Turnitin -Does anyone use it as a Learning Tool?

I am just about to embark on using Turnitin with some of my ITGS IB Diploma students. I do so with some trepidation; although I have also introduced the many privacy, trust and other social and ethical issues which the students will come across using such a tool. I have used this tool before in my Masters studies and found it both interesting and informative, even if the Masters tutor did not discuss or even inform me that it was going to be used with my work!

I have directed my students to sites for them to find out how it works, including the following. I have also introduced that the tool is not just a tool that I use because I do not trust them but that it will be used as a learning tool and hopefully one that by the end of the two years they will see how it works, what its limitations are.

I believe as a teacher this is something that will enable a students understanding and digital literacies of how such tools work, and in the end prepare them for what they will undoubtedly come across within their University courses. I have also directed them to discussions on the issues related to copyright and privacy including this article on Copyright Issues with turnitin or this paper about the legal opposition that was attempted.

I would be interested to know if there are many other teachers within secondary schools using Turnitin, and what their experiences and students experiences have been. Look back in a month or so, to see what my students think of the tool and whether we will continue to use it?