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In order to fulfill one’s human potential,
it is necessary to be honest and honorable in each of life’s endeavors.
The pursuit of academic excellence, therefore, must be conducted
with the highest levels of honor, integrity, and civility. The
community of JCC believes that all students have the right to be
educated and fairly evaluated in an environment which promotes
scholarly honesty in all aspects of academic endeavor. Why is academic integrity important? The college is an academic community whose mission
is to promote learning through the acquisition, preservation, and
transmission of knowledge. In order to achieve this goal, the college
must create and maintain an atmosphere that promotes honesty and
the free exchange of ideas, which is the essence of academic integrity.
In this setting, all members of the institution have an obligation
to uphold high intellectual and ethical standards which, in turn,
help maintain the highest standards of academic excellence. What is my responsibility as a faculty
member? To establish a positive learning environment,
faculty should include a policy statement on academic integrity
in their syllabi. Consistent use and enforcement of a policy statement
will model and promote academic integrity for students. If you
are unsure of how to formulate a policy, please consult the Constitution
of the Student Body to review the college’s statement on academic
integrity or ask your department head for advice. Some departments
may have a standard policy to be used by all of their instructors.
The full text of the Constitution of the Student Body can be found
at this link: http://www.sunyjcc.edu/college-wide/pdffiles/studentconstitution.pdf What are the most common forms of academic
dishonesty? Actions constituting violations of academic integrity
include, but are not limited to, the following: Plagiarism: the
use of another's words, ideas, data, or product without appropriate
acknowledgment, such as copying another's work, presenting someone
else's opinions and theories as one’s own, or working jointly on
a project and then submitting it as one’s own. Unintentional plagiarism
may occur when students are unaware of the proper methods to use
in crediting sources. Whether intentional or not, plagiarism is
a violation of the college’s standards of academic integrity; students
are responsible for learning and following the rules for proper
use of sources. Cheating: the
use or attempted use of unauthorized materials, information, or
study aids; or an act of deceit by which a student attempts to
misrepresent academic skills or knowledge; unauthorized copying
from or collaboration with another person. Fabrication: intentional
misrepresentation or invention of any information, such as falsifying
research, inventing or exaggerating data, or listing incorrect
or fictitious references. Collusion: assisting
another to commit an act of academic dishonesty, such as paying
or bribing someone to acquire a test or assignment, taking a test
or doing an assignment for someone else, or allowing someone to
do these things for one’s own benefit. What can I do to help my students avoid
academic dishonesty? Approaches to this issue may vary according to discipline.
Listed below are a number of websites which can assist faculty
in detecting plagiarism and creating assignments that cannot be
plagiarized. This website offers general methods
to help instructors lessen the risk of plagiarism in their classes. Procter, Margaret. “Deterring Plagiarism:
Some Strategies.” Writing at
the University of Toronto. University of Toronto. 22 Jan. 2005. 21
Mar.2005 http://www.utoronto.ca/writing/plagiarism.html This website lists a variety of topics
that discuss plagiarism. Some
of these lists include causes of plagiarism, a sampling of paper
mills (or places on the Internet that sell papers), ways of detecting
plagiarism, and prevention of plagiarism. Pyatt, Elizabeth. “Cyberplagiarism:
Detection and Prevention.” Teaching and Learning with Technology. Pennsylvania
State University. 19 Apr. 2005. 21 Apr. 2005 http://tlt.its.psu.edu/suggestions/cyberplag/ This website offers various methods
of plagiarism-proofing writing assignments for the classroom. While
there are general strategies for classroom, there are also ideas
for assignment topics and assignment designs. This
site also offers various other websites on the topic of plagiarism. Rudolph, Seri. Plagiarism Resource Site. Bates
Education. 21 Mar. 2005 http://leeds.bates.edu/cbb/?q= Although
this website does not directly address the plagiarism issue in
writing, it does offer a wide variety of information including
writing assignments from various disciplines. Writing Across
the Curriculum. The University of Pittsburgh. 21 Mar. 2005 http://www.wac.pitt.edu/ What should I do if I encounter evidence
of academic dishonesty? First, be consistent in applying the policy you’ve
outlined in your syllabus. Following stated policies helps minimize
student confusion and underscores the college’s commitment to setting
and maintaining high academic standards. After applying the policy, faculty should report the
incident to their supervisor (Assistant Dean, Director, or Coordinator)
and provide any supporting evidence. The supervisor will then send
the evidence through to the Academic Dean. When a new case comes
in, the Dean will check whether the student has engaged in multiple
cases of this behavior. This is the Academic Dean’s responsibility
- instructors do not need to determine if there are previous offenses
in other classes. The information is kept for two years after the
last date of registration for any particular student. A record
of plagiarism or cheating may be considered
when making decisions for admission to the nursing program – it
is not mandatory. The Constitution of the Student Body
describes the college’s expectations regarding academic integrity
in more detail, and outlines the procedures for flagrant violations
of this policy as well procedures for students to appeal penalties. As
previously noted, the full text of the Constitution of the Student
Body can be found at this link: http://www.sunyjcc.edu/college-wide/pdffiles/studentconstitution.pdf What information about academic integrity
is available to students? In addition to the information in the
Student Constitution, students can learn about academic integrity
and can access resources which will be helpful in avoiding violations
at this link. |
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Academic Integrity Questions and Answers for Faculty |
