Plagiarism

Synopsis

Shelly Grist, lecturer in Information Systems, is using a 3rd party assignment submission system and a peer reviewing process.

Description

Shelly uses two main types of learning technology – MyDropBox, which is a third party (ie external to USQ) assignment submission portal which checks for plagiarism and allows students to re-write an assignment until it falls within acceptable levels, and an online peer review system developed by Michael de Raadt, through which students submit and review assignments.

Target audience

Both these learning tools are used by students on Emerging Information Technologies (CIS 8011). There are 78 external students and 25 internal.

Learning goals/objectives

Prior to using MyDropBox, there were problems with students not understanding the seriousness of plagiarism, and policies for dealing with the problem had proved ineffective. Using MyDropBox is intended to improve students' understandings of what plagiarism is, and how it can be avoided with strategies such as correct referencing and paraphrasing of sources. It also enables online administration and marking.
The peer review system is designed to help students think about assessment criteria and learn from one another.

Roles

Student use of these tools is compulsory. Raj Gururajan and Dave Roberts first worked together on the use of MyDropBox as a way of tackling plagiarism, and Shelly now runs the course. The peer review system was developed by Michael de Raadt.

Results
Shelly feels that students do learn the importance of avoiding plagiarism and strategies for producing original work from MyDropBox. In addition, the lecturer can see at a glance which passages are direct quotations through highlighting; which students have submitted papers; which papers are waiting to be processed; and if a situation arises whereby two students submit identical work, the program identifies them both by name so the lecturer can deal with the problem.
The peer review system, says Shelly, does encourage students to think about the marking system and assessment criteria, giving them a chance to improve their assignments. However, some students were unhappy with the accuracy of their peers' marking and Shelly has therefore made the inclusion of those marks optional.

Problems and advice

Shelly has found that both tools added to her workload, at least initially. She says that MyDropBox has value, but the site has been a victim of its own success, as servers are often overloaded, resulting in delays in students receiving the feedback.
Shelly has found that the online peer review system requires a lot of extra work at least at the start of the semester.  Ensuring consistent marking by all students requires a concerted effort to moderate the peer reviews and provide feedback.  In addition, one non-participant can cause the allocation system to break down, so this also needs to be taken into account.

General recommendations
Shelly finds that although the MyDropBox helped students with plagiarism it didn't seem to address issues with proper referencing style.  She's still looking for a solution and considering an additional study module on using EndNote.
Shelly is also exploring new ways to use a peer review system to foster group learning.  She hopes the switch to Moodle will open up new opportunities.