Chak's Take: Tackling The Issues on Academic Cheating and Plagiarism (Original Work)

"My first goal is to present fair, accurate, and newsworthy journalism on a daily basis - good enough to attract the attention of every student on campus." - Ron Gleeson, then-executive editor of the Spartan Daily at San Jose State University

For many years as a kid and now as a college student, the terms "cheating" and "plagiarism" is uniformly defined at schools. I've seen the policies regarding this at many colleges and universities, which takes those very seriously. However, I'm more stricter on what my own definition of plagiarism is when it comes to assignments, essays, and exams. Let me explain what I mean.

First of all, plagiarism in my definition is the serious abuse of looking at someone else's paper and copying word-for-word in any assignment, essay, or exam. When I see this happen, I tend to be very upset by asking the questions such as what makes the students cheat on an assignment or exam. I also take one more step further to even sometimes address the plagiarism issue to my family members and on social media.

Any news reporting on plagiarism use can hit home at San Jose State University very hard, which instructors are very aware of the issue. In the English, Foreign Language, Journalism, Math, and Science departments, assignments, exams, and/or essays are often given out with a fair deadline set forth by the instructor. Essays in English classes and writing stories in Journalism will often require verification of sources, ranging from a simple quote from a line with or without citing page numbers. With the exception of poetry and textbook citations, most outside sources require a separate reference page in either MLA or APA format.

The second reason is what some people may not notice. It comes from what my thoughts on what cheating in class really means in my philosophy. Plagiarism is a very serious nuisance to the learning experience. No student can learn from others that have written the same paper and then applying to one's own. Once a student is caught, it will be irreversible to make up. Not only that a student can be subject to serious disciplinary action, but the student can also face additional penalties by family members or other authorized people, if they so choose.

The third reason comes from my family's long standing tradition against plagiarism. I am a lot more disciplined from the moment that I first met my aides in elementary school; one of which is named Mrs. Hala Elmasu (pronounced as EL-MA-SUE) . Elmasu has set the high bar of what she expects from me, even for any disabled student like me. My parents have been always on alert to look for tall-tale signs of plagiarism, and I've been carrying that tradition since Elmasu and I last saw each other in high school.

Privacy also matters to the instructor and student, and most prefer to use their visual eyes.
However, some schools around the world are taking the extra step by installing closed-circuit television cameras in classrooms to assist in detecting any cheating due to the increasing amount of cheating during midterm and final exams. This is because that some students often wear a tiny device attached to their ear to pronounce both the question and answer, believing that the student can pass without instructors noticing such a device.

Many majors have huge expectations when it comes to dealing with plagiarism, regardless of major and concentration within a major. English and Journalism majors, for instance, have something in common - that one requires a lot of written work with less reliance on exams. Either way, both of them set the high bar for anti-plagiarism measures. Those two majors have high expectations from every student. Whether it's a journal article or an English essay, a lot of sources are used for verification.

I personally take plagiarism very seriously in my written work. That means that anti-plagiarism measures are in effect for all of my written work. This means if I am really caught doing as such, there are reminders of the severe consequences that can seriously hurt me in both the short and long terms.

I do have to admit, though, that I rarely do have permission from the instructor to have "open-book," "open note," and "open Internet" at the same time on any exam. Most of my exams are closed book and closed notes. Fortunately, instructors are there for help or inquiry at any time to obviously avoid plagiarism.

Original Work: Kyle Chak
E-mail: chak595301@gmail.com
Twitter: @KyleSChak