Plagiarism in the Distance Learning Environment

Plagiarism is a waste of time. Whether you do it intentionally or accidentally. Sure, if you can get away with it, it means you beat doing a whole lot of work. But like jumping the train without a ticket, it takes a lot of effort and stress to avoid getting caught. I guess some will always be cool headed about it. But they’ve got to ask themselves, is it worth their job, education, reputation? No it’s not, it’s a waste of time.

To pass off someone else’s work as your own is a skill in itself. It requires a brazen attitude and a certain amount of denial. Simply changing a few words around is not enough, and if you change enough words around, then basically it isn’t plagiarism anymore, but you’ve probably spent more time trying to cover it all up than you would have if you’d simply got to grips with the subject and written it yourself, in what would no doubt be a better written piece of work, in a clear and flowing form.

If you’re studying for an online degree, plagiarism is something to be concerned with. Most cases of plagiarism are carried out unwittingly (though some would say recklessly) by otherwise careful and considerate students. The e-learning revolution has made a lot of things to do with studying easier, but it also has presented hazards.

With so much research and reference material available online, both in virtual learning environments and on specific web sites, more care has to be taken that you are not copying someone else’s work.

Thanks to search engines we can access a massive amount of online e-learning documents, but either the temptation is there to deliberately copy work, or there lies the pitfall in being rather too carefree about writing exactly what you’ve read, without attributing the correct quotation, and referencing marks.

Like conventional colleges and educational institutions, online providers of e-learning, distance learning, and online degrees such as business management and Internet marketing do not treat those found to have plagiarised other persons’ work lightly.

Fortunately there is a range of online tools and materials on how to avoid plagiarism, and ensure your work is fully your own. Unfortunately, no matter how hard you try to make sure your work is original and of the best standard, there may be others who try to steal your work, or unwittingly copy it, if it too is documented online.

Using the web to understand more about plagiarism, and distance learning, should give you a comprehensive knowledge about these issues, and equip you with the skills to combating it. So far with my studies on my online degree I have had help and guidance from tutor, and thanks to my flexible Internet learning course I’ve had plenty of time to become familiar with the issues surrounding plagiarism and the Internet.

My favourite rule with plagiarism is though, just understand what it is you are doing – read, study, learn – that way your work will be your own!

I am taking marketing courses and am about to get my online degree soon.