Students should be given real problems to research with guiding questions (McKenzie, September 2008). While assignments typically originate from curriculum-based topics and sub-topics, students need to work with a more focused structure than just topics provide to guide their research.  A commonly assigned topic that has been extensively researched will have many sources and documents that could be plagiarized rather than used as legitimate sources for paraphrasing or quoting.  Eliminating topical assignments will minimize the opportunities for plagiarism.  They should be taught that various citations styles can be used (MLA, APA, Turabian, Chicago), but they will be expected to use consistently the style assigned by the teacher.  For example, this site uses the APA style of citation.

Teaching students to avoid plagiarism is a process, not a one shot lecture.  One step in the process is to give them assignments which require original thinking, research, and creative solutions to REAL problems.  The more students have to come up with their own answers to challenges the more likely they are to be original in their writing...They tend to avoid cutting and pasting when they must create their own answers.  (Sharka, 2008).

If we keep assigning topics, students will drive their earth moving equipment through the information landfill, pleased by the height and depth of the piles. (McKenzie, February 2007)  

Suggested Strategies

• At all grade levels (including primary), teach students the steps of an information research process model such as the Big6.  Provide continuous practice in all steps of the process.  For further information and a comparison of various models see:  http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/models.htm
• At all grade levels, re-structure assignments so that students must create and answer an essential question along with associated supporting questions. Questions should guide students in problem solving, forming and supporting an opinion, comparing and contrasting points of view, etc., rather than re-stating information about a topic. (McKenzie, November-December 1997)
• Media coordinators and technology facilitators are valuable resources as collaborative instructional partners to help teachers plan and deliver effective research-based activities that will help students avoid plagiarism.

Suggestions from Valerie Person, English Department Chair, Currituck County (NC) High School: 

The whole point of authentic and relevant research....is an opportunity for students to join the dialogue of experts on specific topics. The student voice must be an essential component in research papers/project. Valerie Person, English Department Chair, Currituck County (NC) High School

• Continue to work on active reading strategies (anticipation guides, before-during-after [BDA] framework) and reading comprehension
• Teach students how to summarize to help them paraphrase
• Give them multiple opportunities to document both parenthetically and internally in short and long assignments
• Model the research process
• Require students to give the full citation on research papers or projects (with modifications to address age and developmental stages)
• Require a source for self checking their papers (e.g., Google, Turnitin) in order to revise their work and provide proper documentation of sources

Additional Suggestions

Provide relevant, rigorous, authentic, real-world problem-solving assignments (project-based learning/PBL)

Give students opportunities to interview and have dialogue with experts to gather information (in person and/or online)

Teach students to use graphic organizers (e.g.,Thinking Maps), electronic note-taking devices, etc. for recording information to be attributed or cited.

Teach students how to differentiate information that is "common knowledge" versus information that must be summarized or paraphrased with attribution. 

Provide students with opportunities for writing that require critical thinking and original ideas. Example: Creative Outlining—From Freewriting to Formalizing  (Lesson provided by ReadWriteThink.org, a Thinkfinity website developed by the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, and in partnership with the Verizon Foundation).

Teach students how to document and how to cite information properly using style manuals and online citation tools

Use formative assessment to monitor student progress in research activities, e.g., outlines, drafts, journals/reflection logs, etc.

Require students to provide verification of sources (e.g., links on bibliographies, hard copies of relevant pages with attribution)

Include a process for scaffolding in school-wide curriculum maps when teaching students the discrete skills of a research process at all grade levels  Example: Currituck County High School English Department(download xls)