Article Review #3 "Put an End to Plagiarism in Your Classroom"

The article "Put an End to Plagiarism in Your Classroom" by Linda Starr, discusses how to do just that. Plagiarism is a huge problem in schools. Coming from the high school teacher point of view, I deal with the same issues every year when it comes to plagiarism. Starr notes in her article many of the reasons why students plagiarize. Some of the reasons include laziness, lack of confidence in their own work, poor time management skills, unintentional ignorance about plagiarism, and numerous other reasons. I think Starr's information in this article is spot on and every teacher should read this. Included in the article is a link to an awesome "Student Guide to Avoiding Plagiarism" put together by Education World. I will definitely be handing this out to my students when I give the first research assignment in the coming school year. Additionally, I agree with Starr that teachers must discuss all avenues of plagiarism with students so that they know exactly what they can and can't do. I also believe that teachers should be understanding and helpful with students as they are going through the research process. We should check on their progress regularly and redirect when necessary.