Encouraging Academic Integrity in Your Courses

In any given situation, it is up to the individual whether he or she chooses to cheat or to behave honestly. Notwithstanding that, circumstances matter, and good people under certain circumstances will choose what they perceive as the easier alternative. What can you do as a teacher to encourage your students to do honest work? There are many reasons cited by students when they are asked why they cheated, plagiarized or collaborated dishonestly. Some of the most common reasons can be instructive regarding what faculty members and teaching assistants can do to discourage dishonest behaviour and encourage academic integrity in their courses.

I don’t feel any sort of personal connection with my professor/TA.

Class sizes are increasing, which makes it harder to get to know our students. The more we can try to connect in a meaningful way with our students, the less likely they are to
cheat.

  • Tell them a little about yourself, and how you came to be a professor or graduate student.

  • Make a serious effort to learn the names of at least some of your students.

  • Let them know that you are an honest person and that you value that trait in others.

  • Explain why practising the principles of academic integrity is important in your field/profession, and what the consequences are if these principles are not followed.

  • Let them know that you are all on the same side as far as the ultimate goal – learning – is concerned, rather than establishing a “me against them” mentality.

  • Establish an environment that is conducive to their coming to see you (rather than resorting to cheating or plagiarizing) if they have a problem with getting a paper or an assignment done on time.

If my professor doesn’t take teaching this course seriously, why should I take learning the material seriously?

Students perceive that professors and teaching assistants who re-use assignments and
tests repeatedly without changing them are not putting much effort into teaching or helping the students learn the material. If students respect you, they will be less likely to cheat in your course.

  • Change assignments and exams regularly. Provide students with copies of old exams and assignments for practise or post them on the web.

  • Make assignments relevant and interesting, and design them so that it is difficult for students to plagiarize or cheat on them. For example, you can ask for outlines and drafts, annotated bibliographies, and photocopies of the first page of each of the references. You can also assign very specific topics that would not be available from a commercial paper mill. This website has more specific suggestions for how to create such assignments.

  • Take a real interest in teaching by talking about it with your colleagues and attending seminars or workshops about teaching. You will probably find that both you and your students will enjoy your course more, which should have a positive effect on your teaching (and your course evaluations!).

My professor just tells off students who cheat and makes them resubmit the assignment, so what’s there to lose? It’s definitely worth the risk to cheat.

Students get to know the professors and the teaching assistants who turn a blind eye to
cheating and plagiarism, and interpret this as implicit support for dishonest behaviour.

  • Discuss in your class or tutorial the issue of academic integrity as well as your and the University’s policies regarding academic offences and the penalties involved.

  • Include some reference to these policies in your course outline for every course.

  • Consider inviting your liaison librarian to your class to discuss proper citation and paraphrasing practices. This website has a list of the liaison librarian for each academic unit.)

  • Make absolutely explicit your expectations regarding collaboration (and outside help such as tutors) on assignments and/or papers at the beginning of each course, and repeat this information often during the term.

It’s impossible NOT to see the test paper of the person sitting beside me during exams.

  • Provide sufficient space between people taking a test. Reserve another room, if necessary, to allow for this, and ask the departmental secretary to arrange for graduate-student proctoring help.

  • Have more than one ordering of questions on tests, and do not colour-code different test versions, as this allows students to know which tests are the same as theirs.

  • Proctor tests conscientiously. Avoid merely sitting or reading passively at a desk at the front of the class or allowing your TAs to do this – circulate in the room and monitor students’ behaviour carefully.

How could I possibly have time to do a weekly assignment in each of the five courses I’m taking? My instructor seems to have no idea that I’m taking other courses!

  • Be reasonable in your expectations of students. They are (usually) taking other courses and have responsibilities beyond their school work. Students should spend 8-10 hours per week on each course, and this includes in-class time.

  • Set assignments that have reasonable, achievable deadlines and that have a clear purpose that aligns with the goals of the course. Avoid assigning ‘busy work’.

  • Be available to students and/or have teaching assistants be available for help, particularly at crucial ‘crunch’ times before assignment due dates and test dates.

I thought that the material I found on the web didn’t need to be referenced because it is in the public domain, not actually in a book.

  • Let your students know that ALL ideas and information that they incorporate into their work should be referenced, even something that someone told them about (referenced as a “personal communication” from that person).

  • Warn them that some material on the web might not be as accurate or reliable as that found in books and scholarly journals because much of it has not been subjected to peer review.

  • Teach them proper citation practice for information from all sources, including web sources. Your liaison librarian can help with this if you are unsure about it yourself.

Resources

  • CTE Teaching Tips: "Copyright in the Classroom"
  • Christensen Hughes, J. (2003). Academic integrity: A renewed Canadian focus. Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 35, 7-9.
  • McCabe, D. and Pavela, G. (2004). Ten updated principles of academic integrity. Change, May/June, 10-15.
  • Petrie, O. (2003.) Core, January 2003, Volume 12, No. 2 (York’s Newsletter on University Teaching, edited by Olivia Petrie).
  • Stevenson, S. (2003). Academic integrity: What do students want from faculty? In Touch, November, 3.
  • Van Gyn, G. (2004). General strategies to encourage academic integrity. Currents (Newsletter of the Learning & Teaching Centre, University of Victoria), Vol. II, No. 1.