Personal Narrative: Upward Bound

Plagiarism cases can provide insight on the dire consequences that can occur if a student is caught plagiarizing within an academic setting. A former student of Rutgers University, Amanda Serpico, was accused by her professor of plagiarizing on her opinion paper in her argumentation class (Bailey, 2011). Amanda received credit for using citations in a majority of the paper and providing the sources in the reference section, but she did not properly cite at least three verbatim passages that she used within her work (Bailey, 2011). Amanda utilized Turnitin software to review her paper and to detect plagiarism before turning in the assignment for grading to her professor (Bailey, 2011). The plagiarism accusation resulted in Amanda receiving a failing grade on the paper, a failing grade in the course, and being denied admission to several graduate schools. (Bailey,

students seem to turn to plagiarism as an answer to getting good grades or to finish an assignment quickly. A high schooler sometimes sees no other choice other than to cheat or copy off of another person because of either the importance of education to them, the student had a ton of other homework, or a sporting event took place the night before the due date. Either way, high schoolers often overlook the consequences of their actions since they believe the teacher will not know or find out. After evaluating the usage of plagiarism in schools, the adults must keep a closer watch on their students work and enforce the punishments because of how commonly used copying has become.

The word plagiarism is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as the action of “...copy[ing] and pass[ing] off (the expression of ideas or words of another) as one’s own… without crediting the source”. In the Howard County Public School’s “Code of Conduct” the levels of severity for consequences regarding actions such as plagiarizing are thoroughly explained using levels. Level I resulting in the least harmful consequences for a student and Level V resulting in the harshest. In my experience with the Level system of punishment, I would place my punishment for plagiarism at Level IV which includes a referral and required parent notification. The outcome of my actions has also resulted in a lunch detention and a zero on the assignment. In this paper, I will be explaining the courses of punishment for academic dishonesty (exclusively plagiarism) at the top three colleges I wish to apply to following high school and what punishment I would have faced if I plagiarized my paper in those colleges. The colleges include University of Maryland, Florida State University, and the University of California, Irvine.

Kennedy once said, “A child miseducated is a child lost”. In this circumstance, President Kennedy’s statement is exceptionally true. By not receiving a severe punishment, these students are not receiving the valuable education of being held accountable for their actions. Not acknowledging the seriousness of plagiarism early on could eventually lead to much greater consequences than receiving a zero. In a point of fact, anyone who reproduces someone’s intellectual property can be prosecuted in a court of law. Understanding the severity of plagiarism early on could avoid such a punishment altogether, by accepting a punishment incomparable to the one that lays

Educators have long been concerned with the problem of detecting plagiarism. Despite the severe sanctions imposed when it is discovered, some students persist in using the words and ideas of other writers without attribution. Ironically, the very seriousness of the offense and the penalties imposed may contribute to the relative impunity of the offenders.

Schools today have a very large problem with academic dishonesty. Not only high schools, but also colleges as well have and abundance of students who cheat regularly. Although cheating is addressed in many school policies, a shocking number of students get away with it, and teachers do nothing about it. Whether its copying someone’s assignment to get theirs done, or plagiarizing an entire paper, students cheat.

"Louis McClymont, the nurse will see you know."As I took the dreaded walk to treatment room B, my fear of needles began to take over, the only time I ever had a jag before was when I was a baby, and that was too long ago to remember. I took a seat on the administering table; the nurse could see my body was shaking with fear. She tried to distract me from the enormous needle that was heading my way. "You're having a jag for yellow fever, where are you going?"

TS – What causes students to plagiarize why do they do it and what do their peers and other classmates perceive when it is caught or revealed in a group and individual setting.

Academic integrity is a collection of values that students and instructors are expected to uphold, including honesty and conformity to academic standards. Many students often face the temptation to plagiarize other people’s work and to submit it as their own for undeserved credits. In some cases, tight deadlines, exhaustion, and sheer lack of diligence may mislead students into copying other authors’ work while completing their assignments. However, learning institutions regard academic integrity as one of the foremost principles that students should abide by, and breaching academic integrity policies often accrues heavy penance such as failing grades, citations for misbehavior, and even expulsion from learning programs. Even though many academic

Waking up at five in the morning is not enjoyable for most fourteen-year-olds, but for seven months, I gladly rose to the squabble of chickens who wanted their morning meal. I grew up as the youngest, with two older sisters whom I idolized. Because of my siblings, I was automatically deemed childish and had little responsibility given to me. Arriving as a surprise christmas gift, thirteen two-day-old chicks left me speechless when they appeared at my house. I was thrown head first into guardianship and had real responsibility for the first time in my life as I became the sole caretaker of thirteen chicks.

Unfortunately, there is no pause button in our lives – either we move forward or we move backward. Thus, in order to evolve, people should always take a step forward at each stage of their lives. Finally, this moment came in my life and I had to make a decision whether I continue my studies in college or to labor somewhere. I have chosen the first one and hope that this decision will never be a disappointment for me.

“Space. The final frontier.” These four words have played over in my head since I was young. Waking up during what felt like the middle of the night and making my way down the dark stairs that were almost still too big for my stubby, little legs. Nothing in particular woke me up that night that I can remember. The faint pitter patter of the rain against my window, or the rustling of a cat making themselves comfortable at the foot of my bed. Nevertheless, my restless imaginative self was now wide awake.

What constitutes plagiarism, scholastic honesty and the consequences to follow for acts of dishonesty? Well first and foremost we must understand what plagiarism is and how it affects ones scholastic honesty, considering the consequences it may bring about. Plagiarism is the taking of passages from the writing of the others without giving proper credit to the sources. Plagiarism has had and still has a negative butterfly effect on students of all grade levels, including college, to where students are not entirely aware of the seriousness bestowed upon it. Due to the advancement in technology, it has been much simpler for students to cheat, where as not grasping the intellectual detriment it has on oneself. For example, using someone else's

Defined as any “theft of ideas and other forms of intellectual property— whether they are published or not” (Jones, et al, 2001), academic dishonesty occurs often, usually in the form of cheating or plagiarizing. Students face temptations to cheat and

As a young child, I grew up comforted by constant encouragement that, “Someday you are going to do great things,” although it wasn’t until now, my senior year of high school, that I have finally uncovered my own sense of being. This upcoming July, I will be attending the Austin School of Spa Technology to study Cosmetology as well as Makeup Artistry. In addition, I will be attending Fulton Montgomery Community College in September to begin the study of Chemistry. I plan to continue working towards my two-year degree at Fulton Montgomery Community College. I plan to continue with my future endeavors and transfer to a four-year school with the intent of becoming a chemistry teacher.