Modules

Overview

Conversations about academic integrity (including concerns about plagiarism) have engaged college communities for years. More recently, these conversations have moved outside the walls of the academy, especially with the rise of an Internet culture. The relationship between technology and cheating centers on universal access to other people's work and the concomitant ease in copying what we discover online. For example, free or inexpensive computer programs allow even casual tech users to download music and films or copy other electronic media.

While lawyers and judges help shape the policies that will serve the general public, many teachers can envision themselves on the frontlines of a battle between intellectual ideals and the often unreflective progress of new technologies. In the transition from high school to college, we find a perfect opportunity to address this predicament.

Whether intentional plagiarism is more prevalent today remains unknown; we have much anecdotal evidence, however, to suggest that there are plenty of careless errors and naïve non-conformity to the standards we expect in our classrooms. It is this unintentional sort of plagiarism we hope to address with these materials. Many students have not learned—or fail to employ—the methodologies of sound academic writing we advocate: citation styles might be haphazardly applied; paraphrasing remains a mystery.

There are increased demands on teachers, as well, who are asked to rethink assignments with a design toward inimitable themes or more rigid requirements for drafts of papers. We must also address the cultural differences our students bring to the classroom, as American standards for originality are not always universal ideals.

Please read the Letter to College Now Faculty to learn more about the background behind this project.