Resources for Preventing Plagiarism

This page provides resources for faculty for preventing plagiarism by students and also for reporting incidences of plagiarism and cheating, and information on a program to teach students how to avoid committing plagiarism.

Prevention efforts can make a big difference in reducing plagiarism incidents. See below for recommendations from NNMC faculty on preventing plagiarism.

Northern's Academic Catalog states that instructors have discretion in addressing incidences of plagiarism and/or cheating and in their classroom, and should consult department chairpersons as needed.

In an effort to track incidences of plagiarism and cheating on campus, the Academic Standards Committee of the Faculty Senate urges faculty members to report incidences of plagiarism and cheating. Your participation allows the committee to keep track of plagiarism and cheating at Northern and evaluate the effectiveness of prevention and intervention programs.  If you have encountered plagiarism and/or cheating in your class, please download and complete the Plagiarism & Cheating Incident Form and then send it to the Academic Standards Committee (academic-sc@nnmc.edu).

Faculty Recommendations for Preventing Plagiarism

(Academic Standards Committee / NNMC Faculty Senate)

1) Include statement on plagiarism in the syllabus and notify students of these policies and consequences. Below is an example of a statement from the Catalog.

Dishonesty in connection with tests, quizzes, or coursework assignments may be cause for dismissal from the College. Plagiarism consists of any representation of another person’s work as one’s own without proper acknowledgment. Examples include but are not limited to:

1) submitting as one’s work a paper which includes a part copied from a book or article without identifying the quoted selection and/or sources, 2) presenting an author’s ideas as though they were your own original ideas, or 3) using work by another student with your name as the author

– NNMC Catalog

2) Include an honesty statement for assignments. Below is an example from the College of Nursing & Health Sciences Associate Degree in Nursing Program.

By affixing my signature below, I acknowledge I am aware of the Northern New Mexico College Associate Degree Nursing Program policy concerning academic honesty, plagiarism, and cheating. This policy is defined in the 2014-2015 Nursing Student Handbook and in course syllabi. I further attest that the work I am submitting with this exam is solely my own, was done during the exam, and no copy of other tests were used to prepare me for this exam. I have used no notes, materials, or other aids except those permitted by the instructor.

Signature_______________________________________________

-ADN Student Handbook

3) Use plagiarism checking tools such as SafeAssign and Turnitin.com, and make your students aware that you are using these tools.

4) Provide resources for students to help themselves to avoid plagiarism such as the Purdue OWL page or others, and examples of proper citation and plagiarism.

5) Encourage students to use the Writing Center to have their work reviewed prior to submission.

6) Encourage students to peer-review each other’s work and provide opportunities during class time for such activities.

7) Have students submit sections throughout the semester as they may be less tempted to plagiarize with shorter assignments.

8) For short writing assignments, have the student submit the references along with the assignment