UniSA Open Journal System (Univ. of South Australia)
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A preventative approach to plagiarism: An empirical study of a first-year unit for undergraduates
No full textThis paper reports on an empirical study into the communications of academic values, codes and conventions within a large-scale foundation studies unit for firstyear undergraduates at a regional Australian university in first semester 2005. In this unit, one of the foci was teaching students about issues of plagiarism and assessing how students reflected upon and took up those ethics. The unit’s content and its assessment were conducted online. Students engaged in experiential learning within multiple online tasks associated with plagiarism and of direct relevance to unit assessment. Unit design, delivery and assessment involved a cyclic process of action research, which facilitated insights into students’ value communications and academic skill development over the semester. A qualitative analysis of students’ communications within sequential online assessment tasks and anonymous surveys, as well as the value discourses articulated by students and staff, reveals most students were highly receptive to information on plagiarism and intent upon avoiding it through developing academic skills
Taking the Mountain to Mohammed: Transitioning International Graduate Students into Higher Education in Australia
No full textThis paper reports on findings of evaluative research into student perceptions of a structured academic development workshop, which was specifically designed to induct and orient international students into the academic expectations of their program of study at a university in Australia. With most Australian universities engaged in the business of internationalisation of higher education, there is some debate about the adequacy of practices adopted by these institutions to familiarise their non English-speaking background (NESB) international students with the Australian academic culture. While the practices of some Western universities are sometimes said to be inadequate, there also appears some consternation about international students’ lack of motivation to learn and their inability to master Western academic conventions. Against this backdrop, the paper outlines the impetus for collaboration between the university’s Learning Skills Unit and faculty staff in
designing and facilitating a tailored academic development workshop for graduate students. After laying out related literature and details of the workshop, there is discussion of the data collection methods, and an analysis of the data from students. The paper makes a call for repeat workshops at the beginning of every semester, as an indispensable component of the overall content delivery strategies in the faculty’s graduate program. The paper concludes by contemplating the educational integrity inherent in program and faculty staff development initiatives, which are focused on addressing the academic and cultural proclivities of an international student cohort
The Validity of Student Evaluations of Teaching
No full textThis article considers the validity and usefulness of student evaluations of teaching (SET) at a small Australian university. Face and content validity were considered and a factor analysis was performed to evaluate the overall validity of a survey instrument which purports to give useable results in respect to teaching methods and approaches. It was found that the survey instrument was flawed in that the ten compulsory questions of which it is constituted, all collapsed into one dimension. This dimension was determined to be the extent of popularity of the lecturer for whom the survey was conducted. In essence, the survey is not an evaluation of teaching, but rather students' opinions of the lecturer concerned. It was concluded that the SET survey serves no educational purpose and is a violation of academic freedom and lecturers’ rights
A UK institution's university-wide approach to plagiarism:
No full textResearch and consultations in session 2003/2004 by a University's Plagiarism Working Group uncovered a poor understanding of plagiarism and inconsistent handling procedures throughout its schools. In an effort to address both these issues, a strategic 2-year Action Plan was developed and rolled out beginning the following academic year in order to improve student support, staff awareness and more consistent practice overall. The plan included a pilot using the detection software service, Turnitin'UK, with five of the University's 14 schools. The pilot was only one of a series of university-wide deliberations, others included the revision and piloting of a University Plagiarism Code of Practice, implementation of school-based academic conduct officers, improved staff development opportunities and student support materials and events. One school in the University has served as a role model of good practice throughout. Noteworthy is the school's record keeping practice since session 2001/02 of incidences of plagiarism and other academic misconduct. In the paper we present the factors such as gender, nationality and level of study that have been found linked to the incidences of plagiarism in the school. Additionally, the role plagiarism detection software plays in addressing plagiarism is explored within the collaborative and holistic approach of the Action Plan. Finally, the challenges and resistance faced by key players throughout the implementation of the first phase of the Action Plan at the University are considered and the commitment to continuous enhancement recognised
Does educational integrity mean teaching students NOT to 'use their own words'?
No full textIn the face of increasing evidence of plagiarism in higher education the maintenance of educational integrity relies on the capacity of universities to strengthen their systems for consistent detection of and penalties for deliberate
plagiarism, cheating and other fraudulent practices. However, there is a danger that the resolve to do so may be weakened if these systems become overloaded by the detection of a high incidence of unintentional plagiarism. The focus of
this paper is on international students for whom English is an additional language (EAL) and whose plagiarism is most easily recognised, as many set out on their degree courses with no experience in a Western academic environment, an unsteady command of English grammar and a relatively limited range of
vocabulary. The advice to 'use their own words' in order to avoid accidental plagiarism may be more confusing than helpful for them. This paper proposes that far from trapping students in their existing repertoire of words, the teaching,
assessment and feedback advice provided within university courses should explicitly support their students' development of the formal language that is valued in academic writing. It is suggested that the basis for doing so is an understanding of the essential differences between informal, spoken language
and the more formal style required in written assignments. An educational approach that successfully removes innocent plagiarists from the disciplinary system could become a means for assuring a university's educational integrity.
Keywords: plagiarism, 'own words', spoken and written language, re-usable language, international students, English as an Additional Language (EAL)
Towards consistent penalty decisions for breaches of academic regulations in one UK university
No full textThis paper investigates the extent to which policies and procedures designed to achieve fair, consistent treatment of student plagiarism are effective in one UK university. The
case study uses a model more frequently linked to reliability in assessment decisions to inspect penalty decisions and consider ways of achieving greater consistency. The study
notes activities that are important in achieving greater consistency such as sharing assumptions and information between decision makers, introducing specialist officers, and
restricting penalty choice. The authors describe a tariff system for choosing appropriate penalties and evaluate its potential for future monitoring of decisions. Areas for continued attention are identified in the case study, because fully consistent treatment cannot yet be demonstrated
'White pages' in the academy: Plagiarism, consumption and racist rationalities
No full textThis paper is situated against the backdrop of the global market in tertiary education, and recent moral panics in the Australian press concerning the implications of international education for what is perceived by many as a decline in academic standards and a potential devaluing of Australian tertiary qualifications in the global marketplace. This paper poses a challenge to these notions, and draws on poststructuralist theories of consumption, production and power, to consider how discourses of educational consumption are mapped onto the racialised commodification of tertiary education. The paper argues that racism—under the rhetorical guise of neoliberal ideals such as maintaining academic standards, ensuring institutional accountability
and protecting market share in the interest of the national economy— shapes the discursive terrain of international education in the tertiary sector
Cheating among college and university students: A North American perspective
No full textAcademic integrity is an issue of critical importance to academic institutions and has been gaining increasing interest among scholars in the last few decades. This article discusses data obtained over the last three years from over 80,000 students and 12,000 faculty in the United States and Canada.
While documenting that cheating on tests and exams and plagiarism are significant issues on our college and university campuses, it also offers some thoughts on possible strategies to encourage greater levels of academic integrity among students