As the new school year kicks into gear, students can see term papers looming on the horizon.

For some, the notion of copying a paragraph here or a paragraph there from books or magazines may drift into sight as an easy way to get papers done in a hurry.

The NIU Student Judiciary Code defines plagiarism as “representation by the student as his or her own, material which was written, in whole or in part, by others; or use by student of materials, information, concepts, etc., from books or other sources without appropriate credit.”

NIU English professor Robert Self said that when it comes to academic dishonesty plagiarism stands out as one method of breaking student/teacher trust.

“Plagiarism is the big one for us,” Self said.

Plagiarism has been a consistent problem that the administration must face, but in the modern world of hyperlinks and e-everything, the threat has increased. The Internet has made plagiarizing as easy as a few keystrokes and mouse clicks.

There are hundreds of Web sites that offer students everything from Cliff’s Notes and interpretations to term papers complete with bibliography. Most search engines will return at least a dozen different Internet term paper cheat sites.

Sites such as www.schoolsucks.com offer a database that contains thousands of papers written by students.

The problem with sites like these, Self said, is that students are really “plagiarizing trash.”

“They put anything out there, whether it’s an ‘A’ or an ‘F’,” Self said.

Other sites, such as www.papershighway.com and www.termpapers-on-file.com, offer their services for a price. Students can acquire a copy of someone’s term paper for anywhere between $5 to $15 per page and custom-written papers for $20 to $25 per page.

Such sites offer their services “for research and reference purposes only” on a range of subjects. Their archives hold papers on subjects such as polychlorinated biphenals to world poetry. They even offer papers on ethics and morality.

Students, however, are not alone in their use of the Internet. Teachers are combating the problem with help from sites like www.turnitin.org, which offers teachers software to detect plagiarized material.

In addition to cheat-busting sites, faculty have become well-trained in catching plagiarized material. Cheating has become much easier, but students need to remember that teachers can go to the same Web sites they can.

NIU Ombudsman Tim Griffin reminds students that “faculty opportunities to uncover plagiarism are rapidly increasing.”

Self said some of the key warning signs are a sudden change in writing style and last-minute changes in paper topic. If a paper fits this criteria, it is then under suspicion and may be checked for plagiarism.

Suspected papers turn out to be plagiarized about one-third of the time, Self said. Each student found guilty of violating academic integrity by the Judicial Office is dealt with differently.

“Each situation is unique and is judged by its circumstances,” Griffin said.

Typically, the student will fail the assignment and may fail the class as well.

Senior art major Nathan Feller said the punishments for plagiarism are enough to keep him from cheating.

“The last thing I want is to get kicked out,” Feller said. “School’s hard enough.”

Even with the strict penalties, students continue to cheat, and there’s a few reasons that always surface. One of the typical stereotypes of the college student, laziness, is blamed frequently. Some students simply lack the desire to write a 12-page paper on Walt Whitman.

The other big reason for plagiarism, is desperation. As the semester draws to a close, students always seem to be bogged down in papers and finals and large, time-consuming projects. With an increase in work and a lack of time, some students turn to the Internet as a quick way to catch up on their work.

Plagiarism always has been unethical and punished and has continued to plague educators, but for many it is a last resort, not a way of life. Most students are still honest enough to avoid plagiarism.

“I can find my own ideas to write,” freshman finance major Mike Sekany said.