IT IS one a.m. Yondolly is out drinking with his friends. Yondolly is having a good time but something is nagging him at the back of his mind. What was it again? Oh no! The 20-page report on space or whatever is due tomorrow! Just as Yondolly prepares to take off, a brilliant idea comes to mind. Why not make use of the Internet? With a quick credit-card transaction at a trusty website that "sells" reports, lo and behold, the work is done. Yondolly smiles in satisfaction as he makes the finishing touches and prints out his masterpiece. The whole process took only 15 minutes and Yondolly is now free to resume drinking.

   The story may seem a little drastic, but must be familiar to most Yonseians. In all likelihood, the students are capable of doing most of their assignments without such questionable aid. Then why is it so common? Are Yonseians too lazy? Have they no sense of decency when it comes to the matter of academic integrity? Something must be done to say the least.

Does the truth set you free?

   Although plagiarism has not aroused much controversy in Yonsei Univ. yet, most people do seem to think it a grave matter as 51% of Yonseians agreed in our survey on plagiarism back in 1999. No reliable data exists on the prevalence of the practice, but with the advent of the Internet and the easy access to various documents that is offered to the users, the situation only seems to be aggravating. Moral repulsion, it seems, is not enough of deterrence.

Serious Misconduct

   In Duke Univ., upholding academic integrity takes a top priority in the school policy. Students are aware of the fact that all sources for citations must be revealed on reports and papers. Downloading reports from online sources, needless to say, is strictly forbidden.

   Even so, a study made by the Duke Committee in 2001 found that up to half of the students had tried plagiarism. Since then, the school authorities have been taking active measures against it. The Academic Integrity Council, the oversight office, duly opened in 2001. The Academic Integrity Policy created an undergraduate honor system, and updated the Duke Community Standard. The undergraduate honor system has three "codes" of which the Honor Code refers to academic integrity only. This code is displayed in multiple venues and must be signed by the students on multiple occasions. In cases of academic dishonesty, students can be penalized according to the Fundamental Standard and Judicial Code which deals with all infractions. The Duke Community Standard epitomizes the morals of academic study in Duke. Students are required to take a pledge of compliance and to write reaffirmations in every paper that they hand in.

   The Academic Integrity Council is also keeping track of the number of plagiarisms in Duke. Academic Integrity Studies are made on a regular basis to students and faculty alike with the results posted on the website. Annual reports are also made which show that with the school stressing the importance of academic integrity, students are respecting these school policies better than before.

   The council also tries to clarify what is plagiarism and what is not, so that the students do not get confused. For instance, if a student uses someone else's report for reference without proper citation, that is plagiarism. On the other hand, if one simply jots down the sources according to the rules, it then becomes a legitimate piece of written work. The school reserves the right to take strict measures against the offenders, including expulsion, and the students are well informed of such grave consequences. To avoid such unfortunate results, Duke University Library posts proper ways to cite sources on the school website for everyone to see.
  
   As academic integrity is a matter where both the students and school authorities must take serious consideration, there is also a council made up of students. The Duke University Honor Council is composed of 20 students who conduct freshman orientations, dormitory discussions, seminars and student surveys. Duke takes these actions because it recognizes the fact that in the long run, academic integrity serves the students and the school's academic standards.

Derived from the Latin plagiarius ("kidnapper"), plagiarism refers to a form of intellectual theft... In short, to plagiarize is to give the impression that you wrote or thought something that you in fact borrowed from someone, and to do so is a violation of professional ethics.                    Excerpt from the Duke Univ. website

   Yonsei needs to declare a war on plagiarism. Making a coherent and clear-cut policy on plagiarism would be the first measure. The school must set clear definition of plagiarism and set guidelines for the students on how to make proper reference notes. Currently, students are taught about this only for an hour in their freshman writing classes. The school needs to post related information on school websites as Duke does, so that the students are constantly reminded of the regulations.

   The attitude of students and school authorities regarding academic plagiarism also needs to change. A school council with a specific mandate to cover matters relating to academic integrity must be established. If that is not possible, at least a qualified person in the office of Academic Advisors ought to take charge. Freshmen must be informed of the importance of academic integrity at the orientation. Penalties must be set specifically as a clear deterrence for would-be plagiarists. It is imperative to break the culture of impunity surrounding plagiarism. Students must respect academic policies and the school must take all necessary measures to uphold them.

Academic integrity rules

   Plagiarism is indeed a serious breach of academic integrity. Unfortunately it is one that is prevalent on our campus. Plagiarism must be recognized as an act of intellectual theft and dealt with as such.

   Once the policies and respect for academic integrity are in place, one may cautiously expect improvement in the academic standards of Yonsei. The students will have to invest more time on their studies and the effort to create original work will no doubt help themselves in the long run. The professors who spend more time marking the students' work may actually get some useful feedback. After all, the professors can always be the pupil in the field of academics. Everyone will be the winner in the end. This is why the fight against plagiarism must be carried on.