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Computer software to be used to curb plagiarism

Daily News (South Africa) May 28, 2007 Monday e1 Edition Computer software to be used to curb plagiarism MAURICIO LANGA NEWS; Pg.

7 421 words RECENT allegations of plagiarism at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) have prompted the institution to start running a computer software programme that will make it almost impossible for students to plagiarise.

The move comes after accusations of plagiarism were levelled against Durban businessman, Chippy Shaik.

Last week, it was alleged that Shaik had plagiarised papers while studying for his PhD in mechanical engineering.

The doctorate was awarded to him in 2003.

Academics around the province have since spoken out about the growing concern of plagiarism at tertiary institutions.

They say one of the main concerns is that because of vast internet usage among students it has become easier for them to lift information from other pieces of published work.

Policing the vast realms of the internet for plagiarised work was in itself a challenge.

UKZN acting deputy vice-chancellor Prof Isobel Konyn, told the Daily News last week that a recommendation would be taken on how the system would be implemented.

The system, Turnitin, has been successfully used in universities such as Stellenbosch to detect any plagiarised material or work.

Tools "A task team has been evaluating two of the leading anti-plagiarism software tools, Turnitin and MyDropBox.

"Most of the evaluations have been completed and the task team will soon make a recommendation," said Konyn.

The software tools being evaluated by UKZN are aimed at boosting the university's image both locally and internationally as news of serious allegations of plagiarism were compromising the academic integrity of the university.

"A new policy on plagiarism is being drafted at UKZN to raise awareness about academic integrity," said Konyn.

She added that this was to ensure that fitting action could be taken when plagiarism was detected.

Konyn explained that the system was also designed to deal with paper submissions and they hoped it would be a deterrent to plagiarism.

Other tertiary institutions, such as the Durban University of Technology, are also reviewing their policies to curb and discourage copying.

The director of research management and development at DUT, Prof Ganssen Pillay, said the level of reported plagiarism in the institution was very low.

However, he said there was a need to foster the implementation of the detective tools if academic institutions were serious about curbing plagiarism.

"It is good to have sophisticated technology as long as it is used effectively.

So we need to understand the tools that help detect plagiarised work," said Pillay.

May 25, 2007 ENGLISH Newspaper JOURNAL-CODE: ND Copyright 2007 Independent News and Media Ltd All Rights Reserved