Plagiarism at the University The university decided to get serious about plagiarism. Given the extent of data available on the Internet, students have become accustomed to "copy and paste" a master hand. Theses, dissertations, reports ... number of documents are involved in the looting of copyright.
"We must educate all citizens on the Internet is not a free field of law ," warns Helen Indart-Maurel, a professor of literature at the University of Tours and author of Plagiarism, behind the scenes of writing . The warning does not apply only to academics but to all those who are drafting documents, including the education minister, Luc Chatel , which noted Rue 89 plagiarism of collaborative encyclopedia Wikinfo. But Hélène Maurel-Indart, if plagiarism is growing, not only because of the Internet. "Of course, with computers, there is the trivialization of gesture copying and pasting." One click, no need to copy manual pages of the book. "But there is also increasing the number of entries to the master, with students who are not always able to capitalize on their information." If you believe the teacher, this practice is particularly widespread in the publishing world. Books more quickly to related news, signatures are not always those of the real perpetrators ... A confusion of sources, she says, contributes to plagiarism.
DETECTORS SIMILARITIES AS A SOLUTION?
A University Lyon 2 since 2000, all theses must be placed online, which had feared more than they are plagiarized. From 2007, universities in the city are equipped software plagiarism detection Compilatio, becoming the spearhead of this hunt copy and paste.
The detection platforms are widespread in the Anglo-Saxon. They are to identify associations of six consecutive words from the Internet and an internal database
. Since 2005, the privately
Compilatio.net made this software in France.
"Generally, sources identified are copies of previous work, the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and online sites selling records, "said Anne Hamel, marketing manager Compilatio.net.
" Our site allows teachers analyze systematically the texts and not to the client's head, "says it. The aim of this private company is to equip the French universities and schools before going to high school students.
A report on the digital university
advocates wider use of such software antiplagiats in universities. Handling the case, Henry Issac, lecturer specializing in information systems and e-management at Paris-Dauphine, says
"surrender systematic work on such a platform should strongly encourage students to avoid plagiarism in preparing their work . The only survey
conducted on this subject dates from 2007.
"It was conducted by the University of Lyons and the society Six Degrees, which broadcast Compilatio.net until 2009," Jean-Noel regrets Darde,
blog author
Archaeology copy and paste .
SOFTWARE THAT DOES NOT UNANIMOUSLY
lecturer in information science and communications at Paris-VIII, it is by correcting three memoirs in 2006 that Jean-Noël Darde, interested in plagiarism.
"The three papers contained some gray areas on the original text." Going to see the other thirty memories this year, he realizes that a third of the work submitted are subject to plagiarism. No question as to leave the problem alone software:
"If you delegate control to a detector antiplagiat similarities, we do not accept responsibility teachers and students. Everyone is capable of changing a word from time to time in a text, even without understanding it. " Moreover, Compilatio.net provides student software
pompotron.com that allows them to check their sources. In fact, it is mainly a way for them to check their text will be pinned by Compilatio.net or not.
In 2007, Charles Coustille, studying both Sciences Po Bordeaux and intellectual property law, was shocked to have to go through the detector similarities Compilatio to send its work. Now a doctoral student at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), he wrote a memoir "From academic plagiarism" by inserting paragraphs cleverly plagiarized. He wants to show that with new ideas plagiarism night does not necessarily work quality. "Plagiarism may become a way of creation, from the time the recovery is not trite but thoughtful" , says he. For his study, he submitted a paragraph entirely plagiarized Compilatio software, which detected only 9% of similarities.
LOOK BETTER STUDENTS
Jean-Noël Darde, what is needed is regular monitoring of the student by his supervisor:
"The level of the final text will correspond to its level throughout the Search. " He deplores the tolerance of his peers. In 2007, the National Council of Universities (CNU) had suspended the qualification of a student, without canceling his thesis.
A decision upheld by the State Council . But the student, who saw his entry on the list of qualification as a lecturer removed can still argue that it is the author of a thesis.
"On March 25 , notes Jean-Noël Darde,
the Scientific Council of the University of Paris 8 voted to cancel the related degree with a thesis-plagiarism. A first since the advent of the Internet ". Face of Plagiarism, solutions differ among countries and academic traditions. In Anglo-Saxon, the emphasis is on deterrence with a reminder of sanctions. "In the United States and Denmark, the universities can sign charters against plagiarism" , notes Charles Coustille. A difference scheme linked to the nature of academic work, as explained by Helen Maurel-Indart. "The Anglo-Saxon culture is based more on personal work, pragmatism and experience. In France we have a tradition of assimilation models. It is respectable, by transcending the original production."
Source: LeMonde.fr (21-05-2010)
