Identifying pasted content in Canvas quiz essay answers

[bgamrat]

Does the presence of unexpected HTML in a Canvas quiz essay question answer indicate content was pasted - meaning plagiarized?

This can be seen using a browser inspectors

• https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Tools_and_setup/What_are_browser_dev...
• https://developer.chrome.com/docs/devtools/
• https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/learning-center/how-to-inspect-elements?form=MA13I2
• https://developer.apple.com/safari/tools/

Some HTML is expected, for example using Canvas to organize or emphasize text and pasting content from an IDE used in the course.

However, in many cases, content is pasted and edited.

Indications that an answer includes pasted content:

• Font differences - size, font family, weight, color
• Background colors
• Gaps and awkward spacing - for example

   "this    is some   editedtext" 

[james_whalley]

Hello @bgamrat,

Pasting in text from another source sure can add a lot of funny html in the code. I don't think you could definitely point to it being a sign of plagiarism though unless you are able to identify elements of the code and determine that they could not possibly be from a student using a word processor, note app, etc. to formulate their answer outside of the quiz and then copy and paste it into the answer. I know that writing essay answers outside of Canvas and then pasting them in is a common practice for students who are worried about an unstable internet connection and don't want to lose progress on an answer if the quiz crashes.

I think the best thing you can do is to communicate with the student to try and understand their process and then look at how the evidence aligns with what they explain.

Regards,

James

[bgamrat]

This is from an in-class/on-campus exam and the instructions for the assignment are that students are not allowed to copy/paste.

[james_whalley]

Well, I myself have not seen the classes in that code before in Canvas, so there is a likelihood there may have been copy/pasting. I would still recommend a conversation is the best course of action. Many times, just being asked what their process was and then identifying the anomalies you found in the code will uncover the truth of the situation.

Good luck!

--James

[bgamrat · Accepted solution]

The answer is the presence of HTML in an answer means either the student knows HTML and chose to use it to enhance their answer or they copy/pasted.

Some HTML is expected - but it should result in a polished display. If the answer is difficult to read or poorly formatted, the most likely explanation is that the student copy/pasted.