Academic Integrity

SPS Policy on Academic Integrity

QCC Policy on Academic Integrity

SPS Policy on Academic Integrity:
Academic dishonesty is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Cheating, forgery, plagiarism and collusion in dishonest acts undermine the educational mission of the City University of New York and the students' personal and intellectual growth. The School of Professional Studies students are expected to bear individual responsibility for their work, to learn the rules and definitions that underlie the practice of academic integrity, and to uphold its ideals. Ignorance of the rules is not an acceptable excuse for disobeying them. Any student who attempts to compromise or devalue the academic process will be sanctioned. Sanctions may include failing grades, suspension, and expulsion. (See www.cuny.edu under “Current Students”) Engaging in acts of academic dishonesty can end a student's school career, have an impact on the person’s professional life and jeopardize future career goals. The School of Professional Studies is committed to maintaining an atmosphere of academic integrity. All alleged cases of academic dishonesty are subject to due process.

Definitions and Examples of Academic Dishonesty
The following definitions and examples are taken from the CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity:
The following list is illustrative and is not intended to be exhaustive.
Cheating
Cheating is an act or an attempted act of deception by which students seek to misrepresent that they have mastered information on an academic exercise that they have not mastered. Examples of cheating include but are not limited to:
• Copying from another student during an examination or allowing another student to copy your work
• Unauthorized collaboration on assignments
• Taking an examination for another student
• Submitting anyone else’s work as your own
• Asking or allowing anyone to do research, take an examination or perform an assignment for you
• Changing or misrepresenting grades on assignments or exams for more credit
• Submitting substantial portions of a paper, exam or assignment to more than one course without notifying the instructor that the information was not produced uniquely for that assignment
• Use of term paper or exam services
• Giving assistance to others and aiding in academic dishonesty
• Collaborating on a test, quiz or other project with any other person(s) without authorization
• Fabricating data and information (all or part)
• Unauthorized use during an examination of any electronic devices not specifically allowed such as cell phones, palm pilots, PDA’s, computers, or other technology, to store retrieve or send information
• Unauthorized use of course textbook or other material such as a notebook or notes in any form to complete an examination or assignment
• Using or possessing specifically prepared but unauthorized materials during a test, e.g., notes, formula lists, notes written on the student's clothing, study aids, electronic or other devices or any unauthorized communication during an academic exercise, preparing answers or writing notes in an exam booklet before an examination.
• Permitting others to misrepresent to the university that they are a student other than themselves in a classroom or in a virtual classroom or when accessing the discussion boards, classroom material, exams, projects, papers, and logging onto Blackboard as a student.

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the inclusion of someone else's words, ideas or data as one's own work without acknowledging the source. When a student submits work for credit that includes the words, ideas or data of others, the source of that information must be acknowledged through complete, accurate, and specific references and, if verbatim statements are included, through quotation marks as well. By placing his/her name on work submitted for credit, the student certifies the originality of all work not otherwise identified by appropriate acknowledgments. Plagiarism covers unpublished as well as published sources, including internet-accessed materials. Examples of plagiarism include but are not limited to:
• Quoting another person's actual words, complete sentences or paragraphs, or entire piece of written work without acknowledgment of the source.
• Copying another person's actual words without the use of quotation marks and footnotes.
• Using another person's ideas, opinions, or theory even if it is completely paraphrased in one's own words, without acknowledgment of the source
• Borrowing facts, statistics or other illustrative materials that are not clearly common knowledge without acknowledgment of the source
• Copying another student's essay test answers
• Copying, or allowing another student to copy a computer file that contains another student's assignment, and submitting it, in part or in its entirety, as one's own
• Working together on an assignment, sharing the computer files and programs involved, and then submitting individual copies of the assignment as one's own work
• Failing to acknowledge collaborators on homework and laboratory assignments
• Submitting as your own any academic exercises (e.g., written work, printing, musical composition, painting, sculpture, etc.) prepared totally or in part by another

When in doubt about rules concerning plagiarism, students are urged to consult with individual faculty members.

Internet Plagiarism
Includes submitting downloaded term papers or parts of term papers, paraphrasing or copying information from the internet without citing the source, and “cutting and pasting” from various sources without proper attribution.

Obtaining an Unfair Advantage
• Stealing, reproducing, circulating or otherwise gaining prior access to examination materials.
• Depriving other students by stealing, destroying, defacing or concealing library materials.
• Retaining, using or circulating examination materials that clearly indicate that they should be returned at the end of the exam.
• Intentionally obstructing or interfering with another student's work.
• Engaging in activities that intentionally create an unfair advantage over another student's academic work.
• Making false accusations against another

Collusion
• Participating in an act of academic dishonesty
• Lending assistance or failing to report witnessed acts of academic dishonesty

Falsification of Records and Official Documents
• Forging signatures of authorization.
• Falsifying information on an official academic record.
• Falsifying information on an official document such
Falsifying information on an official document such as a grade report, letter of permission, drop/add form, ID card or other school document.

Fabrication
Fabrication is the use of invented information or the falsification of research or other findings. Examples of fabrication include but are not limited to:
• Citation of information not taken from the source indicated. This may include the incorrect documentation of secondary source materials
• Listing sources in a bibliography that are not directly used in the academic exercise
• Submission in a paper, thesis, lab report or other academic exercise of falsified, invented, or fictitious data or evidence, or deliberate and knowing concealment or distortion of the true nature, origin or function of such data or evidence.

Academic Misconduct
Academic misconduct includes any act to gain an undue academic benefit for oneself or to cause academic harm to another. Such misconduct includes dishonest acts such as tampering with grades or taking part in obtaining or distributing any part of an unadministered test. Examples of academic misconduct include but are not limited to:
• Stealing, buying or otherwise obtaining and possessing all or part of an unadministered test or academic device not authorized for such person to possess
• Unauthorized presence in a building or office or any location for the purpose of obtaining all or part of an unadministered test or academic device not authorized for such person to possess
• Selling or giving away all or part of an unadministered test, including answers to an unadministered test or academic device not authorized for such person to possess
• Bribing any other person to obtain an unadministered test, including answers to an unadministered or academic device not authorized for such person to possess
• Unauthorized presence in an office or any location for the purpose of changing a grade in a grade book, on a test, or on other work for which a grade is given
• Changing, altering or being an accessory to the changing and/or altering of a grade in a grade book, on a test, a change-of-grade form or other official academic records of the school which relate to grades
• Continuing to work on an examination or project after the allotted time has elapsed
• Promoting violations of academic integrity in any form, including but not limited to publicizing the availability of sources for obtaining papers and exercises.

Due Process and Student Rights
Any charge, accusation or allegation that is to be presented against a student, and, that, if proved, may subject a student to disciplinary action, must be submitted in writing, in complete detail to the School of Professional Studies Director of Student Services promptly by the individual, or group of individuals making the charge. Anonymous complaints are not accepted since they are not in keeping with the responsibility of members of the academic community to act with straightforwardness, honesty and integrity. Strict confidentiality is maintained. Due process begins with a finding, student notification and an investigation of the charge. The process ends with either dismissal of the charge or sanctioning. The process is overseen by the Academic Review Committee of the Online Baccalaureate program of the School of Professional Studies.
 

The full statement on Academic Integrity and student sanctions can be found at:

http://www.sps.cuny.edu/acad_policies/acad_integrity.html

Academic Policies Handbook : http://media.sps.cuny.edu/filestore/8/3/9_dea303d5822ab91/839_1753cee9c9d90e9.pdf

Academic Calendar: http://sps.cuny.edu/academic_calendar.html  

Netiquette Guide: http://media.sps.cuny.edu/filestore/8/4/9_d018dae29d76f89/849_3c7d075b32c268e.pdf

Back to top

QCC Policy on Academic Integrity

The college has an academic integrity policy and program. 

 http://www.qcc.cuny.edu/Governance/AcademicSenate/COAI/Docs/Academic_Integrity_Document.pdf

You may be severely penalized for violations of academic integrity.  Learn about it and observe the principles.  Among other things you must avoid plagiarism.

In this course, the penalty for violations of academic integrity is as follows:
1. First offense - the student receives the grade of "0" for the assignment and the possibility of more severe action at the discretion of the instructor.
2. Second offense - the student receives an "F" in the course and a Violation of Academic Integrity Report is filed with the Dean of Students.

There are Internet research papers required for this course. One of the requirements for these papers is that you locate websites and incorporate information from these websites in your paper. You must not only properly cite all information you use, but you are also expected to put the information into your own words. Each paper has a required minimum length, and direct quotes from other sources are not counted in determining the "word-count" length of your paper.

 If your paper contains material that is copied or paraphrased from any website, or from a paper previously submitted that material will be identified. If it is not properly documented, or if the quotation marks are absent, the material will be considered plagiarized.

AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism occurs when one steals or uses the ideas or writings of another and presents these writings or ideas as his or her own.

Some examples of plagiarism:
Buying a paper from a research service or term paper mill.
Turning in another student's work with or without that student's knowledge.
Turning in a paper a peer has written for you.
Copying a paper from a source (text or web) without proper acknowledgment.
Copying materials from a source, supplying proper documentation, but leaving out quotation marks.
Paraphrasing materials from a source without appropriate documentation.
Turning in a paper from a "free term paper" website. "
The above information was taken and paraphrased from:
http://ollie.dcccd.edu/library/Module4/M4-VII/plagar.htm
 

Plagiarism is the inclusion of someone else's words, ideas or data as one's own work without acknowledging the source. When a student submits work for credit that includes the words, ideas or data of others, the source of that information must be acknowledged through complete, accurate, and specific references and, if verbatim statements are included, through quotation marks as well. By placing his/her name on work submitted for credit, the student certifies the originality of all work not otherwise identified by appropriate acknowledgments. Plagiarism covers unpublished as well as published sources, including internet-accessed materials. Examples of plagiarism include but are not limited to:

• Quoting another person's actual words, complete sentences or paragraphs, or entire piece of written work without acknowledgment of the source;

 Copying another person's actual words without the use of quotation marks and footnotes.

• Using another person's ideas, opinions, or theory even if it is completely paraphrased in one's own words, without acknowledgment of the source

• Borrowing facts, statistics or other illustrative materials that are not clearly common knowledge without acknowledgment of the source

• Copying another student's essay test answers

• Copying, or allowing another student to copy a computer file that contains another student's assignment, and submitting it, in part or in its entirety, as one's own

• Working together on an assignment, sharing the computer files and programs involved, and then submitting individual copies of the assignment as one's own work

• Failing to acknowledge collaborators on homework and laboratory assignments.

 When in doubt about rules concerning plagiarism, students are urged to consult with individual faculty members, academic departments, or recognized handbooks in their field.
 

FORMS OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY VIOLATIONS[1]

 There are a number of ways that violations of academic integrity can occur. Principal among them are the four types listed below. It should be noted, however, that misconduct in any of these categories or combination of categories may be subject to disciplinary measures if it is deemed by the Office of Student Affairs, based on reports submitted by the Academic Departments, that the conduct rises to the level of disciplinary misconduct.

 Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the inclusion of someone else's words, ideas or data as one's own work without acknowledging the source. When a student submits work for credit that includes the words, ideas or data of others, the source of that information must be acknowledged through complete, accurate, and specific references and, if verbatim statements are included, through quotation marks as well. By placing his/her name on work submitted for credit, the student certifies the originality of all work not otherwise identified by appropriate acknowledgments. Plagiarism covers unpublished as well as published sources, including internet-accessed materials. Examples of plagiarism include but are not limited to:

• Quoting another person's actual words, complete sentences or paragraphs, or entire piece of written work without acknowledgment of the source;

 Copying another person's actual words without the use of quotation marks and footnotes.

• Using another person's ideas, opinions, or theory even if it is completely paraphrased in one's own words, without acknowledgment of the source

• Borrowing facts, statistics or other illustrative materials that are not clearly common knowledge without acknowledgment of the source

• Copying another student's essay test answers

• Copying, or allowing another student to copy a computer file that contains another student's assignment, and submitting it, in part or in its entirety, as one's own

• Working together on an assignment, sharing the computer files and programs involved, and then submitting individual copies of the assignment as one's own work

• Failing to acknowledge collaborators on homework and laboratory assignments.

 When in doubt about rules concerning plagiarism, students are urged to consult with individual faculty members, academic departments, or recognized handbooks in their field.

 Fabrication

Fabrication is the use of invented information or the falsification of research or other findings. Examples of fabrication include but are not limited to:

 • Citation of information not taken from the source indicated. This may include the incorrect documentation of secondary source materials

• Listing sources in a bibliography that are not directly used in the academic exercise

• Submission in a paper, thesis, lab report or other academic exercise of falsified, invented, or fictitious data or evidence, or deliberate and knowing concealment or distortion of the true nature, origin or function of such data or evidence

• Submitting as your own any academic exercises (e.g., written work, printing, musical composition, painting, sculpture, etc.) prepared totally or in part by another

 Cheating

Cheating is an act or an attempted act of deception by which students seek to misrepresent that they have mastered information on an academic exercise that they have not mastered. Examples of cheating include but are not limited to:

 • Copying from another student's test paper

• Allowing another student to copy from a test paper

• Unauthorized use of course textbook or other material such as a notebook or notes in any form to complete a test or other assignment

• Collaborating on a test, quiz or other project with any other person(s) without authorization

• Using or possessing specifically prepared but unauthorized materials during a test, e.g., notes, formula lists, notes written on the student's clothing, study aids, electronic or other devices or any unauthorized communication during an academic exercise, preparing answers or writing notes in an exam booklet before an examination.

• Using electronic instruments, such as cell phones, pagers, etc., to obtain or transmit or to share information, when prohibited

• Participating in any academic exercise such as a test using the name of another person or permitting someone else to participate in such an exercise for oneself.

 Academic misconduct

Academic misconduct includes any act to gain an undue academic benefit for oneself or to cause academic harm to another. Such misconduct includes dishonest acts such as tampering with grades or taking part in obtaining or distributing any part of an unadministered test. Examples of academic misconduct include but are not limited to:

• Stealing, buying or otherwise obtaining and possessing all or part of an unadministered test or academic device not authorized for such person to possess

• Unauthorized presence in a building or office or any location for the purpose of obtaining all or part of an unadministered test or academic device not authorized for such person to possess

• Selling or giving away all or part of an unadministered test, including answers to an unadministered test or academic device not authorized for such person to possess

• Bribing any other person to obtain an unadministered test, including answers to an unadministered or academic device not authorized for such person to possess

• Unauthorized presence in an office or any location for the purpose of changing a grade in a grade book, on a test, or on other work for which a grade is given

• Changing, altering or being an accessory to the changing and/or altering of a grade in a grade book, on a test, a change-of-grade form or other official academic records of the college which relate to grades

• Continuing to work on an examination or project after the allotted time has elapsed

• Taking an examination for another student. Asking or allowing another student to take an examination for you.

• Changing a graded exam and returning it for more credit.

• Submitting substantial portions of the same paper to two classes without consulting with instructors.

• Giving assistance or failing to report witnessed acts of academic misconduct/dishonesty.

• Depriving other students of access to library materials by stealing, destroying, defacing, or concealing them

• Retaining, using or circulating examination materials which clearly indicate that they should be returned at the end of the exam .

• Intentionally obstructing or interfering with another student's work.

• Promoting violations of academic integrity in any form, including but not limited to publicizing the availability of sources for obtaining papers and exercises

 Falsification of Records and Official Documents

 The following are some examples of falsification:

• Forging signatures of authorization.

• Falsifying information on an official academic record.

• Falsifying information on an official document such as a grade report, letter of permission, drop/add form, ID card or other college document.

 [1] Based on a University of Delaware listing and from Baruch College (CUNY) at:

http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/academic/academic_integrity.htm#falsification_records

 

Back to top

return to outline topics index