(Archive April 2018) Professor Expresses the Consequences of Plagiarism

By Zachary Pavlosky | Observer Contributor

Michelle Valois, a Creative Writing and English professor, shared her thoughts and experiences with plagiarism, and why she thinks students resort to plagiarizing.

When asked how she views plagiarism, Valois said, “It’s important to treat it seriously.” Valois stressed that, if caught, it shouldn’t be “just about punishment” but also “about education.” If a student is caught plagiarizing, Valois believes it is more important to teach that student why what they did is wrong rather than punishing them outright.

In the sixteen years that Valois has been teaching at MWCC, she has only had one experience with a student who plagiarized material. An entire poem had been printed from the internet and the student turned it in and claimed it as their own work. 

The poem was instantly recognized by another student. 

“The poem wasn’t even that good,” said Valois. “The internet has made plagiarism very easy, but it has also made plagiarism easier to detect.”

When asked why she thinks students go out of their way to plagiarize, Valois said, “I think it’s time…Many of these students have families, jobs and social lives outside of school.” 

She also thinks that some students “sell themselves short” and “just want the grade.”

Valois’s plagiarism policy for her Creative Writing class states, “Using the words of someone else without giving credit is plagiarism. Students who cheat or plagiarize will receive an ‘F’. According to Valois, a student who is caught plagiarizing “won’t flunk the course” but “will flunk the assignment.” A first-time offender will flunk the assignment but will be let off with “a warning.” However, they will flunk the course if they are a “repeat offender.”

Valois believes that the best way to dissuade students from plagiarizing is to offer them “unique assignments.” 

Currently, students in her Creative Writing class must write four different poems in four different styles. Students have the freedom to craft those poems however they want. Valois says that it is the best way for students to “unleash their creativity.”