Maybe not so much in this world of Education Technology, but
I feel, usually, we mathematics
teachers have the stigma of being very rigid, analytical, and…well…not very
creative. I believe it has mostly to do with the whole Right-brained vs.
Left-brained argument. Whatever the situation, I know that I do not identify
with these usual ways of thinking. (Side note: this is probably also why I
prefer to teach Geometry to Algebra) I much rather prefer project-based
learning to standardized testing. But my school, district, state, etc. still
deem it a necessary and effective tool. Reluctantly, I comply. Despite this, I constantly
strive to create and assign relevant projects (using the appropriate technology
of course) that allow the student to work cooperatively, think critically, and
use their creativity to demonstrate
mastery on a topic. In most cases, likely all, my assignments require the
student to conduct some sort of research, create something original, provide
solutions, then finally, evaluate themselves and their peers. We cannot forget,
after-all, to implement Bloom’s Higher Order Thinking strategies (Evaluating and Creating, specifically) to provide a meaningful challenge to the student (Heer, 2011).
So what happens when students plagiarize material for a high
school project that is intended to use original, self-generated elements for
the final product? Why do they do it? As suggested by Robert Harris, most high
school students do not know what actual plagiarism is. I agree in that most students
honestly believe that whatever is on the Internet is “fair game” and theirs to
use (2012). Continuing with Harris’s thoughts, while this does not apply to
ALL, many students for whatever reason (that could be another topic for another
day) focus on getting it done by whatever means necessary versus properly
managing time, documenting resources, and following the proper steps for giving
credit to the original source (2012). In an activity I described a few posts
back, I came across a group who plagiarized. After doing a quick Google search
I concluded what was submitted was not authentic work.
For me, though unsure of the best route to take, I went for the teachable moment. I share in some of the blame, as
I could have taken better preventative measures. First, while
the idea and instructions were clear, I could have required a more specific,
authentic deliverable to be submitted. Often times, plagiarism occurs in
generic assignments, the more interesting and unique, the less likely items are
or even can be plagiarized (Renard, 1999). Second, while I suggested a timeline
for having resources accumulated, I did not require due dates for key elements
of the project; outline, rough draft, annotated bibliography, etc. (Harris,
2012). Instead, I assumed the students were clear on how to properly use and
cite resources. Lastly, and most importantly when it comes to the overall grade
of the project, I neglected to delineate specific penalties for plagiarized
work (Harris, 2012). To me, failing a student without them knowing the risks
(even-though you would assume they know this already) seems unfair. Similar to
a scoring rubric, students must know the rules of the game before playing.
So what was the result of this? I spoke with this group (and
another actually), explained to them the issue, discussed how to fix it, and
talked about consequences should the issue persist with this project and in
future assignments. I expect to have properly cited material from my students
during the next go around. After these experiences, both parties involved. They
learned that just because it appears online, does not mean it is free to use. I
learned not to assume students know this in detail and must be reminded to
always give credit where credit is due. I also learned that one of best ways
combat plagiarism is to prevent it through better teaching practices and creating
more interesting lessons, which require a more personalized product. In doing
this, we increase the awareness and accountability on behalf of the student
and, as the teacher, continue to grow and develop our skills to provide
learning experiences that are creative, relevant and authentic.
References:
Harris, R. (2012, February 28). Anti-plagiarism for
research papers. Retrieved from
http://www.virtualsalt.com/antiplag.htm
http://www.virtualsalt.com/antiplag.htm
Heer, R. (2011, June 07). A model of learning objectives.
Retrieved from http://www.celt.iastate.edu
/teaching/RevisedBlooms1.html
Part 1 of 2, please read both parts:
ReplyDeleteMark said, “I much rather prefer project-based learning to standardized testing. But my school, district, state, etc. still deem it a necessary and effective tool.”
I thought it was so interesting that you said you prefer projects to standardized testing. Most math teachers would not say this, but I see where you are coming from, as I think most education majors do. In my experience, the college of education is a lot more projects based in their instruction than other departments. This could be because we, as students, enjoy this form of teaching more, this could be because they are trying to encourage us to use more of this form of assessment in our classrooms, or it could be because this is the assessment method education professors prefer themselves. In any event, I have found that I too enjoy project based learning an awful lot. However, as you pointed out and I agree with, it is difficult to balance with the school, district, state, and national learning standards which require standardized assessments as measures of both student and teacher competence. I have yet to find a perfect marriage of these two forms of assessment, but I try at every chance I get to think of creative ways to implement learning so that assessment feels less rigid. There needs to be a standard unified means of assessment so that all students/teachers are evaluated in the same way, which is why I understand and appreciate the use of standardized testing in schools. However, I do believe there is a modicum of “wiggle room” in how we, as teachers, prepare students for this final evaluation.
Mark said, “As suggested by Robert Harris, most high school students do not know what actual plagiarism is. I agree in that most students honestly believe that whatever is on the Internet is “fair game” and theirs to use (2012).”
My focus is on elementary students mostly, so I do not have a lot of interaction with high school plagiarism, but I can image it is much more prevalent at this level of education. In the elementary school, plagiarism mostly occurs because the student honestly does not know any better (as you later discussed in your posting regarding high school students as well) or their parents don’t see anything wrong with “cut and paste” work (if their parents are monitoring them as they do their assignments, but that is a whole other topic). With regard to high school students, I can see what Robert Harris meant. It is our job as the teacher to try to help our students know what actual plagiarism is by giving examples and possibly even incorporating anti-plagiarism lessons into our curriculum. As students gain Internet access at younger and younger ages this problem will only persist and expand to the younger students. If we start education on this topic at an early age, perhaps we will be able to prevent the problem before it starts.
Please also read part 2,
Dawn
Dawn,
DeleteI do agree that being able to balance standardized testing and project based learning is the ideal scenario. I think where many people (teachers) lag behind is in building, relevant, rigorous lessons that coincide with the learning benchmarks and standards being taught. It is not an easy task by any means. BUT, you don't get better at anything by not putting forth the effort, that's for sure!
In elementary, I would imagine there would be a pretty big gap between the student recognizing a relevant resource then determining if that resource should be cited or if it's Fair Use. I agree, start early at differentiating right from wrong, and this could, in theory, minimize problems in future assignments.
-Mark O
Part 2 of 2:
ReplyDeleteMark said, “To me, failing a student without them knowing the risks (even-though you would assume they know this already) seems unfair. Similar to a scoring rubric, students must know the rules of the game before playing.”
I think you handled this situation beautifully. Thank you for sharing your own experiences in the classroom with regards to this topic. It is true that we, as the teacher, should make sure students are aware of the rules of the game before playing. To me this is simply established at the beginning of the school year by having in the syllabus a line or two about plagiarism and zero tolerance. You could also conduct a lesson or two on this topic to help students further understand your lack of tolerance for such actions. As you said, you would assume students already know the risks of plagiarism but it is our job as their teacher to “go over” these risks again. For topics that are important year in, year out and applicable throughout the students educational lifetime we must make time to establish guidelines and provide instruction to shape understanding and retention of these skills. I am glad you did not fail the students immediately and instead looked to the teachable moment. When such an event occurs in my class in the future I hope to use your experience as a guide in how to handle what has occurred.
Mark said, “I also learned that one of best ways combat plagiarism is to prevent it through better teaching practices and creating more interesting lessons, which require a more personalized product. In doing this, we increase the awareness and accountability on behalf of the student and, as the teacher, continue to grow and develop our skills to provide learning experiences that are creative, relevant and authentic.”
Creating learning experiences that are creative, relevant and authentic is what teaching is all about to me. I know this is difficult to accomplish some of the time and there are many occasions where specific instructional techniques should be used (which eliminates or limits creativity). However, whenever possible we should strive to make our classroom as innovative and unique a space as possible. It is only through innovation that new practices can occur and advance the field. I think that technology and being connected with other teachers, sharing ideas, as we are in EME 5050, is essential to this occurring. The best way to prevent plagiarism is to have assignments were plagiarism cannot occur in the first place. This could be for a variety of reasons (the assignment is opinion based, it relates to content not generalizable to many categories, or it is a creative, project based assignment) but whatever the reason, we should strive to implement these types of assignments in our classroom. I understand that if a student wants so cheat, plagiarize, or simply “get around” doing the work they ultimately will find a way of accomplishing that goal. However, when we implement creative and unique assignments in our classes we make it harder for this to occur (or just as much or more work for this to be accomplished). We also must strive to increase student awareness of plagiarism and accountability for the work they submit. It is only through transparency of our beliefs about plagiarism in the classroom that it might truly be stopped.
It was a pleasure reading your blog posting,
Thanks for the insights,
Dawn
Dawn,
ReplyDeleteThat definitely seems to be the key. Teach about plagiarism while creating meaningful lessons which cannot be duplicated. Again, like I mentioned above, both tasks can be pretty challenging, but not impossible. It takes creativity, research, and a LOT of work in some cases. I don't believe cheating and plagiarism will ever be eliminated. Unfortunately, there will always be people who would prefer to take the easy way out. That being said, in our classes, with our students, we get to create the lessons that (HOPEFULLY) they would ENJOY doing, so plagiarism is not an option.
-Mark O