You have probably encountered situations where learners claim to do independent work, but copy word for word out of a reference book. There is limited educational value in this. It is also wrong to copy without acknowledging sources.

Support honest use of information. Make sure learners always properly acknowledge the work of others. If your learners use someone else's work word for word without acknowledging it, we call this plagiarism.

"Plagiarize: to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own : use (another's production) without crediting the source."
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary

One of the best ways to make sure that your learners do not plagiarize the work of others, is to give them questions that make them think and to encourage them to ask open-ended questions as well. This was covered in the module on 'Questioning and Thinking Skills' .Simply copying text is unlikely to give them the precise answers they need.

If you succeed in using questions that make learners think, they will be in a position to synthesise information and build new knowledge for themselves.

Extra Readings

Citing references

Copyright

Bibliographies

NEXT

Now go to Activity 9.