Re-using assignments for a unit. (1 Viewer)

[semi]

Hi, in one of my first units (2 years ago) I created a website in ISYS100, it was a really good website which took me a few days to make and I got full marks for it. 2 Years later I'm in another technology unit (MAS) and one of the assignments is to create a website.
I compared the criteria's and it seems that the website I created for ISYS100 fits in perfectly for my new assignment (I kinda overdid it at the time) but it would surely score me high marks.

Was just wondering is it a good idea to re-use the assignment (possibly change some aspects to make them better), could I get into shit? It most likely wont use Turnitin (because it is a website, not an essay). But this could save me loads of time cause I am doing 4 units this sem and it's super tough already on the first week :/

 

[sida1049]

I remember doing a module at USYD regarding academic honesty, and while this isn't plagiarism, the module had a scenario similar to yours, and deemed it to be academically dishonest/unethical. Not sure why, probably has something to do with not applying any effort to the assessment at hand and presenting it as if you had.

That said, realistically however...

 

[LightOfTheSeven]

You might. The university considers it plagarism even if you hand in a previous assignment you have done. What you are talking about is quite risky, and I understand you are short for time, so I'm going to suggest something.

Remember what skills and ideas you used to get full marks. As you probably spent time developing said skills, now you just need to implement them. Do it again, but do it differently. Change the website URL, colours, content, themes, etc. So repeat what you did originally, but apply what you have learnt in the past two years (after all, markers want to look at how you've learnt new skills in a particular unit). That is not plagarism as the end result will be completely different. I don't know if your unit marks on a bell curve, but to remain competitive it's best to continue your learning process. Your assignment should reflect what you are currently learning, not what you learned two years ago.

Good luck, and for time management you can't go wrong with keeping a diary or schedule. It's tempting to do something easy, but long term wise it may not be worth it.

 

[D94]

It is self-plagiarism. You should reference your previous assignment.

 

[sida1049]

It is self-plagiarism. You should reference your previous assignment.

While referencing yourself is the correct thing to do, is there actually such a thing as 'self-plagiarism'? Isn't it by definition that plagiarism implies a second party, from whom you tried to pass their works as your own?

 

[LightOfTheSeven]

While referencing yourself is the correct thing to do, is there actually such a thing as 'self-plagiarism'? Isn't it by definition that plagiarism implies a second party, from whom you tried to pass their works as your own?

Not according to many lecturers and tutors at Macquarie who told me and my class not to do it.

I was quite surprised this week how many put emphasis on it. Better to be safe than sorry, imo.

 

[D94]

While referencing yourself is the correct thing to do, is there actually such a thing as 'self-plagiarism'? Isn't it by definition that plagiarism implies a second party, from whom you tried to pass their works as your own?

That is why there "self" in self-plagiarism. It is passing off your previous work as new work without acknowledging the original source of work. Remember that university is academia and even undergraduates have to follow rules of academia. Whenever you do an assignment, you are essentially publishing a piece of work that must be original. You can't just resubmit the same assignment and claim it as original when it isn't. Hence, self-plagiarism.

 

[sida1049]

That is why there "self" in self-plagiarism. It is passing off your previous work as new work without acknowledging the original source of work. Remember that university is academia and even undergraduates have to follow rules of academia. Whenever you do an assignment, you are essentially publishing a piece of work that must be original. You can't just resubmit the same assignment and claim it as original when it isn't. Hence, self-plagiarism.

Yep, that was what I was thinking. It's just that in general, plagiarism seem to be a word centred around the concept of ownership, whereas in education, it's nearly informally synonymous with academic dishonesty. Just my musing.

 

[ilikecats]

I wouldn't risk copying it. As many have said, if caught it will be considered academic dishonesty and/or plagerism, so it's not worth risking!

The good thing is, being isys100 were talking basic HTML and CSS right? It should be easy enough for you to create a webpage from scratch without directly needing to copy. Especially if you did well the first time and know where you wanted to improve!

 

[s-f]

Highly advised against as it ia considered at least to be academic dishonesty.

You may have done the work before but can't use it claiming that is is a NEW work if it has preivously been published (either publicly or just to university).

Turnitin system exists for that - it will crosscheck your new work against your old works as well.

 

[semi]

@LightOfTheSeven
Reading your reply gave me some new ideas, the website I created was advanced more than basic website so I thought it'd be hard to change it up however, I think I can implement an entire new layout and colour scheme. I'm gonna keep the same content in but I have some better ideas on changing the overall theme.

@D94
I thought about this, but self-plagiarism just seems like something that can be avoided by not mentioning my own assignment ?

 

[semi]

@ilikecats
Yes the aim was to create a basic website for ISYS100. But being the IT geek that I am, I had created an advanced website with a lot of CSS UI. A small concern of mine is that I haven't actually touched HTML/CSS since that assignment, so I'm worried if I need to go through a lot again just to get back on that level. But my plans atm are to adjust the overall theme of the website, changing colours and UI and maybe changing content if I have some time.

 

[D94]

@D94
I thought about this, but self-plagiarism just seems like something that can be avoided by not mentioning my own assignment ?

No, to avoid self-plagiarism, you must reference your previous assignment. It is self-plagiarism if you use your previous assignment but not reference it.

If you submit it to a plagiarism checker, and your previous assignment is in the database, the software will flag it. You run the risk of getting 0 or failing the course.

 

[stevecollins]

The thing around reusing previous assignments (or self-plagiarism) is that you can't claim credit for the same assignment twice. Also, I convene MAS240 so thanks for the heads up.

 

[Alisia Brin]

I don’t know whether Turnitin has a code plagiarism checker. Still, some other plagiarism checkers (e.g., Unicheck, MOSS) do have and they are applied at universities. Thus, I guess your website could be checked for plagiarism as well.
The idea to do everything the same way, but completely differently seems to be good.

 

[hifum]

Hi, in one of my first units (2 years ago) I created a website in ISYS100, it was a really good website which took me a few days to make and I got full marks for it. 2 Years later I'm in another technology unit (MAS) and one of the assignments is to create a website.
I compared the criteria's and it seems that the website I created for ISYS100 fits in perfectly for my new assignment (I kinda overdid it at the time) but it would surely score me high marks.

Was just wondering is it a good idea to re-use the assignment (possibly change some aspects to make them better), could I get into shit? It most likely wont use Turnitin (because it is a website, not an essay). But this could save me loads of time cause I am doing 4 units this sem and it's super tough already on the first week :/

dont worry its your work you didnt copy it from anywhere, i do that all the time when my subjects clash its not UnEThICal it is YOUR work

 

[stevecollins]

dont worry its your work you didnt copy it from anywhere, i do that all the time when my subjects clash its not UnEThICal it is YOUR work

Macquarie has a policy on this. You can re-use parts of assessments that you've submitted for previous units, but you have to reference them otherwise it is an academic integrity issue.

 

[hifum]

ohhhhh i just read this now i thought you were in high school oops