Doug Johnson Website

Scenario 8 (Property)
Cindy finds some good information about plant growth nutrients for her science fair project on a CD-ROM reference title that came with her home computer. She uses the copy function of the computer to take an entire paragraph from the CD-ROM article and pastes it directly into her report. She also forgets write down the title of the article and the CD-ROM from which it was taken. When she writes her report, she does not cite the source in her bibliography.

Questions:

What is the property?
Who is its owner?
What danger or discomfort might the unethical action cause?
Is most plagiarism deliberate or due to a lack of understanding?
Is there a parallel in the physical world to this scenario?
Can you think of other incidents that would fall into this category?

Comments:
Plagiarism is easier than ever, thanks to the computer. Students need to understand when and how to cite sources in both print and electronic formats. Some plagiarism is of course deliberate, but much of it stems from a lack of understanding of what and when to cite. Direct, repeated instruction by library media specialists and teachers needs to be done as a part of each project requiring research. Parents, when proofing their children’s writing, should be asking if proper credit has been given for others’ work.