Strategies to Combat Plagiarism and AI Misuse in the Online School

Since ChatGPT became available to the public in November 2022, students learned to use the website to plagiarize written assignments. Educators scrambled to determine the best solution, and through trial and error, systems formed to combat this new phenomenon. Unfortunately, online schools experienced a heightened version of this problem that researchers have not fully articulated. This capstone project navigates the question: What proactive and reactive strategies can be utilized by teachers, administrators, and caretakers to prevent plagiarism and AI misuse in the online environment where resources like ChatGPT and Brainly can readily provide responses for students without their active participation? By diving into one teacher’s unique experience navigating the changing waters of AI misuse and plagiarism, it becomes possible to see how creativity and motivation can lead someone to view things through a different perspective while embracing myriad angles on the same issue. This project contains resources that other online schools may utilize to find solutions to similar issues that Minnesota Connections Academy (MNCA) experienced. Using contemporary research from around the world and resources created specifically for MNCA, this project empowers educators to unite with their teams to teach students the importance of using and honing their voices as writers instead of taking an easier route through plagiarism.