PLAGIARISM & ACADEMIA

Mathias Klang

klang@ituniv.se

GOOD ARTISTS COPY, GREAT ARTISTS STEAL

Problem 1

Problem 2

• Priscilla was my age and lived two blocks away. For the first fifteen years of my life, those were the only qualifications I needed in a best friend.

• Bridget is my age and lives across the street. For the first twelve years in my life, these qualifications were all I needed in a best friend.

Viswanathan: How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life (2006)

McCafferty: Sloppy Firsts (2001)

Problem 3

• Dan Browne “Da Vinci Code” sued for copyright violation by Baigent & Leigh authors of “The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail” (1982)

• Claimed that Browne stole the idea that Jesus married Maria Magdalena and had children.

Problem 4

The purpose of university

• To challenge ideas and minds by thinking freely within research and education

• BUT…within an international traditional regulatory system

• University and academy lacks a sense of humor when dealing with academic honesty

WHY DO WE NEEDWRITTEN WORK INDIGITAL ENVIRONMENTS

BORROWING, COPYING AND PLAGIARISM

What’s wrong with Copy Paste

UNIVERSITY PLAGIARISM

What is a copy?

FormIdeas

Plagiar

ismCopyright

Copyright protects form but not the idea

“Copying non-generic details of a plot may be copyright

infringement” (Posner 1987)

Disciplinary Measures

• Disciplinary measures may be taken if (Chapter 10 Higher Education Ordinance, SFS 1993:100):– Use of non-permitted material or tools– Attempts to deceive examiners– Disrupts or prevents teaching, examination

or other activities at university– Harassment of students or staff.

Attempt to deceive

• By using non-permitted aids or in other ways attempt to deceive in connection with examinations or other occasions when student work is assessed.

Let me repeat

• any attempt by a student to use the ideas or words of others in an attempt to deceive the examiner into believing they are students own.

ATTEMPTS TO DECEIVE

BUT I WON’T GET CAUGHT

WHAT CAN HAPPEN?

What happens

• The department is required to notify the Vice Chancellor

• The Vice Chancellor may decide to:– Not proceed further– Hand out a formal warning– Defer to the university disciplinary

committee

The Disciplinary Committee

• May decide to– Not proceed further– Hand out a formal warning– Suspend the student for a period of up to six

months

• Suspension entails that the student may not participate in teaching, examination or other university activity

UNCERTAIN?

Ask!

Ignorance is not a defence

Thanks!

Info images & licenses• All images come from www.flickr.com (unless specifically stated)

• In the notes section (under each slide) you will find information about the image name, photographers name & licensing terms

• The license used is Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (unless otherwise specified)

• This presentation is licensed Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

• The presentation can be downloaded from www.slideshare.net/klang

• More information about the license www.creativecommons.org/

• More information about me www.techrisk.se