Academic Honesty is Key to Success in the Graduate School of Business

Dr. Brian SteversonJohn L. Aram Professor of Business EthicsSpring 2011

Agenda for Today

• Gonzaga’s Honesty Policy

• What is Academic Dishonesty?

• What is Cheating?

• What is Dishonest Conduct?

• What is Collusion?

• What is Plagiarism?

• Cultural differences and views on citation

• Proper citation of other’s work

• Methods of avoidance and detection

• Consequences and appeals

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Gonzaga’s Code of Academic Honesty

• The University’s Mission Statement expresses Gonzaga’s self understanding in terms of humanist, Catholic, and Jesuit traditions.

• The Statement also explains Gonzaga’s educational mission in terms of the ideals of creativity, intelligence, self knowledge, desire for the truth, mature concern for others, and a thirst for justice.

• The Statement makes these traditions and ideals concrete and practical by relating them to academic programs whose goals are to teach professional expertise and the mastery of a particular body of knowledge.

• Honesty is an essential part of these traditions, ideals, and practical goals. A university such as Gonzaga must maintain high standards of academic honesty.

• The full policy can be found on Gonzaga’s Academic Vice President’s website under Information for Students

• Students are responsible for reading, understanding, and following this policy

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What is Academic Dishonesty?

• Trying to gain an academic advantage through dishonest means, whether inside or outside the classroom

• Academic dishonesty consists of any of the following activities:

• cheating

• fabrication

• plagiarism

• facilitating academic dishonestyAdapted from Gonzaga University’s Academic Honesty Policy (2002)

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What is Cheating?

Intentionally using or attempting to use prohibited materials, information, or study aids in any academic exercise.

1. Obtaining a copy of a test to be given in a course2. Bringing notes to an exam and keeping them where you

can see them 3. Communicating to another student during an exam

about the exam 4. Copying another student’s answer on an exam5. Programming information into a portable electronic

device and bringing that device to the exam

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What is Cheating? (continued)

6. Submitting the same paper or report in two courses without prior approval from both professors

7. Offering another’s work as one’s own8. Taking an examination for another student or having someone take

an examination for oneself. 9. Sharing answers for a take home examination or assignment unless

specifically authorized by the instructor10. Tampering with an examination after it has been corrected, and then

returning it for more credit. 11. Allowing others to do research and writing of an assigned paper

(including use of the services of a commercial term paper company).

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What is Dishonest Conduct?

1. Stealing or attempting to steal an examination or answer key from the instructor

2. Changing or attempting to change academic records without proper sanction

3. Submitting substantial portions of the same work for credit in more than one course without consulting all instructors involved

4. Intentionally disrupting the educational process in any manner

5. Allowing another student to copy off of one’s own work during a test

6. Providing false information to staff or faculty

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What is Collusion?

• Any student who knowingly or intentionally helps another student perform any of the above acts of cheating, dishonest conduct, or plagiarism is subject to discipline for academic dishonesty

• It is important to note that students found in collusion with another student will likely endure the same penalties as the student that copied the work.

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Plagiarism:Defined at Gonzaga

• Plagiarism consists of intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one’s own in any academic exercise, written or oral.

• Compositions, term papers, lab reports, or computer programs acquired in part or in whole from published or internet sources, commercial sources, or from other students and submitted as one’s own work is plagiarism.

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What are the most common types of plagiarism?

• Buying a paper from a research service or term paper mill. • Turning in another student’s work without the student’s knowledge. • Turning in a paper another person has written for the student. • Copying a paper from a source text without proper acknowledgement. • Copying materials from a source text, supplying proper documentation, but leaving out quotation marks. • Paraphrasing materials from a source text without appropriate documentation. • And, now with the Internet, we need to add another type of plagiarism: • Turning in a paper from a “free term paper” website.

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Cultural Differences

• In China, it is seen as somewhat offensive to note a citation as it assumes that the reader has not read the prior work.

• In the US, it is required that you properly cite work you have gathered from others. It is considered theft of property to not do so.

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Why is it so important to cite sources?

• To tell the reader which ideas are not your own and to highlight what is your own work. • To save time for you and the reader if you want to get more information about the specific topic. The citation directs you right to the source. • Enhance the credibility of your work showing where similar research has come from. • Protect your reputation and the negative consequences of plagiarism. • Present your work in an ethical way.

Adapted from Cite it Right, Fox, Johns, Keller, 2007.

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Common Knowledge is…

Common Knowledge is… • Usually known before research or accepted as fact by most experts (Incorporating References, 12 Mar 2001, Johnson County Community College, 27 Mar 2007 http://staff.jccc.net/pmcqueen/tips/references.htm)

• Facts that can be found in numerous places and are likely to be known by most of people. • Easily and quickly verifiable • Something the audience is already familiar with • Typically included in introductory material on the subject (Incorporating References)

Examples: presidential names and dates of office, geographical size of states, notable dates in history, etc. When in doubt, cite the material!

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Quotation & Paraphrasing

• Quotation: using someone’s words. • When you quote, place the passage you are using in

quotation marks, and document the source according to a standard documentation style.

• Paraphrase: using someone’s ideas, but putting them in your own words. • This is probably the skill you use most when incorporating

sources into your writing. Although you use your own words to paraphrase, you must still acknowledge the source of the information.

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Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism

• Put in quotations everything that comes directly from the text especially when taking notes. This includes: • Another person’s idea, opinion, or theory; • Any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings – any pieces of information – that are

not common knowledge; • Quotations of another person’s actual spoken or written words; or • A paraphrase of another person’s spoken or written words.

• Paraphrase, but be sure you are not just rearranging or replacing a few words. • Instead, read over what you want to paraphrase carefully, cover up the text

with your hand, or close the text so you can’t see any of it (and so aren’t tempted to use the text as a “guide”). Write out the idea in your own words without peeking.

• Check your paraphrase against the original text to be sure you have not accidentally used the same phrases or words, and that the information is accurate.

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Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism (cont.)

• It is important to note that simply copying large blocks of work for your paper, even with proper citation, may not meet the assignment requirements. You need to pull the material together and add your own thoughts and conclusions at the very least.

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Methods for Detecting Plagiarism

• Turnitin.com• Google or Yahoo• Reference journals the faculty member reads regularly• Retaining old papers

It is easy to cheat, but it is even easier to get caught.

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Consequences of Dishonest Behavior

• Not only is a student placing him/herself at risk of a lawsuit from the author/source of the stolen material, the student is also at risk for failure in the course and/or dismissal from the program.

• All cases of academic dishonesty are reported to the Associate Dean regardless of the penalty assigned.

• The appeals process can be found on the Academic Vice President’s Office website.

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Suggested Resources for Students

• “Cite Them Right: The essential referencing guide” by Pears and Shields • “Cite It Right: The SourceAid Guide to Citation, Research, and Avoiding Plagiarism” by Fox, Johns, and Keller

When in doubt, ask! • Ask your professor• Ask a librarian at Foley Library

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General advice on completing a research paper and avoiding plagiarism

• Plan ahead and allocate enough time to getting it done. • Often it is the pressure to complete a paper that pushes a

student to cut corners. • Allow enough time to assess the sources of information.

• Begin with a clear idea of where you are going with the paper. • Begin with an outline of your own thoughts on the

subject. • As you discover sources that support or dispute your

ideas be sure to document them as to not lose track of them.

Adapted from Cite it Right, Fox, Johns, Keller , 2007

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General advice on completing a research paper and avoiding plagiarism (cont.)

• Keep the research assignment guidelines in sight. • Are you required to include a certain number or type of

citations? • Are their limitations on where you can find the

material? • Faculty formatting preferences. • Are you required to run the paper through TurnItIn

prior to completion? • Use the Library and Librarians as they are great resources. • Don’t wait until you are stuck before you inquire about

resources. Adapted from Cite it Right, Fox, Johns, Keller, 2007

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General advice on completing a research paper and avoiding plagiarism (cont.)

• Skim potential sources. • Be sure you know what is in the source before you rely

on them. • Question what you read and look for collaboration of results. • As you read from different authors and resources,

reflect on how they support or dispute your thesis. • Take accurate notes and record citation information as you work. • Don’t wait until the end of the paper to try to pull the

list of sources together. Adapted from Cite it Right, Fox, Johns, Keller, 2007

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Common Questions

• Do I have to cite sources for every fact I use? • If I completed my homework and then shared it with my friend, can I get in trouble? • Does it matter how much was copied? • If I write something somebody else already wrote, but I didn’t know they wrote it, is that still plagiarism? • If I change the words, do I still have to cite the source? • Does intention matter? • If I cite the source, can I still be accused of plagiarism?

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