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Show position that everybody is under suspicion until proven innocent. Glen Feighery, assistant professor in the department of communication, has not used any plagiarism detection Web sites either and instead suggested creating assignments that reflect students' individuality. He said he believes that tailoring papers to a student's unique life experiences and opinions greatly minimizes the temptation to plagiarize. Michelson echoed Feighery's sentiments, explaining that she tries to give unusual assignments using lesser-known texts. She described an assignment idea that she had in which she would ask students to compare two different texts, but when she did a search online she discovered that her topic was widely discussed on the Web. To avoid giving her students the opportunity to plagiarize, she simply changed the assignment to a comparison of less popular texts that she had discussed in class. Other ideas for curbing cheating include having multiple versions of the same exam so that students are not able to share their answers. Instructors can also ask students to turn in multiple drafts of papers before the final is due so they will avoid waiting until the last minute, which could help students avoid feeling pressure to plagiarize. Regardless of the methods that instructors use to detect and prevent cheating, all of the instructors interviewed for this article agreed that any issues of cheating or plagiarism must be addressed immediately. Deneris said that she typically gives the student a failing grade on the assignment, as well as a stern lecture on why academic integrity is important. She said that in most cases students would confess once issues of cheating or plagiarism are addressed. Some instances of cheating, however, may require more serious consequences. Michelson explained that in one of her classes, a student copied a classmate's paper in a last minute rush to complete the assignment. Since it was obvious that he knew his actions constituted plagiarism, she gave him a failing grade for the entire course and gave his classmate a failing grade on the assignment. Although technology may be changing the way students view intellectual property, it doesn't necessarily make cheating an inevitable part of academics. As Feighery explained, "Technology can change and it always will. If you try to be a good teacher, you can be as effective as always no matter what the technology is. It's always going to be tempting [to cheat], but if we do our jobs as teachers, we're going to create good enough assignments that students want to do. Technology is maybe giving us more challenges, but I think we can overcome them." PHOTOGRAPH BY TERESA GETTEN 16 lessons | fall 2007 |