Thesis and plagiarism

From Kompas

If the younger generation is encouraged by the authorities to study science and technology for the progress of the nation, many students ignore the encouragement by playing hooky. Nonetheless, their desire to become engineers remains strong.

Students who copy are increasing in number at schools of technology. I hope students of other schools are different. Students who copy seldom go to school and are invariably lazy. During examinations they do not know what to do in the first hours, but at the end of the session their paper is fully written. How do they manage that? Their copying techniques vary in sophistication.

This happens because of the lack of supervision. Teachers are seldom willing to supervise examinations. Office staff take their place. Students are not afraid of the administrative staff. They threaten them or give them cigarettes to look the other way. Junior teachers do not dare to reprimand students. Supervisors only sit in front of the classroom, read a book or a newspaper, whereas they should sit in the middle of the room.

However difficult, it is the teachers' task to eradicate copying others' papers. The teachers are responsible for the quality of their students.

In universities plagiarism has invaded the writing of theses. Teachers' task is to make students understand what they write.

A few months ago people talked about and criticized university teachers who plagiarized students' theses to gain credits for job promotions.

Teacher at a school

of civil engineering