Academic Misconduct Guide for Instructors
By Dr. Kenneth B. Hunt

Plagiarism defeats the ends of education. A college degree should represent genuine learning, and its integrity must be carefully guarded. Faculty are responsible for helping students learn to understand other people’s ideas, to use resources and conscientiously acknowledge them, and to develop and clarify their own thinking.

Discussion of expectations at the beginning of each new course should include a review of what constitutes honesty scholarship, directions about preferences in regard students have a right to expect professors will be available for consultation concerning problems related to fulfilling course assignments, including problems related to attribution of sources.

Academic honesty means performing all academic work without plagiarism, cheating, lying, tampering, stealing, receiving unauthorized or illegitimate assistance from any other person, or using any source of information that is not common knowledge.

• Create an atmosphere of integrity
• Talk about academic honesty often
• Expect high standards from students
• Be very clear about your expectations for papers, exams and other assignments
• Anticipate problematic situations
• Get to know your students
• Engage in the learning process

Remember your role – you are a witness.You should never attempt to be a judge, jury, and prosecutor. Students are guaranteed the right to due process. Always permit the student to complete all academic work, including tests.

• Allow the student to complete the exam
• Try to get another witness
• Discreetly take up the cheating materials
• Make a general announcement reminding students to be quiet, to keep their eyes on their own work and to avoid the appearance of academic dishonesty

If the problem persists, separate students using the least possible disruption.

Document the nature of the offense, your observations, and other evidence. Any report of a violation of student academic honesty must be made in writing by the complainant (faculty, staff, or student.) This report may be made on the Student Academic Dishonesty Report form, which is available in the office of the Director of Academic Affairs and when completed, return to that office.

First night of class - On the syllabus, include a statement such as: "All students are responsible for maintaining the highest standards of honesty and integrity in every phase of their academic careers. The penalties for academic dishonesty are severe and ignorance in not an acceptable defense." Explain why academic integrity is important.Discuss the University’s policy and penalties.

Require and teach a specific documentation style. Consider handing out a style/format sheet. Use new, varied narrowly tailored topics. Require students to turn in outlines, drafts, research, note cards, etc. Require computer work to be saved on two disks. Discuss plagiarism in detail.

• Always monitor the room
• Make your testing expectations clear both verbally before the night of the exam and in writing on the exam itself
• Rewrite old exams, keep exams secure and refrain from posting answers during exams
• Have multiple versions of that exam printed on different colors of paper
• Give students room to spread out
• Require students to leave all materials and hats in the front of the room or under chairs
• Control the paper that is used
• Draw a line through any blank spaces or incomplete answers when grading

State in writing how students should report study group meeting results that they obtain as a group. Incorporate individual interpretation and synthesis into the final report and/or testing. Do not accept photocopied work and contributions.

This is an unfortunate result of the ease of attaining information electronically, and while I hesitate to make it easier for some, several colleagues have asked me to provide these links to make their own searches easier in proving their suspicions.

What do I do?

The integrity of the teaching, research and consulting we perform at the University of Phoenix Nevada Campus, requires that all Faculty pay careful attention to and resolve in an equitable manner allegations of misconduct by our students.

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