Should Rough Draft Plagiarism Be Sanctioned?

A former Harvard Law School student lost her case against the distinguished university when a judge said that even plagiarism in a rough draft counts as an academic dishonesty infraction ("Court Backs Harvard in Plagiarism Challenge," Inside Higher Ed, October 25, 2016). In the court's opinion, it is mentioned that there were at least 23 occurrences of plagiarized material in the student's law journal work that provided a review of a patent case. The student was able to graduate although her transcript included a plagiarism notice, which seemed to prompt one law firm to cancel a job offer.

Discussion Questions:

1. If you submit rough drafts with plagiarized material, should you face an academic integrity penalty? Why or why not? 
2. Should only work you submit for a grade be reviewed for plagiarism? Why or why not?
3. Once you are in graduate school, should the rules for academic integrity be more strict than rules for undergraduates? Why or why not?
4. How can this student build back her reputation if her law school transcript includes a plagiarism note on it?

Is an Academic Dishonesty Hotline a Good Idea?

Students at Purdue University can now anonymously call in academic misconduct starting this semester ("Purdue Initiates Academic Dishonesty Hotline," Purdue Exponent, August 30, 2016). According to the Associate Dean of Students, this new method for reporting is important to preserve the honor of the university and its degrees. The hotline idea emanated from the University Senate, in part, to "prevent cases rather than punish individuals" as the chairperson of that group mentioned.

Discussion Questions:

1. If you witnessed academic dishonesty, would you be more likely to report it if there was a hotline that allows anonymity? Why or why not?
2. Do you think your degree from a college or university would be viewed unfavorably if an academic dishonesty scandal occurred while you were a student, even if you weren't involved? Why or why not?
3. Do you think it's the responsibility of all students and faculty to report academic dishonesty? Why or why not?
4. Do you think an anonymous hotline can cause more problems than advantages? Why or why not?
5. Do you think the hotline will "prevent cases rather than punish individuals" as the University Senate chairperson said? Why or why not?

Should Each Professor Decide Academic Dishonesty Consequences?

A faculty committee calls for standards in academic integrity penalties ("UNR Faculty Push for Consistent Cheating Penalties," Reno Gazette-Journal, April 27, 2016). The article mentioned that a recommendation from a campus group was to have faculty report cheating issues to "an online portal" and educate professors and students on academic integrity policies. The chair of the campus group mentioned that she believes some professors do not report cheating because it is seen as a problematic process and instead impose their own punishments that can be lenient while others are harsh.

Discussion Questions:

1. The article mentions the importance of "catching students" when they first begin college classes to cut down on cheating. Do you think the article suggests that the college is mainly interested in punishing students to stop them from committing further academic dishonesty? Why or why not?
2. Do you think professors should have the right to decide penalties for cheating in their classes? Or should professors be able to choose academic dishonesty penalties only from a range of options approved by a college or university? Why or why not?
3. Do you believe that students need to be more informed on what actions are academically dishonest so they know how to avoid cheating and plagiarism? Why or why not?

Olympic Logo Plagiarism Issue Resolved

The newly redesigned Tokyo Summer Games logo was recently revealed to be quite different than the first version that was seen as plagiarizing a Belgian theater's logo ("Tokyo 2020 Unveils New Olympic Logo after Plagiarism Allegations," The Guardian (UK), April 25, 2016). The total revamp of the Olympic logo was done by a different designer after the creator of the theater's graphic commenced litigation to stop the use of the original Tokyo 2020 logo.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think it was an accident that the two designers created a somewhat similar logo? Why or why not?
2. Do you think it's easier to avoid plagiarism with words vs. plagiarism with images? Why or why not?

Google Books Can Keep Scanning Copyrighted Titles

Google get to continue digitizing books, making sections of them available online for free ("Supreme Court Declines to Hear Google Books Case," PC Magazine, April 18, 2016). Lower court opinion stands that even though Google did not ask for authors' permission, it is not acting against copyright laws by scanning and uploading newer books, since it only provides a look at them instead of full access as it does for older titles in the public domain. Google called its service a "card catalog for the digital age," an valid application of fair use. The Authors Guild argued for creators' rights in this litigation.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you use Google Books to find answers to research questions? Do you think your free use of copyrighted and public domain titles in Google Books is fair to the writers and publishers of that information? Why or why not?
2. Do you use Google Books to decide whether you want to purchase a book? Do you think Google Books promotes the interests of authors by making portions of their books available online for free? Why or why not?

Freely Available Art Work for Educational Use Encouraged by Artist's Foundation

Another sign of the power of the digital age is that free, non-commercial use of an artist's images is being promoted by his foundation to further understanding of his work ("Rauschenberg Foundation Eases Copyright Restrictions on Art," The New York Times, February 26, 2016). The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation wants a prospective user to request high-resolution images from them, so the best depiction of the artist's work is "on display" with correct attribution. This new practice of the allowing free use of the artist's images will cost the foundation "nearly half its image-rights income which has been slightly more than $100,000 a year." But foundation executives believe that the deceased artist himself would want to foster scholarship with this new policy.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you applaud this foundation's new practice of promoting free use of Robert Rauschenberg's images for nonprofit use? Why or why not?
2. Do you think if other artists followed the Rauschenberg Foundation in making images available for free nonprofit/educational use, that they would lament the fact that they are losing income? Why or why not?
3. Do you think this action will make Rauschenberg's works more popular and in turn, encourage more for-profit use of his art?

Unethical Actions of Employees Added to a Database?

To improve the reputation of financial firms in light of recent scandals, bankers are discussing the creation of a database to keep track of ethical lapses that violate business codes ("Wall Street Mulls Naughty List for Ethically Challenged Bankers," Bloomberg Business, December 22, 2015). This list would be available only to banking-related companies that are regulated by federal agencies such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Federal Reserve System (Fed) in their quest to screen job applicants. A few issues about this new plan have yet to be decided, but this system is supposed to provide employees with the right to challenge false information in their profile.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think an unethical employee database is a good idea that other companies beyond banking should develop? Why or why not?
2. Would you be less likely to engage in unethical behavior that's not necessarily illegal, if you knew your name and misdeed may be added to a database that can be searched by prospective employers? Why or why not?
3. This plan mentions that employees could dispute errors in the database but doesn't say how erroneous information would be removed from the database. Do you think it would be commonplace for employers with a grudge against an employee to add misinformation to a worker's profile? Why or why not?