Campus academic advisor a winner of Turnitin Global Innovator Award

Matshidiso Pooe, an Academic Development Advisor and Academic Computing Specialist at North-West University, Mafikeng Campus in South Africa, has been selected as the overall winner of the Turnitin Global Innovator Award for Africa and the Middle East.

The Global Innovation Awards programme recognises educators and technology administrators from around the world who have demonstrated excellence in promoting academic integrity, student engagement and the innovative use of Turnitin and other educational technologies to support learning in their institutions.

Turnitin helps educators evaluate student work and provide great feedback to improve student learning. The cloud-based service is available at an annual subscription for schools, colleges, and universities.

Matshidiso first started using Turnitin in 2008 to address high levels of similarities in post-graduate dissertations. While she recognises that Turnitin is used for decision-making during research supervision to ensure the reputation of the university and the students is not adversely affected, she has made it her mission to decode the myth that Turnitin detects plagiarism: "What we want is the students' voice. So you can get to hear the voice of the author of that piece of writing... I also acknowledge that students become overwhelmed with the amount of information that is available."

She advises management, staff and students on integrating Turnitin into teaching and learning, and promotes its use as an educational tool through workshops. She has made her views clear on its developmental potential at conferences!