Case Studies

Blythman, M., Orr, S. & Mullin, J. (2007) Reaching a consensus: plagiarism in non-text based media. London College of Communication, University of the Arts

There has been considerable work recently on all aspects of text-based plagiarism; however, there has been little exploration of non-text based plagiarism, particularly in the area of visual forms of communication....

Blythman, M., Orr, S. & Mullin, J. (2007) Reaching a consensus: plagiarism in non-text based media. London College of Communication, University of the Arts

There has been considerable work recently on all aspects of text-based plagiarism; however, there has been little exploration of non-text based plagiarism, particularly in the area of visual forms of communication. Yet many students now move regularly between text and visual representation of their own ideas and the ideas of others. As a result, differing rules of acceptability in the visual area can cause confusion for the same students in text-based areas. This case study presents information about issues of plagiarism and students? work gained through working with art and design academic staff. Examples of general statements which can be used in art and design teaching are given as well as a series of student activities; these can be adopted not only by other art and design staff but also by those teaching classes which have visual components. Clarifying plagiarism for students in their often preferred visual domain should enable them to understand the reasons and application for citation in text arenas.

Gourlay, L. & Greig, J. (2007) Avoiding plagiarism, developing identities: Responsibility, academic literacies and the curriculum. Napier University

The incidence of plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct has become a cause for concern across the higher education sector in recent years. A range of factors have been identified as contributing to the incidence of plagiarism, and institutions have responded in variety of ways to tackle the issue in terms of education and prevention....

Gourlay, L. & Greig, J. (2007) Avoiding plagiarism, developing identities: Responsibility, academic literacies and the curriculum. Napier University

The incidence of plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct has become a cause for concern across the higher education sector in recent years. A range of factors have been identified as contributing to the incidence of plagiarism, and institutions have responded in variety of ways to tackle the issue in terms of education and prevention. Arguably, first year undergraduates represent a section of the student body which should receive particular attention in this respect, as they enter an unfamiliar educational context, which presents new and complex demands.

This report describes a small-scale JISCPAS-funded project which investigated the experiences and perspectives of first year students and key staff groups at a Scottish post-92 university, focusing on the development of year 1 students? academic literacies, their experiences of coursework and their awareness of appropriate academic practice. A variety of data collection methods were employed including literature review, semi-structured interviews, journals, and focus groups. The study highlighted some key differences between staff in different roles in terms of how they view their own and the institution?s responsibilities in this area, and in the extent to which they believe development should be generic or discipline-specific. The data also suggest the presence of an implicit staff model which constructs anti-plagiarism strategies as separate and unrelated to other aspects of academic writing development. The student data documented the central role of confidence, emotion and identity in the student experience, and highlighted a range of issues across the university in terms of how we should support coursework and develop student academic literacies.

The report concludes with suggestions for development of institutional and individual academic practice in this area, to better support the development of first year student literacies and confidence within the curriculum.

O'Hara, M., Carter, C. & Manasse, G. (2007) Getting it write: a multidisciplinary approach to student academic support. Sheffield Hallam University.

The 'Getting it write' project involved a multi-disciplinary response to raising academic standards and achievement. Wide and appropriate reading coupled with the effective and explicit use of those academic sources are two key prerequisites for improvements in standards of academic writing and so the project paid particular attention to targeted academic reading, essay writing and drafting exercises and using the TurnItIn software....

O'Hara, M., Carter, C. & Manasse, G. (2007) Getting it write: a multidisciplinary approach to student academic support. Sheffield Hallam University.

The 'Getting it write' project involved a multi-disciplinary response to raising academic standards and achievement. Wide and appropriate reading coupled with the effective and explicit use of those academic sources are two key prerequisites for improvements in standards of academic writing and so the project paid particular attention to targeted academic reading, essay writing and drafting exercises and using the TurnItIn software. The work focused primarily on 'Teaching the skills' although it also had considerable relevance for the theme of 'Creating a culture of honesty' and involved just over 100 undergraduate students including both full-time and part-time groups on an Early Childhood Studies degree.

This report constitutes an evaluation of the outcomes of embedding expert input and support on TurnItIn and academic writing within an existing module on the degree. The staff groups involved included academics, course administrators, learning centre advisors, student academic support advisors and IT specialists from the University's Learning and Teaching Institute. The report draws on data relating to prior student achievement, student module evaluations and analyses of student interview data.

Additional Resources

• Academic Writing - Referencing (PDF)
• Directed Tasks (PDF)
• Paraphrasing Exercise (PDF)
• Selecting Sources Worksheet (PDF)
• Education & Educare Seminar (PowerPoint)

Aiken, D. & Scott, N. (2007) Plagiarism: its extent, policy and practice as understood within one curriculum area in Hackney Community College. Hackney Community College

The project set out to identify existing plagiarism policy and practice within one section of the curriculum with a view to disseminating improvement across the organisation....

Aiken, D. & Scott, N. (2007) Plagiarism: its extent, policy and practice as understood within one curriculum area in Hackney Community College. Hackney Community College

The project set out to identify existing plagiarism policy and practice within one section of the curriculum with a view to disseminating improvement across the organisation. A literature review considered definitions and policy and practice on plagiarism within post compulsory education and training. The research then explored understanding and present practice relating to plagiarism in the level 3 curriculum as delivered in AS and A2 courses. The definition of plagiarism, how it was experienced and what action should be taken was considered within focus groups of students, teachers and support staff. A questionnaire was used to compare the outcome of these groups with the views of teaching staff across the wider curriculum. The main body of the report describes the results under five headings:

• Understanding the definitions of plagiarism.
• Previous experience of participants.
• Extent and impact on success.
• Perceived consequences.
• Avoiding and discouraging plagiarism.

The research conclusion and recommendations then address improvement in the application of a College-wide policy, including effective communication and implementation of a shared definition of plagiarism. Recommendations for best practice are highlighted and suggestions made of further research for development of a coordinated, unambiguous plagiarism policy.

Alison Ahearn, Debbi Boden & Alan Doherty (2007) OLIVIA: Supporting academic integrity through information literacy teaching. Imperial College London

Since 2003, Imperial College London Library has been developing an online information literacy (IL) module, "OLIVIA", for Imperial's taught-course students. The OLIVIA module aims to create an independent learner who is confident and able to handle information, i.e. students who can retrieve, evaluate, exploit and manage information with an understanding of the legal, economic and social issues that surround its use.

Alison Ahearn, Debbi Boden & Alan Doherty (2007) OLIVIA: Supporting academic integrity through information literacy teaching. Imperial College London

Since 2003, Imperial College London Library has been developing an online information literacy (IL) module, "OLIVIA", for Imperial's taught-course students. The OLIVIA module aims to create an independent learner who is confident and able to handle information, i.e. students who can retrieve, evaluate, exploit and manage information with an understanding of the legal, economic and social issues that surround its use. The module consists of nine learning units, of which two are devoted to (anti)plagiarism and referencing. The module has been embedded into 75% of Imperial's undergraduate programmes with more departments joining next year.

Our OLIVIA philosophy is that teaching students about plagiarism involves more than teaching them the difference between right and wrong, between collusion and collaboration or between cheating and good academic practice. OLIVIA is a response to our theory that an effective anti-plagiarism programme must address plagiarism's causes, and it must teach students about information management. Further, information literacy must be seen by students as a normal part of the skills 'package' needed for their degree, so the OLIVIA module is embedded within timetabled academic courses. The anti-plagiarism strategy is made explicit to students and they are made aware their need to become independent learners. This case study presents a prose description of OLIVIA and an online example to provide other potential HE users with a 'taster' of the course. Additionally, the case study provides an opportunity to meta-analyse evaluation data gathered from each department at Imperial, to compare and contrast the effectiveness of the programme across disciplines and inform future developments.

Haigh, J. & Meddings, F. (2007) Using the Turnitin plagiarism detection tool to promote academic integrity. University of Bradford.

This case study investigates whether the availability of the Turnitin plagiarism detection tool for students to self assess their referencing skills increases their individual and group understanding of academic integrity and facilitates the development of referencing skills.

Haigh, J. & Meddings, F. (2007) Using the Turnitin plagiarism detection tool to promote academic integrity. University of Bradford.

This case study investigates whether the availability of the Turnitin plagiarism detection tool for students to self assess their referencing skills increases their individual and group understanding of academic integrity and facilitates the development of referencing skills. Fifty five student midwives evaluated the tool and its impact on their information literacy through online questionnaires and focus group discussion. Although online questionnaires suggested that the students did value access to Turnitin reports, focus group data suggests that the ambiguity of these reports can cause unnecessary anxiety for some students. Moreover the information provided by Turnitin appears to contribute very little to the development of accurate referencing skills. These findings, which may be transferable to other contexts, will inform the continued development of a supportive learning environment which actively promotes academic skill development.