Havergal College Course Calendar, 2017-18 Academic Year

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6. Academic Honesty and Integrity
Philosophy of Academic Honesty and Integrity
When students exhibit academic honesty, their learning
and achievements can be assessed fairly and accurately,
and the integrity and ethical conduct of the academic
community is maintained. Academic honesty means
presenting your own learning, knowledge, and skills while
also properly acknowledging your use of all forms of
intellectual and creative expression and contributions of
others.
What is Academic Dishonesty?
Academic dishonesty is a type of fraud (an attempt
to deceive) and can take several forms. It is a serious
offence in all educational institutions and elsewhere in
society (in copyright law, for example). It carries severe
penalties, ranging from receiving zero on an assignment
or test, to failure in a course or even to expulsion from
school. Some common forms of academic dishonesty
include, but are not limited to:
i. Cheating: Gaining an unfair advantage during
tests and exams by bringing and consulting
with unauthorized material during the testing
period or by communicating with another
student during or after the test to gain an unfair
advantage. Cheating also occurs when you copy
another student’s work and submit it as your
own.
ii. Plagiarism: Using another person’s ideas or
expressions in your submitted work without
acknowledging the source. In effect, you are
fraudulently presenting others’ ideas as your
own. Plagiarism, then, constitutes intellectual
theft. In completing academic work, it can
become very easy to plagiarize even if you
did not intend to. It is very important that you
become knowledgeable of the many forms of
plagiarism (For students in Grade 7 and above,
see “Avoiding Plagiarism” and “Documenting
Sources” in your Little, Brown Book )
iii. Self-plagiarism: Yes it is possible to plagiarize
yourself. In an academic environment, there
is the expectation that all course material that
a student creates is original work. Therefore,
it is an offense when a student submits an
assignment that was completed and graded for
another course. If a student wants to rework a
paper that was submitted for another course
she must ask her current teacher for permission
to do so.
Roles and Responsibilities in Building Understanding
and Maintaining Academic Honesty
Faculty will:
i. provide the particular requirements for the
course and assignments with specific emphasis
on using different sources of information;
ii. instruct students and provide practice in
different ways of correctly incorporating
information from various sources without
plagiarizing;
iii. ensure acknowledgement of sources of
materials for class use; and
iv. outline expectations for student conduct during
testing.
Students will:
i. understand and/or seek clarification regarding
the requirements for the course and the course
assignments;
ii. know the different forms of cheating and
plagiarism and how to avoid them;
iii. cite sources appropriately and correctly;
iv. produce course work and write tests without
plagiarizing or cheating; and
v. understand that there will be consequences
for being caught in the act of cheating or
plagiarizing.
Parents will:
i. understand the different forms of academic
dishonesty;
ii. support the process that investigates and
concludes upon allegations of academic
dishonesty; and
iii. understand there will be consequences for
students who are academically dishonest.
When a Case of Academic Dishonesty Arises
Benefit of doubt will always be accorded to a student;
however, when it has been determined beyond a
reasonable doubt that cheating or plagiarizing has
occurred, a number of consequences will follow. The
consequences will vary depending on the nature of
the incident. In general, repeat offences and offences
committed by senior students (i .e. as the expectation to
“know better” increases) are treated more severely.
Investigation and Documentation
The following illustrates typical consequences that follow
an incident of academic dishonesty:
i. The teacher will inform and consult with his/
her department head and/or an administrator to
determine the appropriate course of action.