Blog Post #18 Memos

After reading a bit more of the article I am thinking of using, "It wasn't me, was it? Plagiarism and the Web" for my big project, and reading my transcript again, I am thinking that my project could focus on how students are often compelled to plagiarize in hopes of being "correct" (?) and meeting the requirements of their assignments in it's entirety.... In the article, there was a part that really spoke to me. It said:


"Asking a student to create original ideas encourages plagiarism in the sense that students often feel the need to consult sources for help. How many new insights are readily available for readers of King Lear, for example? We ask students not just for their insights, but for their original ideas, ideas that must also—in some instances—be “correct.”

Based on the excerpt below from my transcript, I feel my participant is confirming this idea but also referencing using the web as a "tool"....


 "B: Do you think a lot of your peers reference the internet a lot when writing different kinds of papers to help them out with ideas?

J: Yeah for sure. There are soooooo many sites out there that can help out with ideas. I don't really see it as plagiarizing though and I don't think a lot of students do either. Like for example, it's a lot easier to do this with literature classes or pys classes, or things where it's a lot of just recapping. You can ask people online what they think and get a whole bunch of ideas and play off that. Or put your own spin on things that have already been discussed online. Message boards are a great place for this, or even yahoo answers or just some sites that professors don't really like us using (giggles). Not only is it easy but it's almost like a tool if you have writers block."


I am just not sure if I am bringing up a point that isn't brought up in my article like the assignment calls for. I still think I should still be doing this from the perspective of the student, but unclear on whether or not the central focus has changed, based on the new info in my article.
My original statement of purpose was:

• The purpose of my study is to learn how students really feel about plagiarism, and to learn whether or not they feel they possess the proper skills to execute a paper successfully, in a timely matter without having to rely on the internet as a shortcut. I am exploring this through the students perspective.