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Course element "Turnitin"

Profile

Name Turnitin
Icon
Available since Release OLAT 7.2.0
Functional group Assessment
Purpose Plagiarism check
Assessable no

The Turnitin similarity assessment software has been UZH’s official program for detecting plagiarism in academic assignments. The "Turnitin" course element allows plagiarism checks to be carried out within an OLAT course. Course participants can upload documents to the course element, which are then checked for similarity. You can specify whether or not the similarity reports can be viewed by course participants.

In the course editor (course owner perspective)

Use of the Turnitin course element is restricted to UZH members.

Tab "Configuration"

Display: Here you can configure whether Turnitin is opened in a new window or embedded in the course. We recommend using the default setting “Open in new window” because the “Embedded in course” option can lead to browser-dependent errors.

Show all information transmitted on launch (Debug): If this option is set to “On,” all data sent to Turnitin will be displayed. This is particularly helpful for troubleshooting, as it allows you to see what information is being sent to Turnitin.

The actual settings for the software are configured in Turnitin as follows.

In the course run (course owner perspective)

  • Click on the Turnitin course element. The Turnitin interface will open.

  • Open the settings via the gear icon.

    • General Settings:
      • Assignment Title: This is automatically transferred according to the course module and cannot be changed.
      • Instructions: You can add instructions here. This text is visible when you click on the “View Instructions” button in the task view.
      • Start date: Time at which similarity checks begin.
      • Due date: Date from which similarity checks will no longer be carried out. Submissions remain possible.
      • Click on “Save Settings”.
    • Similarity Settings:
      • Index Submitted Works: When set to “On,” all submissions are added to the university repository.
      • Compare submissions to the following content: see Teaching Tools section “Selecting Source Types for the Similarity Report”
      • Exclude from Similarity Report: see Teaching Tools section “Exclusion Filters in the Similarity Report“
      • Exclude assignment template: Uploaded templates are not checked.
      • Generate Similarity Reports: Set the date for the similarity check.
      • Student Access: Sichtbarkeit des eigenen Ähnlichkeitsberichts für Kursteilnehmende definieren.
      • Student Resubmission:
        • On: Allows multiple transmissions. The previous submission will be overwritten.
        • Off: Allows only one submission.
      • Click "Save settings".
    • Click on “Go to inbox” to return to the overview. There you will see the documents uploaded by the course participants.

    In the course run (participant perspective)

    • Click on the Turnitin course element. The Turnitin interface will open.
    • Upload the document to be checked, either by drag & drop or via “My Computer.”
    • You can customize the file name in the transfer preview.
    • Click on “Submit”.