Instructor FAQs
Sample Report
Recorded Web Seminar (plays through Webex)
How Does it Work?
- SafeAssign can be used in two ways. Instructors can set
up SafeAssignments in their Blackboard courses and let
students submit papers to these assignments, in a way very
similar to the existing Assignment Manager tool. As students
submit papers, they are checked against SafeAssign's
comprehensive databases of source material. The papers will
then be delivered to instructors through Blackboard with the
originality reports (results of the matching process)
attached to them.
- Instructors may upload papers directly with the Direct
Submit feature, without student involvement.
Matching Process
SafeAssign checks all submitted papers against the
following databases:
- Internet - comprehensive index of documents available
for public access on the Internet
- ProQuest ABI/Inform database with over 1,100 publication
titles and about 2.6 million articles from '90s to present
time, updated weekly (exclusive access)
- Institutional document archives containing all papers
submitted to SafeAssign by users in their respective
institutions
- Global Reference Database containing papers that were
volunteered by students from Blackboard client institutions
to help prevent cross-institutional plagiarism.
SafeAssign Originality Report
SafeAssign generates an Originality Report with the results
of the Matching process.
-
Sample Report (http://wiki.safeassign.com/display/SAFE/Interpret+Reports)
How does SafeAssign compare to other plagiarism
services?
SafeAssign is a powerful, flexible, and effective
plagiarism prevention algorithm which is comparable to many
other products. Its advantages include:
- Seamless integration within Blackboard (no need to go to
another site with a different username and password)
- Learning System Opt-in Global Reference Database puts
the student in control of their work
- Comprehensive and interactive Originality Reports
support faculty decision-making
Who owns the intellectual property rights for each
submitted paper?
Blackboard does not claim any ownership
rights on the content submitted to SafeAssign.
How long does it take to generate plagiarism
reports?
Reports are not generated instantaneously - it usually
takes from several seconds to few minutes to receive a
report.
What file formats does SafeAssign support?
SafeAssign supports Word (DOC). Plain text (TXT), Rich
text format (RTF), PDF, and HTML formats. We anticipate
supporting Office 2007 file format in the future.
What is the Global Reference Database?
Blackboard's Global Reference Database is a separate
database where students voluntarily donate copies of their
papers to help prevent plagiarism. It is separated from each
institution's internal database, where all papers are stored
by each corresponding institution, and students are free to
select the option to check their papers without submitting
them to the Global Reference Database. Blackboard does not
claim ownership of the content, they are only authorized to
store extra copies of student papers that were volunteered
and use them for plagiarism prevention purposes.
Can a student decide to remove a paper from the
Global Reference Database?
No, students submit their papers to the database
voluntarily and agree not to remove papers in the future.
Are students forced to submit papers to
the Global Reference Database?
No, all papers are submitted to the Global
Reference Database voluntarily, and students are free to
choose not to submit their papers to this database.
Instructors can still use the service effectively, even when
students choose not to submit their papers to the Global
Reference Database.
