2008 Woodie Awards
TurnItIn raises controversy
Meghan Hurley
Issue date: 10/13/06 Section: News
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The anti-plagiarism website, Turnitin.com, is causing controversy across the nation. High school students in McLean, Va., have banded together to fight against the mandatory submission of all papers to Turnitin, according to the Washington Post.
Other colleges have dropped their contracts with Turnitin and the Conference on College Composition, an organization of 6,000 college-level educators, is discussing whether use of the site "undermines students' authority over the uses of their own writing," according to the Washington Post.
"When used as a disciplinary tool, Turnitin fosters distrust between students and professors," Laura Barber, a sociology and psychology major, said.
The argument being presented is that not only does the site imply that students are guilty until proven innocent, but it also raises questions regarding students' rights to their own work. Students are required to submit papers to a company that is making money for them, but students don't receive compensation for building Turnitin's database of papers. Papers stay in the database and are used to compare to others papers for plagiarism as well.
"We use Turnitin to create an environment of academic integrity on campus," Dr. Charlie McCormick, dean for academic affairs and member of the Academic Honesty Board, said.
Although it is not required at Cabrini to submit all papers to the site, Cabrini does pay to use it. It is offered to all faculty as an option for their classes. Cabrini pays about $2,000 a year for the use of turnitin and has been using the site for four years.
"There was an interest on the part of the faculty…they were looking for a teaching tool," Dr. Roberta Jacquet, director of the Holy Spirit Library, said. "The library delivers resources and services to learning community and this is another resource."
In 2005, 21 professors used turnitin.com and 1,500 students submitted papers to the site. This year, there are 32 professors that use the site for their classes and 950 students who are submitting papers.
Other colleges have dropped their contracts with Turnitin and the Conference on College Composition, an organization of 6,000 college-level educators, is discussing whether use of the site "undermines students' authority over the uses of their own writing," according to the Washington Post.
"When used as a disciplinary tool, Turnitin fosters distrust between students and professors," Laura Barber, a sociology and psychology major, said.
The argument being presented is that not only does the site imply that students are guilty until proven innocent, but it also raises questions regarding students' rights to their own work. Students are required to submit papers to a company that is making money for them, but students don't receive compensation for building Turnitin's database of papers. Papers stay in the database and are used to compare to others papers for plagiarism as well.
"We use Turnitin to create an environment of academic integrity on campus," Dr. Charlie McCormick, dean for academic affairs and member of the Academic Honesty Board, said.
Although it is not required at Cabrini to submit all papers to the site, Cabrini does pay to use it. It is offered to all faculty as an option for their classes. Cabrini pays about $2,000 a year for the use of turnitin and has been using the site for four years.
"There was an interest on the part of the faculty…they were looking for a teaching tool," Dr. Roberta Jacquet, director of the Holy Spirit Library, said. "The library delivers resources and services to learning community and this is another resource."
In 2005, 21 professors used turnitin.com and 1,500 students submitted papers to the site. This year, there are 32 professors that use the site for their classes and 950 students who are submitting papers.
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