TEACHER EDITION October 13, 2014 Volume VII

This issue of Tiger Tracks in the Stacks covers information on teacher plagiarism, copyright usage, research, and intellectual property. The librarians are here to serve your needs as an educator and students’ needs as learners. Don’t hesitate to contact us with any of your research questions.

Schedule a special library session to discuss these topics with your classes!

Focus on Teacher Collaboration, Plagiarism, and Intellectual Property

Library Hours: Monday through Friday 7:15am to 3:30pm

Phone Number: (803) 257-2067

Website: tigerstacks.weebly.com

Contact a Librarian:

Summer Neill stdsdw20@SHSU.EDU

Abraham Trujillo axt034@SHSU.EDU

Jennifer Wilson jsw007@SHSU.EDU

SAM HOUSTON JUNIOR HIGH

Tiger Track Stacks

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http://tigerstacks.weebly.commailto:stdsdw20@SHSU.EDUmailto:axt034@SHSU.EDUmailto:jsw007@SHSU.EDUmailto:stdsdw20@SHSU.EDUmailto:axt034@SHSU.EDUmailto:jsw007@SHSU.EDUhttp://tigerstacks.weebly.com

It’s time for research papers and book reports, but these aren’t the only

assignments students are going to try to plagiarize. Remember to remind students; even copying a friend’s homework is plagiarism. Plagiarism is taking someone else’s thoughts, words, or research findings and using them as your own. Anytime someone turns in a paper which someone else wrote, they are committing plagiarism. !It’s very easy to fall into the trap of reading something and reporting it without giving credit where credit is due—and that is the basic rule of thumb for avoiding plagiarism. Students can be overwhelmed with research assignments, so plagiarism can be tempting. Try breaking the project up into smaller sections so it is less intimidating. Help students plan by creating due dates for each stage of the process. Encourage students to include their opinions and ideas into their work; then, initiate class discussions or small group discussion topics based on these ideas. !There are two primary reasons why students shouldn’t plagiarize:

1. Would you want someone else passing your ideas off as his or her own? 2. What if you’re reading a paper about an interesting, informative topic you want

Plagiarism and How to Avoid It

http://wpacouncil.org/node/9

Plagiarism, Copyright, and Fair Use articles brought to you courtesy of Summer Neill. She taught English I, IV, and ESOL in Texas and South Carolina.

The consequences of plagiarism can be personal, professional, ethical, and legal. Once accused of plagiarism, a person will most likely always be regarded with suspicion. Ignorance is not an excuse. Plagiarists include academics, professionals, students, journalists, authors, and others.

1. Destroyed Student Reputation

Permanent Records hold important information about students’ ethics and performance.

2. Destroyed Professional Reputation

Entire careers can be jeopardized if a business person plagiarizes.

3. Destroyed Academic Reputation

Publishing is a vital part of academics, and plagiarizing can ruin publishing opportunities for an academic person.

4. Legal Repercussions

Copyright laws are absolute, and an author has the right to sue a plagiarist which can lead to a prison sentence.

5. Monetary Repercussions

Authors have the right to be compensated for their time, and monetary restitution may be granted in cases of plagiarism.

6. Plagiarized Research

This is the most atrocious form of plagiarism because of the sensitivity in the medical field, lives could be lost if work is plagiarized.

http://www.ithenticate.com/resources/6-consequences-of-plagiarism

Consequences of Plagiarism

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http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html

Copyrights are important for protecting your creative medias; however, the purpose of creating these documents and presentations are to share knowledge and information. Our work is meant to be used for the benefit and education of others. Fair use allows people to use research and work of others in an appropriate way by documenting sources. “The doctrine of fair use has developed through a substantial number of court decisions over the years and has been codified in section 107 of the copyright law.” Section 107 lists some examples of reasons a piece of work might be considered “fair.” These four factors are used to determine whether the usage is fair:

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes

2. The nature of the copyrighted work 3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the

copyrighted work as a whole 4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the

copyrighted work !It isn’t always easy to determine which is fair use or not. Do remember acknowledging sources of copyrighted work doesn’t take place for obtaining permission to use it.

What is considered FAIR USE?

Copyright is a type of protection which grants protection for authorship of various medias. It protects original works of the creator but not necessarily the way the works are expressed. Copyrights exist from the moment of creation, and registration is voluntary; however, if you wish to take legal action against someone for copyright infringement because your work is stolen or plagiarized it is important for your work to be registered.

What is COPYRIGHT?

http://www.copyright.gov

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http://www.erikjheels.com/803.html

Erik Heels explains it best with this simple drawing. Just remember: in order to avoid copyright infringement, always give credit to your sources.

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• Originality Check is a tool which searches the essay for plagiarism by using the Turnitin.com database. The text which has been matched with already existing material will be highlighted and hyperlinked to the original source. This allows the instructor to see what the student wrote and compare it to the original source.

• Grade Mark is the instructor tool which allows the instructor to grade the assignment. Embedded in this tool are several mini tools to help instructors give feedback. First, there is a tool to create a rubric for the assignment so students are aware of how they will be graded. Secondly, there is the ETS tool which checks the essay for grammar, usage, and mechanics. Another tool in Grade Mark is the ability to leave voice comments or written comments.!

• Peer Mark is a tool students can use to read each other’s work and make comments or suggestions to help their fellow peers produce excellent work. Think of it as an online peer review.

Turnitin.com is a website consisting of three online tools which help with essay writing and grading.

Getting HELP: Essay Grading and Writing

Crea%ve  Commons  is  a  nonprofit  organiza%on  that  allows  informa%on  to  be  shared  and  used  yet  s%ll  maintains  rights  to  the  creator.  

• The  difference  between  copyright  and  Crea%ve  Commons  is  that  when  something  copyrighted  the  creator  contains  “all  rights  reserved,”  and  Crea%ve  Commons  licenses  are  “some  rights  reserved”  

• Crea%ve  Commons  does  not  replace  copyright  but  works  alongside  it  to  modify  the  copyright  terms  to  what  you  want.  

!www.crea%vecommons.com  

Share Your CREATIVITY!

www.turnitin.com

Turnitin and Creative Commons articles come to you from Abraham Trujillo who has taught 8th grade ELA in New Mexico and Texas.

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Should you be checking out books from the school library? YES! You should! Schools with librarians lead to better achievement scores! According to research done by Keith Curry Lance, schools that have a certified school librarian demonstrate higher achievement scores on standardized testing. Lance studied over 19 states for variables, and the results were astounding. What does this mean? In his research on Texas schools, data was collected from 1999 to 2000 from the Texas Education Agency on standardized test performance as well as school characteristics. The study proved that over 10% more students were able to meet standards in reading standardized test scores in schools with a certified school librarian. In fact, the 25 lowest performing schools were compared to the highest performing schools, and a multitude of differences were found in characteristics between the schools. There was a difference in the library staffing levels, collection sizes, cooperative activities from teachers, school and library technology availability, ethnic and racial makeup, and socioeconomic status. While research in Texas showed a multitude of varying factors affecting test scores, including presence of a librarian, research in Colorado found

certified librarians at a school positively impact standardized test scores without factoring in differences in socioeconomics and student poverty. Lance’s research gives support to the idea a librarian belongs on a campus to serve the needs of students and to impact a campus in a positive way. In Spokane, Washington, many schools had a librarian cut from the campus, or librarians had to serve multiple schools to be only part-time at multiple campuses. With aides and uncertified personnel taking care of daily library duties, libraries may be able to still function, but without a certified librarian who specializes in knowing how to make the library the best possible environment conducive to learning students may not be getting all they can out of their education. Parents and community members were outraged about the removal of librarians in the district, so they used Lance’s research to challenge the changes and advocate to get librarians back into schools. Spokane, Washington is an excellent example of how districts can make positive decisions to have a certified librarian on staff to help with the needs of students.

The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, or PIRLS, was conducted in over 40 countries. The test was given to fourth graders in their own national language. The study also included information on socioeconomic status as well as reading outside of school, practices in the classroom, and attitudes towards reading. Krashen, Lee, and McQuillan conducted this research and compiled the data to reveal four areas of focus. Those four factors were determined to be levels of measurement to gain data: socioeconomic status, literacy, library, and instruction. Socioeconomic status also includes access to books at home. Literacy includes time spend

reading silently and independently. Libraries include school or classroom libraries. The results of the data analysis of the PRILS showed the library factor was far and away the highest indicator of achievement. The literacy factor showed to be positively correlated with scores but not enough to be statistically significant. Use of the library then proves to be a significant factor in determining student success. First, students must have access to the books and materials! Students should be encouraged to read! Of course, even with access some students may not choose to read. The results of that decision can be devastating. The data is in: LIBRARIES DO MATTER! Pick up a good book and read.

R. E. A. D. It does matter!

Research on Keith Curry Lance and Krashen, Lee and McQuillan about the importance of librarians and reading in schools brought to you by Jennifer Wilson.  Jennifer has been teaching 6th grade reading for in Garland ISD.

Schools + Librarians

Better Test Scores

http://www.lrs.org/documents/closer_look/CO3_2010_Closer_Look_Report.pdf.

https://www.tsl.state.tx.us/sites/default/files/public/tslac/ld/pubs/schlibsurvey/survey.pdf

http://www.sdkrashen.com/articles/Multivariate_Studies.pdf.

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