We have compiled the following recommendations for using Turnitin at CSU Los Angeles.
- Students must be notified in writing in the course syllabus (distributed at the first class meeting) that Turnitin.com will be used in the course. Here is some suggested wording:
"Students agree that by taking this course all required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted papers will be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such papers. You may submit your papers in such a way that no identifying information about you is included. Another option is that you may request, in writing, that your papers not be submitted to Turnitin.com. However, if you choose this option you will be required to provide documentation to substantiate that the papers are your original work and do not include any plagiarized material".
Students may be encouraged in the course syllabus to contact the University Writing Center for help with a writing assignment at any stage of the process.
Provide students with the option of submitting their papers to Turnitin.com with no identifying information on them, or to opt out of having their papers submitted. If a student chooses to opt out you may wish to have students provide other documentation to ensure they are complying with university requirements about original work.
Advise students to independently submit their papers to Turnitin.com to ensure that they are aware that the paper is being checked for plagiarism.
Exercise independent professional judgment in determining the actual existence of plagiarism in a submitted paper. The Originality Reports are only tools for detecting textual similarities between compared works, and do not determine conclusively the existence of plagiarism. Direct quotes that are correctly cited may cause Turnitin.com to return a report that indicates a "high degree of similarity" with another document.
Abide by CSU Los Angeles policies concerning the process for dealing with plagiarism and cheating:
- Division of Student Affairs Academic Honesty Policy
- CSU Los Angeles 2003-2005 Catalog, Appendix DUse the application, in accordance with the Turnitin.com software license, only for courses offered by CSU Los Angeles.