This 1 word. These 4 syllables, are enough to set any teenager off into yawns and moans. For some reason, the negative connotation encompassing plagiarism has nothing to do with the seriousness of the offense but with the dryness of the topic.
You see, at Orchard Park Secondary School where I teach, learning about plagiarism can often become repetitive for students. Unfortunately, this redundancy does not mean my school is free and clear of plagiarism offenses.
OP's Plagiarism Policies . . .
At the onset of each semester, in each grade of each English course, teachers at my school are required to complete at least 2 lessons followed up by 2 quizzes or activites in the first 2 weeks of school. The lessons include: defining plagiarism and its various types, providing examples (mostly written but I've now included some pop-culture in my lessons with Avril Lavigne's recent case in regards to her song "Girlfriend"), demonstrating how to paraphrase, how to cite and how to avoid plagiarizing. The activities and quizzes used to follow up on these lessons are to prove that students understand plagiarism and are aware of the consequences. In addition to this, students make corrections to any possible errors in these tasks and then sign and date a form stating that they've recieved the lessons, completed the activites and that they fully comprehend the consequences. Now, the consequences are simple. If a student is caught plagiarizing they automatically recieve a zero on the assignment, their name goes in our Department's "P" File, a VP is made aware of the occurance and their parents are notified while the student and teacher partake in a conference. Of course, this may sound harsh, but remember the student did attend 2 lessons, 2 activites and signed a written contract prior to the offense.
Plagiarism Resources . . .
So . . . When searching sites for resources on plagiarism I asked myself this question: What can I do to make my lessons more exciting? Here's what I found . . . This is a humourous video which I thought could be used as a teaching tool in conjunction with my lessons and activities to help students understand how plagiarism infringes upon copyright . . . Plagiarism is stealing! But this, this video is not . . . Enjoy!
A permanent link is located in my "Link List" somwhere over ------>
Or here: http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=2062843ef543e21d7ec8
4 comments:
That was a great addition, Sherry-Lynn! I think that could be used successfully - Disney does have that certain magic. I quite liked the FBI warning followed by the proviso that followed stating that the following production had no relation to... (INSERT TRADEMARK HERE). Well done!
Sherry-Lynn,
I love your link, I think I'll steal your idea, then give you full credit in front of my class.
We are less punitive at SJAM, but have a bit less student-centred accountability. A lot of teachers would love what OP is doing. The urge to give zeros is overwhelming to some older teachers (not me of course). By doing all the pre-education, you really make everyone happy.
Nice looking blog!
Mr. K gave us all the directions for posting those great videos. Big thanks to Mr. K.
And your blog is a great "professional" start. I like the clean way you've done the links bar. There are a lot of tools available in blogging that I am not familiar enough with. (Sir winston would like that end preposition)
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