Running head: WHY CAN’T IT BE MINE?

Why Can’t It Be Mine?

Alek Turner

Lamar University
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Why Can’t It Be Mine?

Plagiarism is a major issue in many schools, especially at the elementary level.

Plagiarism is the act of taking another’s idea or words and acting as it is one’s own and not citing

or referencing where the information or work derived from. Plagiarism could be reading an

article online and then writing a blog or paper and using exact wording from the article without

quoting and citing where those words and ideas originally came from. Yet, many students do not

understand this concept, or are aware that this is a legal issue. Students need to be taught how to

give credit to ideas that are not their own or they will be led into legal ramifications. Thus, if

students are not being taught to give credit to where credit is due, then we are preparing them to

be thieves.

Bailey (2013) states that plagiarism is “an issue of ethics,” in which a person takes an

“original work and presents it as one’s own.” First, students must be taught the moral principle of

sharing someone’s idea or work. Students need to understand that each person who creates an

idea or work takes time and hard work, and not recognizing their effort is unfair and stealing.

Once students understand this fundamental principle then they can understand how this is

unethical and why citations or references should be used. Many times, students create technology

projects or activities on their in-school devices and will use websites, articles, and online books.

Yet, so many times, students do not reference where the information came from or who said it.

Students need to be taught how to reference their work they create with the help of others. Bailey

(2013) discusses that in some cases “plagiarized work is posted online and can lead to lawsuits.”

Furthermore, students also need to understand that even if they are given permission by the

author of the work or idea, that does not allow for them to plagiarize, (Bailey, 2013). Another

major issue with plagiarism is that students need to realize that when they copy someone else’s
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idea or words, they are lying to those they present their work to. This façade is a

misrepresentation of their ideas, work, and abilities. Once someone is caught for plagiarizing it

develops a level of mistrust that other work produced are original and respectable with the proper

sources cited. Bailey (2013) says “plagiarism has a victim, and it’s the people who were lied to

about the origin of the work.” I believe that misrepresenting information as one’s own is a trick

that no one enjoys.

Therefore, I believe students need to be taught the importance of being honest in why

they need to share the work they find and use. Students needs to understand that honesty is a trait

of the character they possess, and it is an “ethical construct,” (Bailey, 2013). No one likes being

lied to, and the best way to share what you have learned and used as guidance, is to properly cite

where the work came from. If students are taught not to plagiarize and how to properly reference

their work, it will help them become responsible, trustworthy, and ethical adults.
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References

Bailey, J. (2013). The Difference Between Copyright Infringement and Plagiarism. Retrieved

from https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2013/10/07/difference-copyright-infringement-

plagiarism/