The wise man said
To everything, there is a time;
We need knowledge of the times
We need wisdom to discern
And to match each season
With the right words and steps;
A word too soon
A hasty step
Could cost so much more
A word too late
A lagging step
Could cost even more
And a word not spoken
And a missing step
Could cost even worse
Yet a word in season
A timely step
Makes the difference clear.
A lot of us would do anything to avoid a confrontation. It is uncomfortable for all parties involved yet, there comes a time when we must take a stand and make our position clear. I was reminded of a situation that came up while I was rounding up my PhD Dissertation. It was a requirement to run the research through Turnitin prior to submission. Turnitin runs a plagiarism check on the submission and provides a report of the result in percentage which is then submitted along with the research. The acceptable match is 15% and the consequence of confirmed plagiarism is expulsion. When I ran mine, it turned up over 90%.
Yes, it was a red flag but I knew that as a matter of principle, I do not copy – it’s just not my style. I ran a couple of checks and realized that my initial draft was included in the comparison and that was why it was so high. I tried to delete the initial draft and rerun the check but it wouldn’t let me. I contacted the technical team, explaining the situation and asking for help. The technical team on seeing the result flagged it immediately to the Ethics committee and informed me that it was an ethics and not a technical problem.
I reached out to the Ethics office explaining the situation and requesting for help because at this time, despite my love for research, I was so tired of reading and writing and wanted it all done with by the end of that term. After a couple of days, I was informed that a committee would be set up to investigate my case and that they would communicate to me accordingly. It appeared nobody was reading or believing my explanation. I didn’t understand why somebody wouldn’t take the time to just crosscheck my explanation and at least confirm it true or false before taking this any further.
As I thought through the whole situation, it dawned on me that if I sat back in my usual “avoid” confrontation approach, I was going to miss my targeted graduation date at the end of the semester. I would not only have missed out on the tuition for that semester while I awaited their investigation, I would also have to pay for another semester which ran into thousands of dollars. I resolved it was time to stand up and at least make my case.
I sent a response to the Ethics office copying the school authority, technical and my supervisor. I thanked them for their concern and aim to maintain the integrity of the academia. I affirmed that I have no reservations on their decision to investigate. I also stated that I would gladly accept the consequences if it were confirmed that I was at fault. However, if after the investigation, the findings confirm that my explanation was true, I would be demanding that they cover my tuition until graduation and also financially compensate me for the inconvenience I had to bear while waiting for them to investigate and confirm the obvious.
Guess the result? I got a message the next day saying that technical had been instructed to clear out my system to enable me do a fresh Turnitin check and make my submissions. Nothing was said about panel and investigation and consequences and I was able to complete and graduate as planned. If I had avoided that confrontation, I would have been the one paying for someone taking their time to do what they have to, when and how they want to. If there was ever a time I was grateful that I stood up that was one. Wisdom is profitable for direction. As we round up this year and prepare for a new one, may we receive the wisdom to know when to walk away and when to stand and make our point, or at least try the best we can.
Blessing
Glory!