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“UW-EC Professor: Plagiarism Not Surprising”
By Chris Vetter
UW-Eau Claire English instructor Shevaun Watson said she wasn't surprised to read a report
that plagiarism is on the rise on college campuses across the nation.
Watson, director of composition and an assistant professor at UW-Eau Claire, teaches students on how to
research papers and show their work.
"They are having difficulty understanding the difference between information and knowledge," Watson
said. "Knowledge is created over a long period of time."
In surveys from 2006 to 2010 by Donald L. McCabe, a co-founder of The Center for Academic Integrity
at Clemson University in South Carolina and a business professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey,
found about 40 percent of 14,000 undergraduates admitted to copying a few sentences in written
assignments.
Perhaps more significant, the number who believed that copying from the Internet constitutes serious
cheating is declining -- to 29 percent on average in recent surveys from 34 percent earlier in the decade.
Teachers used to deal with plagiarism by admonishing students to give credit to others and to follow the
style guide for citations, and pretty much left it at that. But recent cases in which students copied and
pasted information from Web pages such as Wikipedia suggest that many students simply do not grasp
that using words they do not write is a serious misdeed.
Watson said she emphasizes original research in papers. "Just doing research is amazingly simple but
(mind-bogglingly) complex," Watson said. "Doing research is incredibly complex in a digital age. (In the
past) it was just so much more clear what is a legitimate source."
UW-Eau Claire journalism student Laura Sukowatey said she usually turns to books and databases at
McIntyre Library while doing assignments instead of sifting through information on the Internet that
could prove worthless.
"It can be time-consuming because there are so many databases and search criteria options," she said.
"However, it's worth it in the long run because I know I'm finding good sources." The easy access to
information on the Web has made some professors more distrustful of students, Sukowatey said.
"Researching is time-consuming and not always the most enjoyable thing to do," she said. “But
plagiarism is not worth it if it means you could potentially get expelled from the university. Which I have
had professors threaten to make sure that happens if they catch anyone."
Watson didn't want to guess the percentage of students who are caught plagiarizing that are willfully
cheating, and what percent are plagiarizing without knowing it.
"It's hard to determine what's going on in each plagiarism case," she said. "Ignorance is not an excuse, and
that's something I really drive home to students."
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There is software available that detects cases of plagiarism, but Watson said the technology is expensive,
and the university doesn't use it. "I think those have mixed results," she said.
Watson acknowledges that having that software is a good deterrent for students.
Watson said she doesn't know how many students have been caught plagiarizing at UW-Eau Claire in
recent years, or if any have been expelled.
"The first offense is dealt with on a very individual case," she said. It is usually up to a department chair
to determine if the student will fail the paper, or fail the class, after having been caught.
"A letter is written and does go into the student's academic file," Watson said.
A second offense can lead to punishment, including academic suspension or expulsion.
Bryan Maloney, 22, a marketing student at Chippewa Valley Technical College, said he understands why
teachers are on high alert when it comes to plagiarism.
"They're not dummies, they understand the age of technology," he said.
Maloney said some students are unsure of how to properly cite sources or just forget to do so, and then
they are accused of plagiarism. In other cases, students will do whatever it takes to just get work done in
general education classes or classes that aren't relevant to their major.
"Plagiarism is wrong," he said. "But I'm not going to lie; I can understand where that line of thinking
comes from. You have a lot of stuff going on as a college student, you don't want to waste a lot of time
doing that stuff."
In the end, however, Maloney said students are aware of the repercussions of getting caught cheating, and
the choice is all their own.
"We're all adults here in college," he said. "I guess the decision falls on you ultimately."
Source Citation:
Vetter, Chris. "UW-EC professor: Plagiarism not surprising." Leader-Telegram [Eau Claire, WI] 4 Aug.
2010. General OneFile. Web. 18 June 2011.
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Document URL
http://find.galegroup.com/gps/infomark.do?&contentSet=IACDocuments&type=retrieve&tabID=T004&prodId=IPS&docId=CJ233506619&source=gale&srcpro
d=ITOF&userGroupName=contra_main&version=1.0
AWL Vocab:
Level 1
available constitutes created percent percentage period research researching significant sou
rce sources
Level 2
assistant complex consuming credit potentially relevant surveys
Level 3
criteria emphasizes technical technology
Level 4
access options
Level 5
academic aware style
Level 6
acknowledges assignments citations ignorance instructor
Level 7
adults
Level 8
detects
Level 9
found founder suspension
Level 10
integrity
W-Eau Claire English instructor Shevaun Watson said she wasn't surprised to read a report that plagiarism is
on the rise on college campuses across the nation. Watson, director of composition and an assistant professor
at UW-Eau Claire, teaches students on how to research papers and show their work. "They are having
difficulty understanding the difference between information and knowledge," Watson said. "Knowledge
is created over a long period of time." In surveys from 2006 to 2010 by Donald L. McCabe, a co-founder of
The Center for Academic Integrity at Clemson University in South Carolina and a business professor at
Rutgers University in New Jersey, found about 40 percent of 14,000 undergraduates admitted to copying a
few sentences in written assignments. Perhaps more significant, the number who believed that copying from
the Internet constitutes serious cheating is declining -- to 29 percent on average in recent surveys from
34percent earlier in the decade. Teachers used to deal with plagiarism by admonishing students to
give credit to others and to follow the style guide for citations, and pretty much left it at that. But recent cases
in which students copied and pasted information from Web pages such as Wikipedia suggest that many
students simply do not grasp that using words they do not write is a serious misdeed. Watson said
she emphasizes original research in papers. "Just doing research is amazingly simple but (mind-bogglingly)
complex," Watson said. "Doing research is incredibly complex in a digital age. (In the past) it was just so
much more clear what is a legitimate source." UW-Eau Claire journalism student Laura Sukowatey said she
usually turns to books and databases at McIntyre Library while doing assignments instead of sifting through
information on the Internet that could prove worthless. "It can be time-consuming because there are so many
databases and search criteria options," she said. "However, it's worth it in the long run because I know I'm
finding good sources." The easy access to information on the Web has made some professors more distrustful
of students, Sukowatey said. "Researching is time-consuming and not always the most enjoyable thing to
do," she said. “But plagiarism is not worth it if it means you could potentially get expelled from the university.
Which I have had professors threaten to make sure that happens if they catch anyone." Watson didn't want to
guess the percentage of students who are caught plagiarizing that are willfully cheating, and what percent are
plagiarizing without knowing it. "It's hard to determine what's going on in each plagiarism case," she said.
"Ignorance is not an excuse, and that's something I really drive home to students." There is
software available that detects cases of plagiarism, but Watson said the technology is expensive, and the
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Puccini/Kurzweil
university doesn't use it. "I think those have mixed results," she said. Watson acknowledges that having that
software is a good deterrent for students. Watson said she doesn't know how many students have been caught
plagiarizing at UW-Eau Claire in recent years, or if any have been expelled. "The first offense is dealt with on a
very individual case," she said. It is usually up to a department chair to determine if the student will fail the
paper, or fail the class, after having been caught. "A letter is written and does go into the
student's academic file," Watson said. A second offense can lead to punishment,
including academic suspension or expulsion. Bryan Maloney, 22, a marketing student at Chippewa
Valley Technical College, said he understands why teachers are on high alert when it comes to plagiarism.
"They're not dummies, they understand the age of technology," he said. Maloney said some students are
unsure of how to properly cite sources or just forget to do so, and then they are accused of plagiarism. In other
cases, students will do whatever it takes to just get work done in general education classes or classes that
aren't relevant to their major. "Plagiarism is wrong," he said. "But I'm not going to lie; I can understand where
that line of thinking comes from. You have a lot of stuff going on as a college student, you don't want to waste a
lot of time doing that stuff." In the end, however, Maloney said students are aware of the repercussions of
getting caught cheating, and the choice is all their own. "We're all adults here in college," he said. "I guess the
decision falls on you ultimately."
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Summary Cause/Effects in article:
Causes
●
●
●
●
●
Effects
Difference between information and
knowledge hard to distinguish for Ss
Copying from Internet not cheating
(Simply not grasp that copy is cheating)
Digital age (many illegitimate sources)
Ignorance (unsure of how to cite)
Classes that are not relevant (waste of
time)
●
●
●
●
Admonishing Ss
Profs more distrustful
Ss get suspended/expelled
Software to detect
What is the primary cause for this rise?
What do you think is the most effective way to stop the problem?
Why is it important in American culture?
Summary notes:
“UW-EC Professor: Plagiarism Not Surprising,” by Chris Vetter,
UW-Eau Claire English instructor Shevaun Watson said she wasn't surprised to read a report that plagiarism is on the rise
on college campuses across the nation.
Watson, director of composition and an assistant professor at UW-Eau Claire, teaches students on how to research papers and
show their work.
"They are having difficulty understanding the difference between information and knowledge," Watson said. "Knowledge is
created over a long period of time."
In surveys from 2006 to 2010 by Donald L. McCabe, a co-founder of The Center for Academic Integrity at Clemson University
in South Carolina and a business professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey, found about 40 percent of 14,000 undergraduates
admitted to copying a few sentences in written assignments.
Perhaps more significant, the number who believed that copying from the Internet constitutes serious cheating is declining -- to
29 percent on average in recent surveys from 34 percent earlier in the decade.
Teachers used to deal with plagiarism by admonishing students to give credit to others and to follow the style guide for citations,
and pretty much left it at that. But recent cases in which students copied and pasted information from Web pages such as
Wikipedia suggest that many students simply do not grasp that using words they do not write is a serious misdeed.
Watson said she emphasizes original research in papers. "Just doing research is amazingly simple but (mind-bogglingly)
complex," Watson said. "Doing research is incredibly complex in a digital age. (In the past) it was just so much more clear what
is a legitimate source."
Adv B RWG
Puccini/Kurzweil
UW-Eau Claire journalism student Laura Sukowatey said she usually turns to books and databases at McIntyre Library while
doing assignments instead of sifting through information on the Internet that could prove worthless.
"It can be time-consuming because there are so many databases and search criteria options," she said. "However, it's worth it in
the long run because I know I'm finding good sources." The easy access to information on the Web has made some professors
more distrustful of students, Sukowatey said.
"Researching is time-consuming and not always the most enjoyable thing to do," she said. “But plagiarism is not worth it if it
means you could potentially get expelled from the university. Which I have had professors threaten to make sure that happens if
they catch anyone."
Watson didn't want to guess the percentage of students who are caught plagiarizing that are willfully cheating, and what percent
are plagiarizing without knowing it.
"It's hard to determine what's going on in each plagiarism case," she said. "Ignorance is not an excuse, and that's something I
really drive home to students."
There is software available that detects cases of plagiarism, but Watson said the technology is expensive, and the university
doesn't use it. "I think those have mixed results," she said.
Watson acknowledges that having that software is a good deterrent for students.
Watson said she doesn't know how many students have been caught plagiarizing at UW-Eau Claire in recent years, or if any have
been expelled.
"The first offense is dealt with on a very individual case," she said. It is usually up to a department chair to determine if the
student will fail the paper, or fail the class, after having been caught.
"A letter is written and does go into the student's academic file," Watson said.
A second offense can lead to punishment, including academic suspension or expulsion.
Bryan Maloney, 22, a marketing student at Chippewa Valley Technical College, said he understands why teachers are on high
alert when it comes to plagiarism.
"They're not dummies, they understand the age of technology," he said.
Maloney said some students are unsure of how to properly cite sources or just forget to do so, and then they are accused
of plagiarism. In other cases, students will do whatever it takes to just get work done in general education classes or classes that
aren't relevant to their major.
"Plagiarism is wrong," he said. "But I'm not going to lie; I can understand where that line of thinking comes from. You have a lot
of stuff going on as a college student, you don't want to waste a lot of time doing that stuff."
In the end, however, Maloney said students are aware of the repercussions of getting caught cheating, and the choice is all their
own."We're all adults here in college," he said. "I guess the decision falls on you ultimately."