3 ms·

Look at it like this: you could catch many instances of undergraduate plagiarism if you a) google searched passages of submitted essays/disertations and b) cros

by Tycho 13y ago

Look at it like this: you could catch many instances of undergraduate plagiarism if you a) google searched passages of submitted essays/disertations and b) cross-checked all submitted papers against each other (including previous years). Anyone can do this with no special tools, but systems like Turnitin automate the process. So I don't see how it could be a joke/scam (maybe if it's outrageously expensive). It also has other features like making sure students have used citations/references correctly.

TeMPOraL 13y ago
Method a) is a very weak check and also is either slow, or will likely make Google ban you for trying to DDoS them. Method b) is what, AFAIK, such software usually does, and from what I heard it generates tons of false positives and is generally annoying. A student friend of mine told me about how much trouble she and her year has with the anti-plagiarism system her university uses; basically citing things or using the same reference material (and thus having similar references section) is enough to mark your thesis as plagiarism. They have a ruthlessly enforced threshold of "plagiarism %" you need to stay below, and from what she says, it's incredibly difficult to do so even when writing completely original work.
- Tycho 13y ago
  Method A is not really a weak check, it's bound to catch tons of cheating students, it's just tedious for staff to perform. Sounds like your friend's school is misusing the tool. Seeing that students are all using the same references is pretty interesting information, as long as you don't leap to conclusions. Likewise, seeing that someone is not citing references properly may not be evidence of plagiarism but nevertheless it's good for students to adhere to reference standards. When I used Turnitin I had to keep below a certain percentge of 'quoted' text. I found this slightly annoying but I could easily avoid it by replacing a quotation with my own summary + a citation. It's just a stylistic choice that is being enforced through the system. Also, no % of plagiarism should be acceptable - beyond the residual/accidental amount you get from coincidental phrasings.

by Tycho 13y ago

TeMPOraL 13y ago

Method a) is a very weak check and also is either slow, or will likely make Google ban you for trying to DDoS them. Method b) is what, AFAIK, such software usually does, and from what I heard it generates tons of false positives and is generally annoying. A student friend of mine told me about how much trouble she and her year has with the anti-plagiarism system her university uses; basically citing things or using the same reference material (and thus having similar references section) is enough to mark your thesis as plagiarism. They have a ruthlessly enforced threshold of "plagiarism %" you need to stay below, and from what she says, it's incredibly difficult to do so even when writing completely original work.

Tycho 13y ago
Method A is not really a weak check, it's bound to catch tons of cheating students, it's just tedious for staff to perform. Sounds like your friend's school is misusing the tool. Seeing that students are all using the same references is pretty interesting information, as long as you don't leap to conclusions. Likewise, seeing that someone is not citing references properly may not be evidence of plagiarism but nevertheless it's good for students to adhere to reference standards. When I used Turnitin I had to keep below a certain percentge of 'quoted' text. I found this slightly annoying but I could easily avoid it by replacing a quotation with my own summary + a citation. It's just a stylistic choice that is being enforced through the system. Also, no % of plagiarism should be acceptable - beyond the residual/accidental amount you get from coincidental phrasings.