Re: Helping kids past plagiarism

[JHulten <jhulten@mail.east-haven.k12.ct.us>]

On Friday, March 20, Lynda Tempest wrote:

>>I have good advise, but it will be tough to sell to teachers.  I see >>no reason 
>to require "reports" as such. Such reports only encourage
>>plagiarism.   Instead, be creative.  If you want them to be able to >>find short 
>answers to certain questions, provide a worksheet-like
>>form and then let them research and fill in the blanks.  Then,
>>require that the research information be used in a unique way, ...

I agree...both on the part that "it's tough to sell teachers" and the
"no reports".

I urge our teachers...depending on who they are and what their
assignment is. ...to explore the questions:
..."What do I want the kids to get out of this assignment?  Why should
they learn this?"

And I often ask "Why" one more time than might seem usual, which helps
teachers see that the overall goal might not be "just the facts" but
might be more essential than that.

Example: "a health unit on mental illness"...
"why?"
"because thats the unit we're studying"...
"why?"
"so that the students have some understanding of mental illness"....
(then I say, please just go along with me here, I'm not trying to give
you a hard time, but...)
"why?" -
frequently I see the light turn on..."because they are or will more than
likely have to deal with the issue in their lifetime"
(Aha!)
Then I say...well, how about making the "report" include some of the
elements...
...How will you recognize a mental illness in a family member, etc?
...How will you interact with them to be helpful, understanding, etc.?
...How will you cope?

Then the teacher and I work together to create or modify existing
"Information Gathering" sheets and an assignment which will use the
information in a more creative way.

I've also come to accept that some teachers only want the Information
gathering, so I help their kids where I can and hope they will have a
more enlightened teacher in some other class.

Obviously all this is IMHO, but it gives me peace :-)

Regards,
--
Julie Hulten
East Haven High School
Library and Instructional Resource Center
35 Wheelbarrow Lane
East Haven, CT 06513
203-468-3361  FAX:203-468-3912
jhulten@mail.east-haven.k12.ct.us

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