Assessing the level of plagiarism in academic work among students in six universities in Rwanda

Anecdotal evidence suggests that higher education institutions in Rwanda face issues of plagiarism. It is critical to understand the magnitude of this to ensure appropriate interventions are implemented. A study was conducted to assess the magnitude of plagiarism among students in higher education institutions in Rwanda. Six universities in Rwanda provided their school policies on plagiarism and 183 students’ written work samples. The percentages of similarity of the work samples detected by the plagiarism detection software Turnitin, and the types of plagiarism were assessed. The average similarity percentage was 40%, and moderate to significant levels of plagiarism were found in more than 77% of the samples. Universities that provide regular writing training for students and communicate clear anti-plagiarism policies to their students were found to have lower levels of plagiarism. It is recommended that universities in Rwanda should invest in plagiarism detection software and provide training workshops to avoid plagiarism occurring.

轶事证据表明，卢旺达的高等教育机构面临着剽窃问题。理解这一问题的严重性对于确保实施适当的干预措施至关重要。一项研究旨在评估卢旺达高等教育机构学生中剽窃的严重程度。卢旺达六所大学提供了其关于剽窃的学校政策，以及183份学生的书面作品样本。通过剽窃检测软件Turnitin检测到的作品样本的相似度百分比以及剽窃的类型被评估。平均相似度百分比为40%，超过77%的样本中发现了中等至显著的剽窃水平。研究发现，为学生提供定期写作培训并向学生传达明确的反剽窃政策的大学，其剽窃水平较低。建议卢旺达的大学应投资于剽窃检测软件，并举办培训研讨会以避免剽窃的发生。