The World Wide Web provides an abundance of resources for the online student to research a particular topic. However, when a student does a copy and paste of someone else’s work and calls it their own, that constitutes plagiarism. There are several ways the online instructor can reduce or eliminate plagiarism in their courses.
Detection
The first consideration is that the online instructor needs to be able to detect plagiarism. Thankfully, there is software available to help automate the process of detection. EVE and Turnitin.com are two software programs that can detect plagiarism in student assignments. The case study found that “Turnitin.com speeds up the process of finding copied text and finds it through more systematic searching than can be undertaken using manual methods” (Jocoy & DiBiase, 2006).
Facilitation Strategies
Another consideration is how the online instructor facilitates the class. There are several strategies to help minimize student plagiarism. The first is to set expectations at the outset of class that plagiarism will not be tolerated. When students know that detection software will be employed and that they will be held accountable for plagiarism in their assignments, the students are on notice that plagiarism is discouraged. However, as Dr. Paloff mentioned in the video, most plagiarism is inadvertent. That is, students forget to properly cite their sources. Therefore, some review of proper citation can help avoid inadvertent plagiarism.
Assessment Strategies
Course objectives and assessment of those objectives are met can also minimize plagiarism. For example, “eschew learning outcomes that ask students to explain, list or collect information” (Carroll & Appleton, 2001). Instead, if students are given tasks that require them to analyze or synthesize concepts, then it is less likely work can be directly copied. Another strategy is to personalize assignments. If students are required to relate their own experiences to an assignment, then that work should be unique to that student. Another variation on this theme is to create assignment that build on a student’s prior work in the course. Again, this insures work that is unique to a particular student.
Conclusion
Going forward, I plan to use some combination of all these strategies as an online instructor. First, I would set clear expectations with students that their work will be reviewed for plagiarism (assisted by software programs) and that there are consequences for plagiarizing. In addition, when designing instruction, I would set objectives and create assessments that help “design out” plagiarism
References:
Carroll, J., & Appleton, J. (2001). Plagiarism: a good practice guide. Unpublished manuscript, Joint Information Systems Committee, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, U.K. Retrieved from http://oxfordbrookes.academia.edu/JudeCarroll/Papers/616508/A_Good_Practice_Guide
Jocoy, C., & DiBiase, D. (2006). Plagiarism by adult learners online: A case study in detection and remediation. International Review of Research in Open & Distance Learning, 7(1), 1–15.
Palloff, R. & Pratt, K. (2010). Plagiarism and Cheating (video presentation)
Impact of Technology and Multimedia
In my last post, I discussed how to get the online learning experience off to a good start. Now, I want to examine the role technology plays in “keeping the ball rolling” in the early to middle parts of the course. In addition to the capabilities of CMS, Web2.0 technologies offer the possibilities of user-defined, multimedia content and online collaboration.
There are number of things to consider before deploying Web2.0 technology in a course. The primary consideration, as Dr. Paloff mentions in the video, is whether or not the technology helps the student achieve the learning outcomes and objectives for the course. There is no point in deploying technology for technologies sake. Another consideration is usability. In other words, is the technology easy to adopt across the diversity of experience within the student population. If the technology is not easy to learn, then it will distract the student from objectives of the course. A third consideration is accessibility. Do all students have access to the required software? Can students with disabilities use the technology? Again, technology should be an enhancement, not a distraction.
Here are the technologies I plan to use as an online instructor:
Blogs – a great way for students to share their thoughts with the learning community and get feedback from the community.
Voicethread–another great way to share and get feedback. Voicethread is geared toward sharing media(audio, video, presentations¸ text) and providing comments via text or audio.
Wikis – a great way for students to collaborate on projects. Wikis make it easy students to create a community document and discuss a project in progress.
Podcasts – a portable resource for the students. Podcasts can be downloaded to an mp3 player or smartphone and accessed by the student “on the go’.
These are all technologies that help the students meet the course objectives, are easy to use and easily accessible.
References:
Boettcher, J. V., & Conrad, R. (2010). The online teaching survival guide: Simple and practical pedagogical tips. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Palloff, R. & Pratt, K. (2010). Enhancing the Online Experience (video presentation)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)