Prevent Plagiarism Day is observed on February 19 every year. This day is observed throughout the country to bring awareness to plagiarism issues in industries and careers like academia and media production. While the definition of plagiarism may differ depending on the institution, the act typically involves presenting someone else’s work as your own original work. Plagiarizing someone’s work is considered an ethical violation; in some countries, it is even considered a crime. However, there are some cultures where plagiarism is condoned and even seen as flattering, making Prevent Plagiarism Day essential for people working in the country.
History of Prevent Plagiarism Day
Prevent Plagiarism Day is observed on February 19 every year. It is celebrated across the country to raise awareness and draw the public’s attention to plagiarism across industries and workplaces.
Plagiarism refers to the act of taking someone else’s work and representing it as your own work. This act applies to thoughts and ideas, language and expressions, and any other presentation of original work. In academia and journalism, plagiarism is considered a serious ethical violation, and people who plagiarize work are usually shunned and penalized accordingly.
The act is not punishable under the law except in some countries, like India and Poland. However, plagiarism is also a copyright infringement and violates the moral rights of an author or creator; it is a civil issue that causes harm to the creator and can be punished under the law.
Some acts of plagiarism in academia are convicted as cases of fraud. Examples of these would be situations where people plagiarize work to pass off as their own for specific honors or awards, jobs, or positions of authority. This can result in severe consequences, including suspension and expulsion.
In the arts and media production, plagiarism remains a contentious act. Art involves reuse, copies, fan engagement, parodies, imitations, and other forms that use already created media. These forms typically transform the original piece of art in some way, except copies and forgeries, which are intended to be exact replicas. The lack of a clear line between all these forms makes it difficult to identify and penalize plagiarism in the arts. As such, the primary spaces where plagiarism can be identified and penalized appropriately are academics and journalism.
Prevent Plagiarism Day timeline
The Roman poet Martial uses the Latin word ‘plagiarius’ to complain about a poet who has stolen his verses.
The poet, Jonson, modifies the word ‘plagiarius’ to ‘plagiary’ for use in the English language to describe someone who had stolen literary work.
Plagiarism and cheating in academia are addressed by formulating standards for what qualifies as academic dishonesty and plagiarism.
Popular plagiarism detection software is developed in classrooms to detect plagiarism in academia.
Prevent Plagiarism Day FAQs
How can we prevent plagiarism?
Plagiarism can be prevented by clearly defining what it means and supporting individuals so they know what is expected of them and how they can write original work.
What is an acceptable percentage of plagiarism?
A text similarity of below 15% is considered acceptable in most academic spaces.
Is it plagiarism if you cite?
If text used in a paper or other media is appropriately credited or cited, then it is not plagiarism.
How to Observe Prevent Plagiarism Day
Share information about plagiarism
An important aspect of Prevent Plagiarism Day is to spread information about it. Many people are still unclear about why plagiarism is wrong, so spread information about the ethical breach of plagiarism.
Have a discussion with the faculty
In academia, formulating the assignments and educating students help reduce plagiarism cases. Get the faculty of your local schools and universities together to discuss how you can reduce plagiarism among students.
Discuss the advantages of not plagiarizing
Most people who plagiarize do so because their work is very daunting, and they don’t see the benefits of academic honesty. Share information about how not plagiarizing helps people become better thinkers.
5 Facts About Plagiarism That You Probably Didn’t Know
Nearly half of all the students plagiarize
According to a national survey, about 54% of students across the country admitted to plagiarism in 2010.
A lot of students use paper mills
A serious form of plagiarism involves students using paper mills or organizations to write their assignments instead of writing them themselves.
The legal side is changing
Petitions are in place to make acts of plagiarism like cheating on essays and assignments punishable by law.
Whole-paper plagiarism is the most common
Among the different types of plagiarism, where students may copy and paste some parts of their paper, the most common type is when students lift their entire article from somewhere else.
Technology is used to discover old cases
With the development of new plagiarism discovery tools like Turnitin, old cases of plagiarism are constantly being identified.
Why Prevent Plagiarism Day is Important
We want to spread information
The most common excuse for plagiarism is that people didn’t mean to do it. We want to address this by ensuring that everyone knows what plagiarism is and why it should be prevented.
We want to support academics
We think that young academics plagiarize because they don’t know what else to do. We want to help prevent plagiarism by giving people the support they need to write original papers.
We love to see more original work
We think that plagiarism prevents the development of exciting new work. We want to prevent plagiarism so more people can develop original and interesting ideas.
Prevent Plagiarism Day dates
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | February 19 | Wednesday |
| 2026 | February 19 | Thursday |
| 2027 | February 19 | Friday |
| 2028 | February 19 | Saturday |
| 2029 | February 19 | Monday |
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