I have a Wicked Problem. My Wicked Problem is plagiarism. To combat it, I created a Weebly website. I did this so that I could send my students to one website that contained all the information needed to understand what constitutes plagiarism, why we practice certain citation methods, how to avoid plagiarism, as well as other information relevant to this topic.
As you will discover in more detail in my podcast, the surprise I encountered while implementing my Wicked Problem Project was the urgency of a solution to my wicked plagiarism problem. Once I started this project, I knew I could not stop because I currently find myself in the single worst semester for plagiarism I have ever experienced as an instructor. I'm finding plagiarized assignments about three times per week. Plagiarism is rampant and I am very exhausted from dealing with it. Two days after I implemented the plagiarism website and asked students to check it out, a student plagiarized. I'm not sure why this surprised me...I guess it is because I am trying to get students to grow academically. It was, however, very nice to be able to send that student that plagiarized to the website knowing that he would have all the tools he needed to carry on without indulging in plagiarism on another assignment.
As is the case with any project of wicked proportions, this one involved getting over some unexpected bumps. One of said bumps was the limitations of Weebly itself. Prior to beginning the project, I had envisioned a website incorporating a good deal of bells and whistles. Unfortunately, the free version doesn't grant the user the ability to use all the bells and whistles. For instance, the free version of Weebly doesn't offer audio uploads. So, I bought a Weebly subscription. It cost $40.00 for a year. Now I can add audio, if I'd like, but there are still some creative limitations in Weebly, such as the stacking of information. Widgets and the like can only be stacked on top of each other, not side by side, or in other places on the screen. If I find that the Weebly site is very helpful to students, I may considering taking the content from the Weebly to begin a website from scratch that is hosted on "Go Daddy!" or something. This way I can customize it to be exactly how it will best serve students. I haven't had any student comments regarding the functionality of the site itself, but I would like to make some improvements in this area.
What delighted me most was that the ideas just kept coming, even after I implemented the site. As I worked, I thought of more useful pages and information to incorporate into the plagiarism website. Also, students asked me some questions after I had given them access to the site, which indicated some additional areas that needed to be incorporated into the site. So many new ideas were flooding my brain, I didn't have enough time to build them all into the site...yet. But now, I have many elements that I can work to include in the site over time.
My Weebly site is called PlagiarismBeGone and you can check it out, if you would like. At this point in time, it includes pages on the definition of plagiarism, terminology, how to avoid plagiarism, interactive tutorials, citation methods, the consequences of plagiarism, a blog, and my contact information. I have tried to use very straight forward and easy to understand language that will enable students to come to a full understanding of the topic of plagiarism, why we practice proper citation methods, and how to avoid plagiarism. I'm hoping the students find the curated material less confusing than conducting their own wayward search and that students of many levels can utilize the information contained within.
Maybe if I just keep hoping and working with students, one day plagiarism will be gone...yes, that's a bit unrealistic, but an instructor can always dream, can't she?
No comments:
Post a Comment