Introduction
Many individuals perceive plagiarism as copying a different person’s work, or borrowing somebody else’s unique and original thoughts. However words like copying or borrowing can masquerade the weightiness of the crime. Plagiarism is seen as an act of deceit involving robbing somebody else’s ideas and labor and after that lying about the matter. Many authors have written on this subject matter, some defend those who plagiaries other people’s materials while others emphasize the issue to be a fraud. Plagiarism is a crime and no one should be allowed to take somebody else’s ideas and claim to their; the act should be considered illegal.
Literature Review
Mark Bauerlein claims that plagiarism is a survival skill; he says that cheating is widespread and for tutors the game of catch-up never ends. Part of this issue originates or arises from the high-stakes scheme, where a poor grade can risk the probabilities for medical school. Mark continues saying that according to the overachievers, plagiarism or cheating is not a vice but it’s considered a survival skill.
Cheating can never make learners actually survive; even if they can measure-off from the university, learners who have no writing skills can never survive in any competitive place of work. Mark says that there are so many things that are contributing to this problem and students may fail to understand this notion of plagiarism; for instance the cutting and pasting, the entrenched link and the hype-text.
Many people do not think plagiarism is cheating and they keep on bringing up excuses to defend their actions. Plagiarism is a fraud and should always be considered to be so (Williams, 2008). Other people think that plagiarism is not in reality an epidemic and that many students do not cheat. Alfie Kohn alleges that there is wrong focus: he accepts that cheating is violating rules but keen on the reasons behind cheating.
He says that cheating is not common in classes where learning is authentically engaging, where learners perceives others to be resources instead of rivals, where ideas exploration has not been concealed by a single-minded stress on severity/rigor. Teachers should dig deeper on why learners are cheating and stop trying to get ahead of their students. Thinking should be emphasized on rather than memorizing.
He says that non-conforming learners can be condemned of a grave moral infraction when in actual fact they violated merely convectional and highly controversial set of prohibitions. He says that in this issue, actions of both the teachers and those of the learners should be examined instead of just personal behaviors. There are so many reasons why students cheat and so it is important to dig deep on the reasons behind this act.
It is important to make the learning environment competitive and emphasis on the importance of striving on your own without the need to cheat. Molly Pease says that the reasons for cheating are all the same. He says that many students plagiarize because they fail to understand that material they are reading or at times they lack the self confidence when it comes to writing their own work.
They think that they are not good enough and so they end up plagiarizing or cheating. Others also plagiarize because they do not know how they are supposed to cite the source appropriately or how to sum up an idea using their own different words. Learners are relentlessly trying to discover their own voice and their tutors are also struggling to clarify to them what amounts to plagiarism and what isn’t. Sharing of knowledge doesn’t necessarily imply hindrance of learners to discover their individual voice.
It’s important to share knowledge but students should not be encouraged to lift the written sources; this gives a student an opportunity to understand the content matter rather than memorizing it (Marsh, 2007). Memorized information can be easily forgotten unlike the information that has been understood (Gilmore, 2008). Today due to Turnitin.com, students have been finding it difficult to cheat than before.
Molly says that a learner who deliberately and unashamedly copies information either from the websites or other learners is normally trying to go-by a classroom with a last-ditch endeavor. It’s self-evident and obvious that that learner will not receive recognition for that class level. Andrew Daines affirms that students should be taught ethics.
He says that a philosophical foundation for integrity, sincerity and goodness helps learners to see the worth of upholding ethical principles or rising up to them. An ethics class has the ability to change life positively because it helps learners find fresh and mesmerizing intellectual motivations to do what is considered truthful and right. An ethic class can be of much help even though many of us know of the fundamental ethics but often we choose to disregard them.
Conclusion
Cheating/plagiarism is illegal and should never be encouraged in any learning institution or in any other place. Experts should be teachers and good teachers that they are expected to be. Teachers should help the learners be honest and straightforward; cheating may simplify their work in class but this may not get them very far. Students should also be engaged on morals and what is right to do. Teachers should toughen and inform the learners on the consequences of cheating. Let them understand that this matter is grim and should be taken seriously.
References
Gilmore,B. (2008). Plagiarism: why it happens, how to prevent it. New York. Heinemann
Marsh,B. (2007). Plagiarism: alchemy and remedy in higher education. California. SUNY Press
Heidi Williams. (2008) Plagiarism. New Jersey: Greenhaven Press
