Plagiarism: A serious ethical infraction
Plagiarism, despite being a problem with old origins, is making news anew. So to start our discussion, we first need to know what plagiarism is. According to Black's Law dictionary, the act of appropriating the literary composition of another, or parts or passages of his writings, or the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one's own mind.
The University of Oxford defines Plagiarism on its website to guide its students in the following way- "Plagiarism is presenting someone else's work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgment. All published and unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed, or electronic form, is covered under this definition. Plagiarism may be intentional or reckless, or unintentional. Under the regulations for examinations, intentional or reckless plagiarism is a disciplinary offense".
Plagiarism can take various forms- from reusing a whole document to rewriting one single paragraph. The common types of plagiarism are- copy-and-paste plagiarism, mosaic plagiarism, self-plagiarism, global plagiarism. Copy and paste plagiarism (also known as direct plagiarism) means using a paragraph from another source without citation. Mosaic plagiarism is copying and pasting different pieces of texts together to create a kind of 'mosaic' or 'patchwork' of other researchers' ideas. When parts of one's previous work are used by him without properly citing it, that is called self-plagiarism (also known as auto plagiarism). Finally, global plagiarism happens when you use someone else's paper, pretending that the words and ideas are yours. The University of Oxford has a broader view of plagiarism which includes paraphrasing, collusion (an unauthorised collaboration between students, failure to attribute assistance received, or failure to precisely follow regulations on group work projects), inaccurate citation, failure to acknowledge the assistance, and use of material written by professional agencies or other persons.
It is very important to dissuade students and persons involved in research work from taking resort to plagiarism. Plagiarism is a hurdle to learning, a serious ethical offense. The whole point of education is to learn and flourish and celebrate knowledge and plagiarism merely facilitates the reproduction of the existing knowledge. Citing is part of a long tradition of scholarly research and not using sources effectively decreases authorial credibility. Plagiarism gives rise to serious misconduct of academic ethics and degradation of academic integrity. Plagiarism is regarded as serious misconduct of academic integrity around the world. Many universities have a no-tolerance policy regarding plagiarism. Such academic misconduct is taken rather as a serious offense in European, North American, or Australian universities. There are serious consequences of plagiarism- it destroys academic, professional, and student reputation and professional integrity. Plagiarism can cause failing the course, expulsion or suspension, and potential end of the career.
Plagiarism can be simply avoided by giving a citation- by paraphrasing, or summarising the words or ideas from someone else and by giving credit to the original source by including a citation in the text and the reference list. Plagiarism can also be checked by simply putting the text on an online plagiarism checker. However, all the information we use does not need to be cited. Some information is considered as common knowledge. Common knowledge is information that most people know. Universities should take serious scrutinising measures to keep their students from plagiarising. Ken Larsson in his article 'Anti-plagiarism strategies: how to manage it with quality in large scale thesis productions' states that, "When using software for detecting plagiarism there are four different phases according to Culwin and Lancaster (2001): collecting the text, analysis of the text, verification of the analysis and finally, investigation of those submissions that may be cases of plagiarism".
Currently, there is no specific policy against the practice of plagiarism in Bangladesh. Although many universities in Bangladesh are being strict regarding plagiarism nowadays, making this treated as an academic offense, and many practices a no-tolerance policy, lowering course grades and similar punishments. Despite these measures, it is high time to formulate a comprehensive policy against plagiarism.
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