How can you reduce plagiarism in the classroom?

Blog: How can you reduce plagarism in the classroom? 


As a technology teacher, plagiarism in the classroom is a reoccurring problem. Not only do I deal with plagiarism problems within my own classroom, but teachers throughout my school are constantly dealing with plagiarism issues and seeking alternative ways to prevent this issue. Many teachers find they cannot stop students, or students are not informed enough about what is or is not plagiarism and how they can avoid it.


One of the ways that I prevent plagiarism is by letting students know that I know what wikipedia is, and I know what it can or cannot be useful for. I often have a discussion about times that it would or would not be appropriate to use wikipedia. This helps the students discuss times that it may or may not be appropriate to use wikipedia, and explain their reasoning.


I also show the students how easy it is to alter wikipedia, and thus the information that they find on the website might not be valuable. I explain that if I question any of the information in their projects, I am not afraid to further look into the information they are telling me. I than show them how I can type a sentence into google, and they copied the same sentence I'll be given an exact replica of the information on their project. Many times students do not realize that you can google whole sentences and see where the sentence is on the web.


When going over plagiarism with students, I often find that students don't realize how easy it is to alter information on the internet, and how easy it is to find information if they do not use their own words. 


I also have a conversation, or play a game with my students about "age appropriate words". I'll than talk to them about words they often use when writing, and words they do not use but see on a website or article and copy. I will than put a few sentences together with large, out of place words, and show the students how easy it is to "identify" the word that doesn't fit.


Aside from letting the students know that I know how to check their sources, I also show they where to look for good sources and traits of a good website. By providing students with the knowledge on how to find quality information, I hope this does not make my students feel they would need to plagiarize. 


Overall, I try to let the students know that I can find their information on the internet, and let them know I will check the quality of their work. Most of my students know that I will question their information, and look into facts and figures or sentences that don't look age appropriate, therefore, many students do not want to take the risk of plagiarism because they may know someone who was caught or know I have checked student work in the past.