craigslist anti-plagarism petition

[rm]

http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/wrg/106766344.html

In hopes of getting Craig to no longer approve ads where students attempt to hire others to do their academic work for them.

Reply to: anon-106766344@craigslist.org
Date: 2005-10-26, 12:02PM EDT


If you would like to add your signature to the petition below, to be sent to Craig Newmark, please send me your name, job title (e.g., "editor"), city, and state.


ANTI-STUDENT-PLAGIARISM PETITION

Plagiarism is a serious and growing problem at colleges and universities. A very large industry, run through the Internet, offers academic papers for sale to undergraduates and graduate students, including even PhD dissertations.

The ethical problem posed by this practice is obvious: students pass courses, receive degrees, and are hired for employment based on work that they did not do and SKILLS THEY DO NOT POSSESS. Therefore there is also an important THREAT TO PUBLIC SAFETY, as we as a society rely on the actual skills of degreed professionals. No one would want to undego surgery from a doctor who had not written his own academic papers and lacked the skills acquired through that process. Virtually every person involved in ensuring our public safety, health, and so on is expected to have skills acquired through education, including academic papers.

The consequences of plagiarism are serious for both students and society. At many universities it is grounds for automatic expulsion. In some states it is now a crime.

Currently at Craig's List dozens of ads are posted every day across the country by students asking for papers, writers offering to do papers, and Internet organizations recruiting student clients and paper writers.

We the undersigned concerned writers, editors, and other members of the community call on Craig's List to ban all ads relating to solicitation and selling of academic papers, whether by students, writers, or organizations.