Table of ContentsChallengeSolutionResultsThe Higher Education Commission of Pakistan is an autonomous body established in 2002 under the Government of Pakistan, whose role is to provide policy, guidelines and criteria to member universities, giving the university and its programs appropriate accreditation. HEC is also responsible for quality assurance in higher education in Pakistan, with its aim being to produce high-quality graduates in line with international standards. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Challenge As part of its services, HEC provides access to digital databases and ICT resources for teaching and research to universities in Pakistan. By providing access to these resources, HEC inadvertently created an environment in which a “cut-and-paste culture” could thrive. It was therefore essential to monitor plagiarism and, wherever possible, check for similarities between the texts of theses and published works by professors, academics and staff of member universities. In order to address the problem of plagiarism in universities and research and development organizations, HEC has formed a committee comprising eminent educationists and researchers from Pakistan to develop guidelines for higher education institutions. The prepared guidelines, in the form of the HEC Plagiarism Policy, were approved by the Commission and in September 2007, they were circulated among public and private sector universities for implementation. SolutionHEC consulted its IT department to obtain a specific tool to detect copied content in theses and research works. iThenticate, Turnitin's product for researchers, was acquired by HEC in 2007 and 10 major universities were given individual accounts to verify all research assignments. However, as the project progressed, it became clear that all member universities could benefit from such software to develop writing skills at undergraduate level. In order to combat plagiarism among its member universities at this level, HEC has adopted a two-way approach: implementation of its anti-plagiarism policy and use of Turnitin. HEC has invested in 60 Turnitin licenses, initially deploying them to public sector universities, followed shortly after by private sector universities. HEC has recognized the importance of raising awareness of the issue of academic integrity as well as detecting possible cases of plagiarism itself. They conducted a series of orientation sessions across the country on the new plagiarism policy used in conjunction with Turnitin and held video conferences with institutions when necessary. Institutional focal points were given the opportunity to further improve their policy implementation and use of Turnitin specific to their institution. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a personalized essay Results The impact of HEC's investment in Turnitin is very exciting. For starters, usage levels have increased year over year. Utilization among HEC member institutions as a whole is above average compared to other institutions in the region. A recent study shows that institutions using Turnitin for Originality reduce levels of unoriginal writing by 33% on average, with some institutions seeing an 85% reduction. Therefore, more Turnitin 30%!