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The [Unintended] Consequences of Plagiarism

The [Unintended] Consequences of Widespread Plagiarism

Plagiarism and academic misconduct is on the rise post-pandemic across K12 and higher education. Most institutions and districts respond to this issue by adopting services – such as Turnitin – to identify plagiarism in student work. Some establish and codify policies around how to address instances of plagiarism as a disciplinary issue. Other districts have responded by amending curriculum to directly address the skills and content knowledge needed to avoid plagiarism. Regardless of how school districts choose to address the increase in plagiarism and academic misconduct, there are long-ranging consequences of plagiarism on academic and workplace communities. Instructors and school districts must communicate the unintended consequences of widespread plagiarism to their communities.

 

The release of the recent NAEP test results found that the COVID pandemic may have erased two decades of incremental increases in mathematics and reading scores for 9 year olds. The simultaneous rise in similarity scores reported on student work is highly correlated with this outcome, leading some to suggest that plagiarism may contribute to the literacy gap – in the United States, the average adult reads at a 6th grade reading level. A recent Forbes article suggested that low literacy within the American workforce impacts the economy to the tune of $2.2 trillion dollars annually. 

 

As teachers, we know that writing-as-content is vital to developing critical thinking in our scholars. We know that reading and writing share many of the same sub-skills, and must be used in tandem to develop one another (and research supports this!). Solving the plagiarism pandemic will require educational communities to get to the heart of why we educate at all: education as a public good requires a baseline level of literacy and skill. Allowing unfettered spread of plagiarism makes it more difficult for students to access skills and social goods later in life. Communicating this message to parents and communities is vital to garnering their support for the curriculum and procedural changes necessary to halt plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct.

 

Works Cited

How plagiarism makes the literacy gap worse

Virginia is changing the way it teaches history, social studies. Here’s how - The Washington Post

https://academicintegrity.org/resources/facts-and-statistics

9-Year-Olds' Reading and Mathematics Scores Drop Since Start of Pandemic

Low Literacy Levels Among U.S. Adults Could Be Costing The Economy $2.2 Trillion A Year 

Are reading and writing building on the same skills? The relationship between reading and writing in L1 and EFL | SpringerLink 

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