1. The Legal and Ethical Use of Information
Academic Honesty:
The Legal and Ethical Use of Information
Although this slide show is interactive as produced, teachers are encouraged to remove the text from some of the titled slides so that more student input can be generated.
Teachers are invited to use Think-Pair-Share; round table discussions; brainstorming, etc. to encourage further student participation.
Ontario School Library Association, copyright 2002
Revised by the Earl Haig SS Library October 2007

2. Agenda What do you already know
Clarifying what we mean by academic honesty
The mechanics of citation
Challenges:
Understanding “Works Cited” lists
Paraphrasing correctly
Although this slide show is interactive as produced, teachers are encouraged to remove the text from some of the titled slides so that more student input can be generated.
Teachers are invited to use Think-Pair-Share; round table discussions; brainstorming, etc. to encourage further student participation.

3. So what’s the problem? Widespread phenomenon On the increase
Academic dishonesty is an ethical issue
Academic dishonesty is a legal issue
Schools, colleges and universities all note an increase in the number of students who are academically dishonest. (See Bibliography for news articles on recent incidents, and look for examples from within your own school.)
Ethical – falsely passing off someone else’s work as one’s own is against accepted social practice and behaviours
Legal – a type of theft for which individuals may be subject to prosecution and conviction under the Canadian Copyright Act

4. Plagiarism in the real world
Textbook plagiarism in a best seller - the case against Ann Coulter

5. Academic Dishonesty/ Plagiarism…it’s like...
“lip-synching to someone else’s voice and accepting the applause and rewards for yourself”
Owl Online Writing Lab. “Writing a Research Paper.” Purdue University. 2002
Refer to incidences that are relevant to the students
e.g. Milli Vanilli, George Harrison (My Dear Lord), Napster website

6. What Should I Cite? You must give credit for:
any ideas which are not your own
any photos or images which are not your own
direct quotations from a text
statistics, unusual facts

7. What counts as plagiarism/ academic dishonesty?
using an essay previously used in another course
copying a friend’s homework or project
using another person’s ideas as your own
Copying and posting from a subscription database or Internet site
This slide and the one following can be left blank if the teacher/teacher-librarian wishes to extract this information from the students through questioning and discussion
The first 7 of these conditions are examples of a willful intention to plagiarize
***************
The final 2 examples (on the next slide) are less blatant –and may be accidental--but are examples of plagiarism nevertheless

8. What counts as plagiarism /academic dishonesty?
buying a paper
finding an essay in a foreign language and using a program to translate it
faking a citation
direct quotation from a source without citation
paraphrasing but not citing the source
This slide and the one previous can be left blank if the teacher/teacher-librarian wishes to extract this information from the students through questioning and discussion
The first 7 of these conditions are examples of a willful intention to plagiarize
***************
The final 2 examples are less blatant –and may be accidental--but are examples of plagiarism nevertheless

9. Why do students plagiarize? They tell us….
I didn’t know I was plagiarizing
I don’t really understand the concepts of academic honesty and plagiarism
I didn’t think I could do a good job on my own
I’m not confident that my research and writing skills are as developed as they should be ….
This slide, and the following one,can be left blank if the teacher/teacher-librarian wishes to extract this information from the students through questioning and discussion: Why do people plagiarize?
Lack of understanding of plagiarism
Not sure what constitutes plagiarism
Don’t know how to use and cite sources correctly
Lack of skills
Lack of research skills and appreciation of the process
Inability to synthesize and organize their researched information
Don’t know how to paraphrase or put things into their own words
Lack of time
Heavy workload - too many courses
Procrastination
Assignments all due at the same time
Part-time jobs
Family Responsibilities
Pressure to perform
Parents, peers, universities and colleges

10. Why do students plagiarize? They tell us….
I didn’t have time
I have a heavy workload at school, a part-time job, responsibilities at home
I was under a lot of pressure
School is very competitive and I need top marks to get into college or university
I thought I could get away with it
Lots of other students do

11. Caught! Teachers know you and your writing style
Teachers read widely on their subject
Teachers, teacher-librarians and administrators work as a team to trace questionable information
High-tech programs are available to detect plagiarism
Certain features of the plagiarized essay or presentation raise red flags of suspicion among teachers.
Teachers know how it is done
Know that is so easy!
Know about copy and paste
Know when it deviates from assignment requirements
Teachers know you and your writing style
Teachers are familiar with your skills and writing
Teachers are able to detect the inconsistency between your work and plagiarized work
Teachers are content experts and read widely
Teachers, teacher-librarians and administrators work as a team to trace questionable information

12. Busted! Consequences might be… a zero dismissal from a course
suspension or expulsion
legal proceedings
Generally, post-secondary institutions enforce the most serious consequences possible. (Refer to Bibliography for examples)

13. Who gets hurt? The creator of the work Students Parents Teachers
Society
This slide could be left blank to elicit answers and promote discussion
The creator of the work- financially and morally
The livelihood of the author, producer or entertainer depends on their ability to sell their work, whether it is a book, a magazine article or a piece of music.
Students
Anxiety and worry about getting caught
Earn a reputation as a cheater when they are caught
Lose the trust of the teacher
Miss the opportunity to learn something from the assignment
Perpetuate the cycle of “not learning”
Parents
The dreaded parent-teacher interview
Embarrassment
Shame
Disappointment
Teachers
Lose trust in the student
Waste time in tracking down the source of the plagiarized material
Society
Moral fibre eventually suffers from the loss of the creation of new thinking and ideas.

14. Please remember...
The goal of every teacher is to help you develop the skills and attitudes that will make academic dishonesty a non-issue
Teachers mark “process”. They want to see a progression from the initial selection of a topic, the gathering of resources, the synthesis of information, and the creation of the final product.
Teachers do not want the role of “plagiarism police”
Part of education is attitudinal
All assignments are meant to be skill-building

15. Academic Honesty: Give credit where credit is due…
Acknowledge your sources of ideas and information when you write a research paper, create a poster, post a web site or do a presentation
4 p’s – papers, posters, postings, presentation

16. Using information in a legal and ethical way
Don’t look for “short cuts”.
Give yourself time
Be confident in the value of your own ideas
Be yourself in your writing
Develop strong research and literacy skills
Ask for assistance
Don’t look for “short cuts”.
Learning is a process with many important steps along the way – Hey, you need the practice!
The journey is one you’ll take many times throughout your life
Worth the effort – the grade belongs to you and you alone
Give yourself time
Don’t leave it to the night before when you may be tempted to plagiarize
Be confident in the value of your own ideas
The assignment was given to you with the purpose of having you demonstrate your learning-not someone else’s!
Be yourself in your writing
The teacher does not expect your writing to be that of a professor, or wordsmith. Your unacknowledged use of an author’s distinctive word or “unique phrase” often is the red flag to teachers.
Remember that the only the expression of information is protected by copyright. So putting ideas or information that you have researched into your own words is not an infringement of the copyright, as long as you cite it.
Developing your own personal style of writing is only done with practice.
Develop strong research and literacy skills
Learn a research process
Learn how to cite sources
Ask for assistance
Teachers are there to help throughout the process. They have been there before!

17. What research and writing skills are needed ?
Good Note-taking
Linking notes to the info source
Paraphrasing
Knowing how and when to cite sources
Review the school’s research model (or use the 4 major stages of OSLA’s Information Studies’ Inquiry and Research model

18. Help is there for the asking
Teachers and teacher-librarians
School research and essay writing guides
TDSB Student Research Guide
The Internet
The University of Guelph Learning Commons
OWL at Purdue University: Avoiding Plagiarism
owl.english.purdue.edu/workshops/hypertext/REsearchW/plag.html
Help is there for the asking
Add examples from your own school situation – especially existing school research and essay writing guides
Use the Internet for the purpose of learning how to research and how to acknowledge sources