Come to find out in our great age of technology this may not be an option any more! Can you believe this? I found out in class last night that professors are now scanning in student papers into databases and checking to see if they match other papers in there. One site called Turnitin.com is doing this now! While I have never blatantly reused the same paper word for word over again, I have taken my own work and revamped it to fit a new assignment.
While I understand the need for students to create unique and original work for each class, after all you are there to learn, it just seems like this could be taking it a bit far. I feel that it is a wonderful tool to check for plagiarism, but my question is... can you be punished for plagiarizing yourself?
To quote one of my favorite professors syllabus.... it's my intellectual property... you can not use it.
2 comments:
I heard about this not long ago. Seems like an awful lot of work just to catch someone. I suppose many professors have their TAs doing it, but still... I don't think it would be worth it.
Don't get me wrong, I think copying is wrong, I just don't think I'd go to those lengths to catch somebody.
On the flip side, there are databases out there that have papers for sale. Wouldn't that stink for the person who pays for a paper then gets caught!
Interesting point Wendy (you knew I'd have to comment on this, right!) I had never considered the possibility of a student reusing her own work. BTW, I have absolutely no problem with a student reusing any assignment, as long as it still meets my requirements. I think anyone who WOULD object could only do so on the grounds of being prideful-as if they deserved a student's complete attention. I suppose there may be a couple of those out there... :-)
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