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Grrrrr... classmate plagiarizing... what to do?

DrPizza

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
So, if you're competing for grades in a small class and want a high grade, would you point out that out of 30 lines of text, a classmate simply copied 28 of those lines word for word from 2 internet sites?

The classmate's response to a question was better than mine, or rather, someone with a doctorate in the field wrote a better response than I did.


(By point out, I mean in a friendly sort of way, such as, "I provided a link in case anyone wants to read more on this topic")
 
Originally posted by: DrPizza
So, if you're competing for grades in a small class and want a high grade, would you point out that out of 30 lines of text, a classmate simply copied 28 of those lines word for word from 2 internet sites?

The classmate's response to a question was better than mine, or rather, someone with a doctorate in the field wrote a better response than I did.


(By point out, I mean in a friendly sort of way, such as, "I provided a link in case anyone wants to read more on this topic")
Click to expand...

So you also copied it from somewhere ?

 
Originally posted by: fishface313
oh no someone cheated on their school work...ban!!!!
Click to expand...

I can't believe that someone would do that in grad school!
 
If his cheating adversely affects you, then stick him to the wall.

If not... then it's at your discretion. You can do something about it yourself or leave it to karma.
 
Originally posted by: compnovice
Originally posted by: DrPizza
So, if you're competing for grades in a small class and want a high grade, would you point out that out of 30 lines of text, a classmate simply copied 28 of those lines word for word from 2 internet sites?

The classmate's response to a question was better than mine, or rather, someone with a doctorate in the field wrote a better response than I did.


(By point out, I mean in a friendly sort of way, such as, "I provided a link in case anyone wants to read more on this topic")
Click to expand...

So you also copied it from somewhere ?
Click to expand...

I researched my own response... I provided footnotes for every idea that was not my own. If I used even 3 words in a row that were the same as some other authors, it was in quotes. Every source I used was linked.
By saying "I provided a link..." I meant that we're allowed (and supposed) to comment on each other's work. So, in my comment should I b.s. and say "wow, you have an excellent opinion. I'm intrigued about..." Or do I simply comment with "you forgot quotation marks around your entire response as well as links to these two sites..."
 
lmao, hey LOKE, wherever you are... How did you get harassed for "snitching", yet the mood has swung and people now seem in favor of it?!

Yes, this would have an adverse affect on me, in the sense that a professor is going to read 8 responses and say, "wow, this one is great compared to the others, I'll give it an A and the others B's." Well... actually, I can't be certain that's how the professor grades. Without a rubric for how essays are graded, who's to know for certain until the final grades come out? But it seems quite natural to reward the best essays with A's, and work your way down from there.
 
How about you email him explaining that you caught him, and that you will alert your professor if he does it again? That way you won't be a snitch, and he should be significantly scared as to not cheat again (at least in your class).
 
It's ultimately your call to make, but plagiarism is one of the most egregious missteps you can make in academia; people who partake in it need to know that they're taking a fairly large risk.

I don't think the guy would get kicked out of school for failing to cite something in an online response forum, but I'd say he should at least be called on it.
 
imo people should be expelled for plagiarizing. It is very serious and the most avoidable thing possible. Ignorance of proper citations is not an excuse, especially in graduate school!
 
Originally posted by: everman
imo people should be expelled for plagiarizing. It is very serious and the most avoidable thing possible. Ignorance of proper citations is not an excuse, especially in graduate school!
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Actually, I'd estimate that 75% of people don't know when they need to cite something. It seems that in high school (or somewhere along the line), they believe that if they put it into their own words, it's not plagiarism.
 
Print out the orginal source, high light the lines, put in envelope w/ note telling the instructor what's up, throw the envelope in the instructor's campus mail box. Winner.
 
I don't have to "highlight the lines" - it's two whole articles, word for word, appended to each other!
 
It would seem that anonymity is impossible should you decide to take action. I suggest being pseudo-subtle. By this I mean to bluntly call direct attention to the copied lines and similarity to sources you've found, as well as links to the schools academic honesty policy, but still phrase things in such a way that you are claiming that you believe the student acted in good faith. Perhaps the work was published under their nom-de-plum, and they didn't realize that they still have to site themselves if their using their own previously published words, for example.

This is not something you should entirely let slide. At the very least you could say that it "reminded" you of those original works, and let someone else spot that its more than just reminiscent. Academic dishonesty is a serious problem, and people who engage in it should not be allowed to achieve graduate level degrees. The worst sin in science is a deliberate lie. Considering that this person might end up trying to compete with the rest of us in the job market, I have to agree with everman's stance. Be sure to thoroughly document your allegations. A merely lazy scientist is likely to invent a labor saving device or technique. A dishonest scientist is worse than worthless.

Now that we've dealt with your plagiarizm issue, we must address your second question "what to do?" If you're bored with just graduate school and a job, I suggest you experiment with using your car as a solar cooker. http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=38&threadid=1905115&enterthread=y
 
Bust his ass. This is how the world works. You think that when you get grown up and go into the workplace things change - they don't.

Fast forward ten years. You and a coworker are going for the same management job. You both have a project to complete and whoever the boss thinks has done the better job will move up and get a $15k bonus. The only problem is your coworker is stealing other employees work and if he keeps it up has a good chance of beating you to the management job and the $15K. So what do you do?

Bust his ass.

Get used to it because this is how the world works. You can bust ass or get busted.
 
I'd say approach the guy. Snitching is rather unethical (violation of trust), plus I'd say give him another chance. Being kicked outta university could really ruin a guy's life. If he's really that stupid/lazy, he won't be competition for your grades anyways.

Oh, and the high school students not knowing how not to plagiarise is absolutely true. I didn't even TRUELY learn about plagiarism until my final year.
 
Somehow you should correspond with the prof and cite the website with a link. If he reads the link then he should notice the plagarism, and you never mentioned that another student used it.
 
I agree with the above posters that in this world people will do anything to get an unfair advantage and in the end you're the only one that can do anything about it.

He'll likely get a higher score than you that he didn't deserve, he might get a higher grade that results in a better GPA, and as a result could have better opportunities than you in the future (that he doesn't deserve).

Don't call it snitching, drop an anonymous letter like an above poster suggested, just make sure he gets whats coming to him, and I don't mean eventually something bad may or may not happen to him, make sure he gets whats coming to him right now.
 
Originally posted by: newmachineoverlord
Now that we've dealt with your plagiarizm issue, we must address your second question "what to do?" If you're bored with just graduate school and a job, I suggest you experiment with using your car as a solar cooker. http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=38&threadid=1905115&enterthread=y
Click to expand...

Actually, one of my tasks in another month or so is to finally turn my 10 foot satellite dish into a giant parabolic mirror to use as a solar cooker 😛 🙂 I'm going to buy lots of cheap mirrors, cut them into little pieces, and glue/epoxy all the pieces to the dish. Hopefully it works.
 
LMAO! I keep thinking about the thread where someone offered $5 for someone here to do his homework. Someone threatened to snitch on him because of it, and that person was ridiculed for weeks!
 
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