GSSW Writing AssessmentAugust 2004

The National Association of Social Workers’ Code of Ethics under the heading “Social Workers’ Ethical Responsibilities as Professionals,” takes the following explicit position on plagiarism:

4.08 Acknowledging Credit

(a) Social workers should take responsibility and credit, including authorship credit, only for work they have actually performed and to which they have contributed.

(b) Social workers should honestly acknowledge the work of and the contributions made by others.

( )

According to the Center for Academic Integrity at Duke University, however, an increasing number of students at U.S. universities do not take this issue as seriously. Based on research studies conducted by Donald L. McCabe, the founding president of the center, their website reports:

  • On most campuses, over 75% of students admit to some cheating. In a 1999 survey of 2,100 students on 21 campuses across the country, about one-third of the participating students admitted to serious test cheating and half admitted to one or more instances of serious cheating on written assignments.
  • Internet plagiarism is a growing concern on all campuses as students struggle to understand what constitutes acceptable use of the Internet. In the absence of clear direction from faculty, most students have concluded that 'cut & paste' plagiarism - using a sentence or two (or more) from different sources on the Internet and weaving this information together into a paper without appropriate citation - is not a serious issue. While 10% of students admitted to engaging in such behavior in 1999, this rose to 41% in a 2001 survey with the majority of students (68%) suggesting this was not a serious issue.

Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper in which you take a stand on the seriousness of plagiarism. As part of your letter, include a definition for what you consider plagiarism to be. You may also wish to consider how this issue affects both individuals and society at large. What are the rewards of acknowledging credit and the potentially negative effects of failing to do so?

Your response should develop and fully support multiple points related to the issue of plagiarism. Please use complete sentences and paragraphs (i.e., no bulleted or numbered lists) and adhere to the conventions of standard English for grammar, spelling, and punctuation. The paper will be assessed for evidence of an ability to generate and support ideas, the organization and coherence of the ideas, and the professionalism of their presentation. You may use the back of this page to make notes and help you organize your thoughts. It will be removed before the essays are assessed, however, so please write your paper on the lined sheets that follow. (Do not write on the back.)

Last Name, First Name:

Last 4 digits of student identification number: - - -

GSSW Writing AssessmentLast 4 digits of student ID ____ - ____ - ____ - ____

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