Plagiarism Consequences

Although teachers may have various approaches to address instances of plagiarism, depending on their severity and perceived intent, there are some consistent measures that have been and will continue to be the practice at Edgemont Junior/Senior High School. Consequences for committing plagiarism include:

In college the penalties for plagiarism can be much more severe. Many universities state in their plagiarism policies, available online, that severe instances can lead to course failure and even expulsion from the university.

So what’s the big deal? Why are teachers so concerned about plagiarism? Believe it or not, teachers spend a lot of time ensuring that their assessments and evaluations are fair, and a student’s commission of plagiarism obviously challenges the need for all students to be on a level playing field. Assignments give you the opportunity not only to demonstrate your learning but to broaden it, and it is impossible to truly assess your abilities if you rely on plagiarism.

More importantly, though, plagiarism is cheating. Many students who are rigorous about their ethics in athletics or personal relationships see no problem with plagiarism, because the pressure to succeed in school is so high. But the student who hands in plagiarized material, whether through copying answers on math homework or using a translator for a foreign language assignment, is lying to his teacher. Furthermore, any achievement, such as placement in an honors class or even college admission, derived from such a lie is fraudulent.