Arab Educational Information Network

This study aims to measure the attitude of teaching staff at the faculty of basic education in Kuwait on how to deal with "Plagiarism". This is done by identifying the most important ways in which teaching staff cope with plagiarism, the obstacles faced along this process, and the differences in the responses of the study sample that can be attributed to the variables (sex, teaching experience and job title). To achieve these objectives, a descriptive analytical approach was used, with a questionnaire as the study tool, sampling (130) teaching staff of the faculty of basic education. This study reached numerous conclusions, the most important being the study sample’s level of awareness on the issue of plagiarism and the various ways of dealing with it, which averaged at (4.23) for all related items. The most important of these according to the sample were the awareness of students to the importance of intellectual property and the constant reminders of the penalties of plagiarism. Further, the study showed that teaching staff face several obstacles in dealing with plagiarism, averaging out at (4.35) for all related items. The study sample found that inadequate scientific writing, referencing and quotation skills among students were some of the main obstacles, in addition to the leniency afforded to those who are caught plagiarizing, and the narrow focus of regulations, where only traditional cheating (cheating in exams) is covered. The study produced several recommendations, the most important of which were holding workshops for students during their foundation aimed at familiarizing them with the concept of plagiarism and its negative effects, in addition to amending the college’s cheating regulations to further support teaching staff in dealing with plagiarism. (Published abstract)