Imagine with me. You are supposed to write a paper for the most boring topic known to humankind. Every time you think of something to write, it comes out wrong and sounds terrible. You try your best to take your time and think hard but then you also remember that your deadline is coming up soon, and time is of the essence. What do you do?
You have two options. One is to ask your teacher for a second opinion or maybe some tips. The next one is to go on the internet and copy off an article that seems perfect for this topic. Before we make our choice, lets weigh both scenarios.
Going to the internet takes only a few seconds and can be very promising. Every answer for every problem is at your fingertips, and who will even notice if you copy and paste, right?
Our teachers are very smart people who know us well. They can tell our style and technique of writing from a mile away, and they can easily trace our forbidden findings back to the proper source. Even if you are never caught, you are still robbing yourself of the opportunity to learn properly. If all we did was cheat to get answers, we would never learn anything, and life would be a mess.
Finally, we must realize that our powerful brains are more capable than we think. Cheating is like telling yourself that you are not smart. Spend the extra time and get it done. Reach out to your teacher. Maybe a little classical music or some chamomile tea will help. Anything but plagiarism. I promise, submitting your own work is worth it.
by Avianna C. (Grade 9)