Rationale
At one level, providing rationale at a Christian
college should be unnecessary. Plagiarism is theft and stealing is
wrong. But, there are other reasons why plagiarism is considered a very
serious crime in academia. Several of these reasons come from the
Calvin College, English Department "Policy on Plagiarism" document.
Used with permission.
- Plagiarism hurts the grades of fellow classmates.
If undetected,
the plagiarizer will probably receive a better grade than others in the
class. This may raise the bar for others, reducing their grades.
- Plagiarism robs a person of a valuable educational opportunity.
Learning
to write well is a valuable skill. The plagiarizer takes the easy road
and doesn't struggle with learning how to express ideas in writing.
- Plagiarism creates an atmosphere of mistrust.
Fellow
students may feel that plagiarism is necessary to compete with those
who plagiarize. Instructors may conduct classes and create assignments
based on the assumption that students will cheat.
- Plagiarism reduces educational opportunities.
The
English department policy states, "hoping to deter students from
plagiarizing, instructors might be more likely to craft exceedingly
narrow assignments, limiting students’ freedom to pursue academic
research as their interests lead them."
- Plagiarism affects the reputation of Calvin College.
Christian
organizations, because of what they profess, are judged by higher
standards. The accusation, "Calvin is no different than any other
college" hurts our mission of being ambassadors of Christ.
Avoiding Plagiarism 
