Is honesty too much to expect from University Professors?
In the course of my meager academic career I have noticed
that among professors plagiarism is not only allowed, it is common
practice.
Plagiarism is an unethical modus operandi where a person takes credit
for
another person's work. As students, we are warned repeatedly and
severely
to cite our sources and give credit where credit is due. We are
warned that this is about the worst thing you can do as a member of
academia as it is often grounds for dismissal from the department/university.
Yet, it seems to be common practice among professors--academia's citizens.
In fairness, I can only speak of the professors and departments that I
have been exposed to. I cannot say if this is a problem of all
departments, but it certainly is evident in the two computer science
departments I have worked in.
I also cannot speak or even hint at professor's plagiarism in research
papers and publications. I am only referring to the plagiarism that I
have seen first hand, in the classroom.
I have now taken many courses where the materials are not the work of
the current instructor. Typically the courses are "hand-me-down"
courses where the work was done by a predecessor. Yet, often credit
is never paid where credit is due.
Examples of such plagiarism that I have seen include the syllabus,
lecture slides, term projects, homework assignments and even exams.
Perhaps the worst offense is in the lecture slides.
I have seen classes where the lecture slides were identical to the
previous year. The only thing that changed was the professor's name
and the semester identification. Even if the professor doesn't
directly take credit for lecture slides, the basic assumption in any
presentation is that the work is of the presenters unless otherwise
stated. I have seen the assumption of original authorship go on for
the entire semester.
Worse, I have even seen professors take credit for other's work.
Example: in a class where the lecture slides were ripped off from the
previous year, the professor stated things like "That's on my next
slide" and "Let's see what I put on the next slide."
Another area where this plagiarism is clearly evident is in term
projects. Often projects are stolen (perhaps with permission) from
other universities and presented as original work. It is obvious that
a professor will be more involved and more knowledgeable about a
project which was his or her own design. Students deserve the right
to know if a project is original or not. I am now to the point where
I will ask outright or will determine on my own if the professor is
being honest or not. It should not be this way: professors should be
honest and up front about it.
The fact that professors are so disinterested in teaching that they
are forced to rely so heavily on other's material is enough of an
insult to the students. If they are not going to give us the courtesy
of putting effort into the course they should at least acknowledge
this fact in the beginning. We are then free to choose to drop the
course or take other action. Presenting other's work as their own
shows even less concern for the students, not to mention the original
author.
Action
It is time for all professors to act ethically. This
type of plagiarism would never be tolerated at a conference, workshop
or colloquium. Why is it allowed in the classroom? Are students not
deserving of simple honesty?
I welcome any responses.
Email smorris@cs.arizona.edu