Not in their own words

David Swain

A professor on a student's paper wrote: "This is superior work. It was excellent when Sir Thomas Aquinas wrote it just as it is today. Sir Thomas gets an A. You get an F."

So reads the introduction to Plagiarism, Cheating and Academic Dishonesty - Have You Been There? by Matthew Fawkner and Greta Keremidchieva in the international journal, Information and Security.

Actually, they took the introductory quote from another paper and, naturally, given their subject matter, carefully referenced it.

It's a risky business "borrowing" the forms of expression of others who've gone before. Study existing works, selectively borrow and reference is ok: study, borrow and present as your own is plagiarism.

It's a distinction that trips up millions worldwide every year. Student researchers are obvious perpetrators but their professors can be just as guilty, journalists too, and the manager who takes credit for a subordinate's effort. Few are immune.

The internet and the handy copy-and-paste tool have raised the stakes on both sides of the offence. It is now easy for plagiarists to bulk download works or - with "paper mills" like cheater.com or essaysonfile.com - students can get pre-written essays with the swipe of a credit card.

And clever search and identify computer software and websites like popular TurnItIn.com have delivered detection at the touch of a key.

But plagiarism is a tricky as well as risky business. Spotting the difference between bumbling ineptitude in the footnotes department and deliberate rip-off is a major concern for academic institutions. Some go to enormous lengths to educate all - and especially new - students in the pitfalls of sloppy referencing and its close cousin, intentional pilfering.

Academic calendars, student resource kits, tutorials and pop-ups on computer terminals seek to educate and explain that plagiarism is a two-edged, quality assurance sword.

If institutions are soft on plagiarism their degrees are just as soft, their reputation tattered. Any self-respecting student does not want a degree from a slipshod university.

And any fee-paying students worth their salt would not want their graduation certificate - and any career that it underpins - to be their personally orchestrated tissue of lies.

But caught between a desire for bums on lecture theatre seats and academic standing, some institutions play fast and loose with their reputations.

A prime example occurred at Australia's University of Newcastle last year. After a critical report on a year-long plagiarism scandal, the university's chancellor and vice-chancellor resigned.