[LM_NET] Tar: Consequences for Plagiarism, Middle School?

[Sarah Woo <sarahwoo@DANVERS.ORG>]

Hello All,

I am meeting tomorrow with members of our language arts department and 
the principal to come up with a clear and specific policy on plagiarism. 
We've had a few occasions recently where students have turned in work 
that wasn't their own, which has led to our realizing that we need a 
consistent approach to the problem, spelled out in greater detail than 
we  have now. We do try to create projects that require creativity and 
critical thinking, but the problem still exists.

I need to be able to offer some answers/opinions on the following 
questions surrounding this issue. (By the way, our students are taught 
not to plagiarize, and how to cite properly, etc. I teach lessons on 
citation, note-taking, quoting, etc.)

    * What should the consequences be for students who plagiarize? And
      should they vary for the first and subsequent instances?
    * Does it matter if it is just a brief quotation without
      attribution, or many instances within a paper/essay/project? That
      is, are there degrees of plagiarism and if so should there be
      different degrees of "punishment"?
    * Should the consequences be less severe for those in middle school
      than for those in high school, and for those in 6th grade vs. 8th
      grade? (our high school gives them a zero on the paper/project and
      they have the chance to re-do it. They are not suspended.)
    * Do you ever have parents complain that the consequences are too
      harsh, and if so, how do you deal with those circumstances?
    * Should the first (and even subsequent) instance with a student be
      handled by the classroom teacher or should an administrator be
      involved from the beginning?

Thanks for your thoughts on this issue, which I hope will help me define 
and articulate my own thoughts and opinions.

Sarah Woo
MS Librarian
Danvers, MA
sarahwoo@danvers.org


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