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Academic Integrity Resources

Table of Contents

1. Resources for Instructors
2. Resources for Students
3. External Resources

Resources for Instructors

Preventing Plagiarism Through Course Design

We’re used to thinking about plagiarism as a problem that begins and ends with our students, whether through a lack of effort, planning, time management or familiarity. But recent research suggests that instructors also can and do play a role in facilitating it, and that they can and should take concrete steps to reduce or even eliminate it from their classrooms.

Below is a short list of preventative strategies suggested by the literature that reframes the problem as an issue of course design rather than one of student behaviour.

Preventative Strategies

1. Teach the skills/knowledge you expect your students to have/be familiar with. Allocate class time to talk about the subject; use hands-on, low-stakes activities (in-class and/or online) that give students opportunities to practice; and assign marked assignments on the issues involved. For example, teach students  not just how to use citation style, but also how to effectively paraphrase, summarize and quote a text. Each of these is a skill that requires time and practice before it can be mastered.

For assignments, Indiana University has a great online tutorial and automated quiz that you could make students responsible for completing. Alternatively, you could make students responsible for providing photocopies of sourced items, with all paraphrased and quoted passages highlighted, or have them attach a short reflective piece in which they reflect on their use of their sources.

If you are a chair or director, it might be a good idea to discuss with instructors the possibility of establishing a framework that ensures that all students in year one of the program have this exposure. That way, instructors at the second year and beyond can legitimately be assured that students have been taught these skills and knowledge.

2. Employ scaffolding. Weeks in advance of the due date and always for marks, have students submit a paper proposal, a rough draft, or an essay outline document, and/or have them participate in an in-class peer review session that you structure. Alternatively, you could use a writing portfolio or ePortfolio in which students chronicle the paper’s development over time.

Whatever you do, make students responsible for responding to all feedback provided: assign a short reflective piece after they receive your/their peers’ feedback, itemizing the changes they intend to implement. Archive all such materials for later consultation.

3. Connect your students to existing resources. There are already many resources on this subject in place around campus (see the list of student resources below for more details). Draw your students’ attention to these resources by including contact information and links in your syllabus and/or assignment descriptions, and/or by inviting Writing Services into your classroom to talk to your students.

Consider, too, getting your class involved in the Centre for Student Academic Support’s incentive program. You could, for instance, make students responsible for completing their online academic integrity workshop and CSAS would track the workshop attendance and provide a report to you at the end of the semester.

4. Add specificity to your essay topics, and avoid recycling. Design your essay topics so that they assign precise topics or intersect with subjects that are more uniquely tied to the course content you have been teaching.

Alternatively, assign a few sources that every paper on the subject should engage with; these should be few in number, seminal pieces on the subject, and widely available.

Whatever you do, avoid recycling the same topics year over year, and avoid setting topics so broad that students are likely to be able to locate papers on the subject circulating online. Revising the topics identified above, for instance, need not be a laborious task:

5. Practice what you preach. Follow standard citation practices when designing your lecture materials and any materials you circulate. When you draw on the ideas of scholars in your field in class, draw attention to those borrowings. Talk about how knowledge is constructed in your discipline and the crucial role that interaction between competing sources plays in that process.

Promoting Academic Integrity in the Classroom

Understanding the student perspective is critical in promoting integrity in the classroom. Your approach can prevent the five most commonly reported student excuses for misconduct. Some ways that you can promote a culture of academic integrity at Carleton include:

If academic misconduct does occur, try not to personalize an individual student’s cheating behaviour. Some students in your class may not understand specific citation techniques or examination practices because the rules for your discipline may be different than the ones they learned in high school or in their major discipline. A small number of students can also be the victims of another student’s deception or be caught in a situation where they fear of revealing a classmate’s academic misconduct.

“I didn’t know what academic misconduct was!”

“The prof gives assignments just to make us do work.”

“I had no idea how to do what needed to be done to complete the assignment.”

“There is too much work in this course. I had to copy to get the work done on time.”

“I won’t get caught. If I do, the prof won’t be able to do anything about it!”

Responding to Suspected Academic Misconduct

Academic misconduct allegations are serious and the student’s confidentiality is imperative. All suspected cases of student academic misconduct must be reported to the faculty dean. You may be tempted to handle the incident yourself, however, doing so only undermines the process.

Inform the student that you suspect they have engaged in academic dishonesty and that you have informed the dean’s office and instruct them to contact the University Ombuds Office. After forwarding the details of the suspected misconduct to the dean’s office, do not discuss the case with the student, colleagues or staff. However, it is reasonable to discuss the case with your teaching assistant if they are involved in marking.

Handling Misconduct During Tests and Exams 

If you observe a violation of examination regulations or one is reported to you by other proctors and, in your opinion, there is sufficient evidence to lay a complaint against the student, follow these steps:

  1. Do not accuse the student or prevent them from finishing their exam.
  2. Keep any material confiscated from the student.
  3. If a proctor observed the violation, obtain a written report of the incident from him/her. The report should include: date, time, examination, room number and building, student’s name and I.D. number, seating position, a statement of what was observed and what was done.
  4. After the student has completed the examination, advise the student that they have committed an instructional offense and that you will be reporting the case to the dean for consideration.
  5. Inform the student to contact the University Ombuds Office for assistance.
  6. Write your own report of the incident.
  7.  Forward all reports and supporting materials to the dean’s office as soon as possible.

Strategies to Help Minimize Cheating in Multiple-Choice Online Quizzes

One of the biggest concerns instructors face today is cheating during multiple-choice online quizzes. Although it’s impossible to guarantee 100 per cent protection from cheating, the information below provides a list of helpful strategies that can be implemented when using multiple-choice online quizzes in Brightspace.

Strategies

Other resources

Resources for Students

External Resources

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