Expect Originality! Using Taxonomies to Structure Assignments that Support Original Work

Abstract

The online world offers opportunities to appropriate others’ work, while simultaneously offering opportunities for valuable research and creative exchange. The use of secondary research materials in academic writing can be represented as a continuum, with "plagiarism" on one end and "original work" on the other. Educators can take steps to prevent plagiarism by designing assignments that expect learners to respect others’ ideas and strive toward creating their own original work. Educational taxonomies, including the Cognitive and Affective Domains of Bloom’s Taxonomy, and the author’s Taxonomy of Collaborative E-learning, can serve as conceptual frameworks for designing assignments that 1) expect learners to present original work; 2) provide opportunities for learners to develop new ideas through meaningful online interaction; and 3) value learners’ ideas while respecting published authors’ intellectual property.