The issue of plagiarism comes up more often in my classes than I would like, and it can have a huge impact on student retention. I set forth my policies very clearly, verbally and in writing, from day one. I know my students have also been drilled in this in other classes, in most cases. But unfortunately, my students are often overworked and some (either intentionally or otherwise) copy information from the internet and use it as their own without proper citation.
It's clearly plagiarism, and my policy is that the minimum penalty is a failing grade on the assignment. Some students take this as well as could be expected, but some become angry and speak of leaving the college because of the "unfair" penalty for what may be an honest mistake.
First, what strategies would you suggest for speaking to a student who copies large sections of text from the web but does not cite it? And second, would you suggest a college-wide policy on plagiarism, or should the penalty be up to the individual instructor, as it is now?
Finally, what differences in attitudes do older versus younger students harbor in regards to plagiarism? I would assume that younger students tend to be more a part of the share-everything world of the internet, which might make plagiarism more difficult for them to understand, while older students are more accustomed to notions of intellectual property. Is that the case?
