8 May 2007
BRUSSELS – The universities of Ghent and Louvain will start using special software next year to screen final papers from students in all departments for plagiarism.
Students have much more opportunity to copy the work of others these days with the availability of texts on the internet.
The University of Ghent is currently testing software from Dutch company Ephorus and Louvain is running a trial project with detection software from US company Turnitin.
If the projects receive a positive evaluation, Ghent and Louvain want to introduce the system in all departments next year. All students will have to hand in their final papers digitally.
Every year some students are caught committing plagiarism. “But it is certainly not 10 percent of students, as you often read,” says Freddy Mortier, dean of the faculty of philosophy and arts at Ghent.
[Copyright Expatica News 2007]
Subject: Belgian news