When it comes to the topic of plagiarism, our tutors have mixed views
At Tutorfair Foundation, we’re always interested in how key issues within education impact our tutors and the young people we work with. We recently conducted a survey to find out what members of our 15,000-strong tutoring community - with over 150 years’ combined experience between respondents - think about “ethical dilemmas” facing educators today.
Are students really plagiarising their work that often?
According to Ofqual, plagiarism actually ranks lowest in cases of student malpractice during exam season - approximately 2.5% of cases recorded in 2025. The most common offence, perhaps unsurprisingly, was mobile phone use during exams.
It´s interesting to note that of the small proportion of students reported to have plagiarised their exam answers, 75% of those cases involved misuse of AI.
So are students as a whole really plagiarising their work that often? According to the stats, no - or, at least, they are not being caught doing so. Nevertheless, the looming threat of plagiarism; arguably now more present than ever with the emergence of readily-available AI tools, is still an issue for educators.
Mixed views from the Tutorfair community
There are mixed views amongst our community as to how often plagiarism happens. 58% of our tutors said that they had never been asked by a student (or parent/caregiver) to do something they would consider plagiarism.
However, the remaining 42% said that they had. 31% said that this had happened once or twice, and the remaining 10% reported that they had faced this problem several times.
How does plagiarism pop up in tutoring sessions?
Several of our tutors report having navigated this issue within a private tutoring context rather than their voluntary work, and it seems that it is more likely to arise with essay writing, personal statements, or longer-form written exercises.
As several of our community remarked, within Maths, it’s often more difficult to really plagiarise work.
Many reported dealing with the misuse of AI tools (using AI to heavily edit written work, for example), backing up Ofqual´s findings. Others recalled having been approached to heavily edit personal statements, rewrite sections of essays, or translate lengthy texts.
Interestingly, one tutor flagged the issue of students quoting sources without using speech marks. This was not to pass the work off as their own, but because they weren't aware that this would count as plagiarism.
How our tutors navigate the issue
Our tutors say they tackle plagiarism head-on, setting clear boundaries and giving explanations as to what is - and isn’t - ok, with many opting for a “zero tolerance” policy.
Tutors report flagging the issue or request with the student in question, to ensure that they are aware of what they are asking for. Rather than reprimanding, they then offer alternative, appropriate ways to help the student. This might include brainstorming ideas, reviewing work together for flow, or offering suggestions to help students edit or cut down work.
One tutor commented that they believe Tutorfair Foundation has “firm guidelines in terms of expectations from both tutors and students”, which in their view helps to deal with the issue of plagiarism arising too much in sessions.
What does it mean to be an ethical tutor today?
When asked what ethical tutoring means to them, key themes which came up time and time again amongst our community were honesty and transparency. Our tutors believe that this is what truly makes an ethical tutoring environment and helps avoid plagiarism, with many also commenting on the importance of giving personalised support and guidance based on the individual needs of their students.
At Tutorfair Foundation, we’re working to keep tutoring ethical, transparent and honest, and end inequality in education - one student at a time. For more information about how we’re working with disadvantaged young people and helping them navigate the challenges of today’s education landscape, visit our website to find out about our current programmes. You can also follow us on LinkedIn for updates.