study is aimed at determining the effects of plagiarism in general.
Acts of plagiarism include using technological advances to artificially construct essays from documents available on the web (winter et al., 2003), students turning the work of other as their own and any information whose source is not accurately documented and credited. With the advent of technological innovations, technology has made it more tempting for students to commit acts of academic dishonesty (Rodgers, 2009). contributory factors of plagiarism include the absence of licensed anti-plagiarism software at lecturer’s disposal, the excessive workload of students and lecturers, lecturer’s low salaries and the weak academic ethos. Some students say that they are told to discuss old and irrelevant topics, search culture and methodology are not instilled during the learning process and the perception that plagiarism is a common practice. Lectures say that students practice plagiarism because they lack necessary skills for doing written assignments, students assume that plagiarism will not be detected and poor selection procedures in universities.
Images, words and ideas are trademarks, copyrights and patent-protected to make them reliable and sure due to their benefits financially accrued from thinking innovatively. Individuals who practice plagiarism may benefit either financially by enriching themselves at the expense of others or socially by raising their status in society (Traniello et al., 2016). Plagiarism is also demeaning the academic ethos. Students who are doing their first degrees practice plagiarism most considering it as a minor offence at the undergraduate level of education (Newton, 2016). A student found with a crime of academic dishonesty may be made to redo the assigned work with his/her marks reduced. He/she may also be failed, or another one more chance is given to him/her to submit the work after a specified period. Other actions may also be solutions according to the institution’s constitution, i.e. expulsion (Kalani et al., 2013). This actions may permanently destroy the academic reputation and haunt the student thought his/her life. A person may also lose his job; thus, plagiarism should not be taken casually.
Universities and other learning institutions should first of all train students in critical thinking and academic writing to deal seriously with the problem. ( Mojeiko et al.,2019) Educational institutions are using the same tempting technology which the students are succumbing to help them combat the acts of academic dishonesty that are occurring on their premises(Ercegovac&Richardson,2004). A problem arises where lecturers do not know their students and the work of each student personally to detect cases of plagiarism by themselves (Rodgers, 2009).
Conclusion
Students should be trained in critical thinking and academic writing. Financial incentives provided for combatting plagiarism and automatic anti-plagiarism checkers used. Combating plagiarism should be at the earlier stages of the educational process, and the recruitment process to universities changed to ensure students do a course they are passionate in its study. Plagiarism is thus a severe offence and should not be promoted by anyone who seeks academic excellence. Career may be ruined and harsh punishments imposed on a person. The best decision is to practice proper techniques of writing. Students should start learning excellent writing skills as early as possible in lower levels of education to make them used to better writing skills.
References
Kalani, V., & Twinwal, A. (2013). Plagiarism and its Consequences. Department of electrical engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi.
MAMECHAOUI, S. (2016). THE EFFECTS oF PLAGIARISM THE CASE oF THIRD–YEAR LMD EFL LEARNERS TLEMCEN UNIVERSITY (Doctoral dissertation).
Mojeiko, V., & Rudkouski, P. (2019). Plagiarism among Belarusian students: Contributory factors, consequences, and solutions. Analytical Paper, 14, 27.
Rogers, S. (2009). The effects of plagiarism detection services on the teacher-student relationship as it pertains to trust (Doctoral dissertation, Northern Illinois University).
Traniello, J. F., & Bakker, T. C. (2016). Intellectual theft: pitfalls and consequences of plagiarism.