– There are a lot of people who stress about it and talk about it now, says Liz-Helen Nordvik Bjørndal.
The Bergen resident is working on a term paper on the professional course in psychology at the University of Bergen (UiB).
One thing she is now even more careful about than before: References.
– You use sources and curriculum literature and write based on your own understanding. But then there is a probability that you may end up writing too much of your books or another text, so that it turns into plagiarism.
Got my master’s thesis cancelled
It is the noise surrounding the academic tasks of former education minister Sandra Borch (Sp) and health and care minister Ingrid Kjerkol (Ap) that has led to an increased focus on this among students.
Borch’s master’s thesis has been cancelled, while Kjerkol is still waiting for the decision on his thesis.
– We have seen quite a lot in the news about exclusion from universities and the like. So it’s something we’re quite careful about, says Tomine Kristoffersen, also a student on the professional course in psychology.
Tomine Kristoffersen confirms that the students talk a lot about the media reports surrounding the plagiarism cases.
Photo: Sissel Rikheim / NRK
The topic is also particularly hot at Høyskolen på Vestlandet (HVL) in Bergen, just over three kilometers further south.
– It is much more relevant now than in the past. We have been drilled in noting sources. So I write down absolutely everything now, to be able to refer properly, says Mads Nikolaisen, who is taking a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
– More demanding to deal with
The leader of the Student Parliament in Bergen, Henrik Haug, confirms that citing sources is a topic of conversation among students after the media reports about Borch and Kjerkol.
– I think many students find it more demanding to deal with now. You want to do it right, so that they can pass their tasks, says Haug.
Sandra Borch resigned as Minister of Research and Education in January due to the fact that her master’s thesis from 2014 contained similarities with older assignments from other students.
Photo: Rodrigo Freitas / NTB
The debate and all the questions that arise mean that many turn to the academic staff at the study sites for advice.
Professor Anne Lise Fimreite at the Department of Politics and Administration at UiB is one of those who is currently receiving an unusually large number of students at her door.
Believes debate has a positive effect
– The students are much more aware of making proper references and referring to the sources they use, so that they do not inadvertently end up in a position where they can be caught cheating, she says.
Professor Anne Lise Fimreite believes the debate around citation and correct source reference is a positive effect of the plagiarism cases.
Photo: Sissel Rikheim / NRK
– What are they wondering about?
– Whether they do it in the right way, whether the censor will understand the source reference and whether the censor will react negatively. But also on what to refer to, e.g. a conversation, a lecture or an article.
The professor believes that the debate around correct source citation is good.
– The attention around this is positive. We academics and our students stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us, and we must be honest in relation to and refer to that. So there is a positive effect of this, says Fimreite.
