Globe’s #makeITsafePH campaign is a
part of the telco's CyberPinoy cyber wellness program to educate the society about online
threats and on proper online etiquette and for this 2018, the main issue is on
plagiarism in the digital age.
The scenario of the digital
age is very fertile for plagiarism. But how is plagiarism manifested in the everyday
life of the high school and college students?
Local setting
We do hope that PLAGIARISM would be recognized as an important issue to be addressed as a society, as this is considered an internet-related crime to which the youth are highly exposed to!
It is already a sad plight that plagiarism happens in the digital age due to "common knowledge", ignorance, laziness, difficulty in English and in writing, which hopefully could be corrected. We do hope it is NOT intentional and NOT a conscious effort to cheat!
As early as a high school and probably even in the elementary years, we hope our schools and the Department of Education and related concerned agencies would continue to address this problem of PLAGIARISM.
*Note: Shared insights thus no specific attribution
Personal communication, October 4-5, 2018
Dr. Chua-Macrohon, Bernadette FPPS, FPNA
Research Committee, 2004-2010 and 2016-present
Consultant, Zamboanga City Medical Center Department of Pediatrics
Teacher, Ateneo De Zamboanga University School of Medicine
Mr. Barrera, Jeff
Secondary School Teacher II
Regional Science High School IX Senior High
Ateneo De Zamboanga University High School Department
Ms. Tarog, Mercy, LPT
Senior High School Coordinator
Talon-Talon National High School Senior High
University of Zamboanga School of Education, Arts and Sciences
Salih,Ira
Student
Ateneo De Zamboanga University Nursing Department
Regional Science High School IX Senior High
Rojo, George Constantine
Graduate
Cebu Doctors' University Biology Department
Ateneo De Zamboanga University High School Department
Morales, Vail Linn
Graduate
Western Mindanao State University
Eight years ago, I rotated
in one of the prestigious hospitals in the United States and I was looking for
reference books. My mentor and the other residents said that they didn’t
have that in the department. Confused, I asked, “What do you do then?” He simply answered me, “We just Google it!”
Since I didn’t have internet
access then, I had to go across through a huge lawn to the Library building
across.
Too much has happened since
then and the availability of the internet is widespread and there is ready
access to gadgets for people of all ages and status in life. At that time, I was in awe
when he said, “We just Google it!” but today, it is an everyday thing.
Thus, it is indeed timely
to strongly support Globe Telecom’s #makeITsafePH campaign for cybersecurity and cyberwellness. One
of the looming threats in the digital age is Plagiarism.
 |
| Wise students are happy students! Regional Science High School Senior High with Sir Jeff Barrera (resource person) taken during the CMZ S.T.E.P.H. (Student Tour for Exposure to Professions in Healthcare) Program last 2017, the career advocacy program of CMZ. RSHS IX students are exposed to proper research early in their school life and teaching and emphasizing to the students about Plagiarism is a very important part of their learning and their formation. (J. Barrera, 2018) |
Local setting
I asked some teachers and students who had been part of the career advocacy program of Ciudad Medical Zamboanga through S.T.E.P.H. (Student Tour for Exposure to Professions in Healthcare) and to
the CMZ Senior High immersion program on some of their insights on plagiarism.
** The incidence of plagiarism
ranges from "does exist" to alarming in Grade School and High School to rampant and a grave reality in College and Post-graduate
courses. Initially, the students do not even realize that "copy-paste" is dishonest.*
** This is ingrained in our
culture and students don’t think it is wrong to lift the whole paragraph just
because they cited authors. Students should cite the idea and not just "copy-paste"! (B. Macrohon, personal communication, October 4, 2018)
** Plagiarism may manifest
as simple as a copied but not attributed quotation placed as a shoutout in Facebook
and Twitter or a caption in Snapchat and Instagram.
** This may also be seen as
submitted reflections or journals for a class requirement but the student may
feel that it is fine since these are freely available over the internet and it
is for classroom use.
** Some students may be lazy
or stressed and plagiarize just to complete the number of pages of the term
paper and some students want to test their teachers, if they feel their teachers are lazy to check these.
** Grade 7 or 8 students are
already exposed to research and intensified in Senior High and the teachers are
already teaching students on the values to prevent plagiarism, the process of
citing sources, naming authors, how to quote and how to summarize. For highly competitive
schools, research papers are subject to evaluation by research committees and
some college institutions have the programs to check for Plagiarism like
Turnitin.*
** “Because of faster global
connections, the more access given, the greater the possibility to plagiarize. But,
the more they know, the more they can prevent plagiarism.” (J. Barrera, personal
communication, October 4, 2018)
** Great responsibility of
teachers in teaching and ingraining in the minds of students especially in High
School, that plagiarism is dishonest.*
** One of the student achievers
said that she is against Plagiarism since this diminishes the credibility of
the study and the quality of work.
a. Now
in College, she had to make case studies but was worried that she lacked the
time to do these. Two of her classmates told her not too focus too much on that
and just “copy-paste”, which shocked her at first, but that was consider the norm by
the others.
b. Sometimes,
it is not just laziness but also when the course requirements are loaded,
students may resort to this.
c. She
recommends that teachers in authority should reach out to the students and
continue to find ways to advocate and prevent plagiarism since will affect their of learning.
** Dr. B. Macrohon shared
some tips on Plagiarism Alerts: (Personal communication, October 4, 2018)
a. Context
and grammar of the paragraph are different from the rest of the paper, and
interestingly, including font, therefore not completely edited.
b. Little
nuances in the English language, for example, using Acetaminophen instead of
Paracetamol.
c. Asks researcher for the abstract and full text of
the Review of Literature as reference and some lazy students just lift the abstract.
Hopefully, the universities would have the anti-plagiarism programs.
Hopefully, the universities would have the anti-plagiarism programs.
** Dr. B. Macrohon shared
some possible reasons for Plagiarism and recommendations: (Personal
communication, October 4, 2018)
a. Some
students are not fluent in writing in English
b. Some
students don’t know about writing research
c.Possibly
teachers have not emphasized that plagiarism is unethical and criminal.
d. Some
students are lazy and feel they can just get away with plagiarism since there are no definite
penalties for this.
e. Proper
education about research ethics is recommended as early as possible in the
students’ learning
f. Capacity
building on the English language and research and on how to write better is
also suggested
g. Stricter
rules on plagiarism by institutions are also recommended.
** A college graduate also
echoed the same observation that students may copy-paste because they have a
hard time expressing in English, thus, capacity building for the English
language, research and writing ethics should be emphasized as early as High
School.
~~~The research background of students in high school matters since many students in College are overwhelmed when Research class begin and have difficulty in writing the paper resorting to plagiarism.
~~~Stricter rules on plagiarism with sanctions by the school may be a deterrent for students to do so.*
** Plagiarism does not only include literary works but also photographs, thus, always credit sources of photographs taken from the internet. And also don't forget other media such as videos, audio and also what we use in our Power Point presentations.*
~~~The research background of students in high school matters since many students in College are overwhelmed when Research class begin and have difficulty in writing the paper resorting to plagiarism.
~~~Stricter rules on plagiarism with sanctions by the school may be a deterrent for students to do so.*
** Plagiarism does not only include literary works but also photographs, thus, always credit sources of photographs taken from the internet. And also don't forget other media such as videos, audio and also what we use in our Power Point presentations.*
Global Front
In the more global front, we have seen stories that Presidents and presidential candidates of Nigeria, Mexico and Peru and even the US First Lady Melania Trump were charged with Plagiarism (Bailey, Jonathan, “The Top 10 Plagiarism Stories of 2016, February 27, 2017).
In the more global front, we have seen stories that Presidents and presidential candidates of Nigeria, Mexico and Peru and even the US First Lady Melania Trump were charged with Plagiarism (Bailey, Jonathan, “The Top 10 Plagiarism Stories of 2016, February 27, 2017).
In the Philippines, we have
our own high profile plagiarism cases like THE LIST: 5 most talked about
plagiarism scandals in the Philippines (ABS-CBN August 20, 2012 updated May 10,
2017) and Copycat Nation: 10 High-Profile Plagiarism Cases in the Philippines (Spot.ph
October 2, 2013) which names politicians, businessmen, public officials, supreme
court justices and even a dean of the UP College of Law. Many times, the "ghost writer" or their speech writers take the flack.
These are depressing stories of plagiarism
on the international and national scale which reminds us that plagiarism is a
crime, and although, they were able to get away without being charged nor
removed from office, these people have been subjected to excessive embarrassment (a great blow to a person of high status) and have lost their credibility, although, sometimes temporarily.
 |
| Thanks for your inputs and insights! (Photo credits: M. Tarog FB and V. Morales FB) |
It is already a sad plight that plagiarism happens in the digital age due to "common knowledge", ignorance, laziness, difficulty in English and in writing, which hopefully could be corrected. We do hope it is NOT intentional and NOT a conscious effort to cheat!
As early as a high school and probably even in the elementary years, we hope our schools and the Department of Education and related concerned agencies would continue to address this problem of PLAGIARISM.
It is in the hands of our
dear teachers and mentors to etch in the minds and hearts of the youth, strong values of honesty and integrity and to emphasize that
access to the tons of free data on our fingertips when we “just Google it”, does
not give us the right to own that knowledge.
Let us learn while we are young so
as not to be subjected to shame when our time of responsibility comes in the
future years.
Our insights are anecdotal and experiential
and YOU may have your own first-hand observations or views which you would like
to share on the comment section below! I AM EXCITED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR THOUGHTS, TOO!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
*Note: Shared insights thus no specific attribution
Credits to:
Personal communication, October 4-5, 2018
Research Committee, 2004-2010 and 2016-present
Consultant, Zamboanga City Medical Center Department of Pediatrics
Teacher, Ateneo De Zamboanga University School of Medicine
Mr. Barrera, Jeff
Secondary School Teacher II
Regional Science High School IX Senior High
Ateneo De Zamboanga University High School Department
Ms. Tarog, Mercy, LPT
Senior High School Coordinator
Talon-Talon National High School Senior High
University of Zamboanga School of Education, Arts and Sciences
Salih,Ira
Student
Ateneo De Zamboanga University Nursing Department
Regional Science High School IX Senior High
Rojo, George Constantine
Graduate
Cebu Doctors' University Biology Department
Ateneo De Zamboanga University High School Department
Morales, Vail Linn
Graduate
Western Mindanao State University
