Academic Integrity Professor Melanie Birks and Professor Stephen

Academic Integrity Professor Melanie Birks and Professor Stephen Naylor jcu. edu. au

Six key areas were identified as requiring additional attention across the sector: 1. the need for higher education providers to take a holistic approach to academic integrity 2. the value of consistent academic integrity education for both staff and students 3. the importance of innovative assessment design which goes beyond invigilated examinations 4. the requirement for text-matching software to be used consistently for both education and detection 5. the necessity of training and professional development for academic integrity decisionmakers, and 6. the role of academic integrity breach data for quality assurance and improvement. jcu. edu. au

characteristics which impact on student motivations to follow the principles of academic integrity include: • differing motivations for enrolling in higher education • genuine misunderstanding • divergent understandings about authorship practices and norms of sharing • time management • ‘efficiency gain’ (a high grade for the least effort) • pressures to achieve • personal values or attitudes • lack of interest in learning content • defiance • complex lives • students’ attitudes to teachers and class • time pressures • denial or neutralisation • developmental issues, and • temptation or opportunity, and • mental health. • lack of deterrence. Blum (2016) jcu. edu. au Park (2003)

Contract cheating Newton and Lang (2016) identified five categories of third-party commercial providers: • academic custom writing • online labour markets • pre-written essay banks • file sharing sites, and • 5. paid exam takers. Establishing a culture of integrity requires a holistic and multi-stakeholder approach which promotes integrity in every aspect of the academic enterprise (Bretag, 2013). This includes: • higher education provider mission statements and marketing • admissions processes • nuanced and carefully articulated policy (with the resources to promote the policy and the ‘teeth’ to enact it) • assessment practices, and • curriculum design. jcu. edu. au

jcu. edu. au

jcu. edu. au

https: //cheatingandassessment. edu. au/resources/ 8 th APCEI conference last year. http: //www. apfei. edu. au/conferences/ jcu. edu. au

Defining academic integrity James Cook University Graduate Attributes Statement • The graduates of James Cook University are prepared and equipped to create a brighter future for life in the tropics worldwide. • JCU graduates are committed to lifelong learning, intellectual development, and to the display of exemplary personal, professional and ethical standards. They have a sense of their place in the tropics and are charged with professional, community, and environmental responsibility. jcu. edu. au Student Academic Misconduct Requirements Policy Definitions 1. 1 ‘Academic Misconduct’ includes: • 1. 1. 1 plagiarism in non-invigilated and invigilated assessment tasks; or • 1. 1. 2 cheating, or intent to cheat, in association with invigilated assessment tasks; or • 1. 1. 3 falsification of research results; or • 1. 1. 4 any other acts or omissions not included in 1. 1. 1 - 1. 1. 3 above which in the opinion of the Chair of the Academic Board reasonably represents academic misconduct, including the falsification of an academic record

Train students (Epigium, safe assign, ) Directorate of Learning, Teaching and Student Engagement web site. Student learning skills development including: • Academic skills • Language • Numeracy • English as an Additional Language (EAL) • Introductory Academic Program for Australia Award students • Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) • Support for off-campus students • Short courses to get you prepared jcu. edu. au

Academic Success Epigeum. com jcu. edu. au

Academic misconduct in Nursing and Midwifery A case study jcu. edu. au

Do nurses really cheat? jcu. edu. au <a href='https: //jooinn. com/school-test-19. html? ref=2806'>Image credit</a>

The national study • Aimed to describe the nature and extent of academic dishonesty among nursing students in Australia • Methodology: • Demographics • Course information • Academic dishonesty • Professional misconduct • Social desirability scale jcu. edu. au

Results • 467 surveys returned – 361 viable • 90% currently enrolled in undergraduate degree • 95% domestic students • 90% indicated familiarity with university codes and guidelines about misconduct • 90% would be deterred from cheating by severe punishment • 75% would be deterred by signing a declaration jcu. edu. au

Cheating behaviours • More than a quarter copied from the internet without proper acknowledgement • One fifth worked with another student when not authorized to do so • Figures were less for planned (3. 3% or fewer) or spontaneous (6. 1% or fewer) cheating during an exam • Just over 10% reported that they used unauthorised material or fabricated data in an academic exercise • More than a quarter indicated professional misconduct on placement jcu. edu. au

Interesting to note • Younger students were more likely to cheat • Only a minority reported any undesirable activity ‘often’ or ‘very often’ • Academic misconduct (45. 4%) occurs at a rate similar to professional misconduct (49. 5%) • Correlation test indicates relationship between academic and professional misconduct jcu. edu. au

Academic misconduct in N&M • Most common types are: • use of another student’s work • unacknowledged sources from the internet • self-plagiarism • Higher incidence in less experienced students (but interesting trends with JCU Online) • Acknowledgement of offence is common • Application of penalties guided by use of modified AMBER tariff jcu. edu. au

jcu. edu. au

Actions to mitigate risks to academic integrity. Selected good practice examples (TEQSA Guidance Notes) • Provide training for all staff • Establish an office responsible for promoting academic integrity and responding to breaches • Inform all stakeholders about contract cheating • Share breach data with senior managers and decision-makers • Foster ‘personalised’ teaching and learning relationships • Recognise and support the particular needs of International LOTE students (and other ‘at risk’ students) • Encourage conversations between staff and students about contract cheating jcu. edu. au

Failed attempts jcu. edu. au

Proposal • To establish a short online module for Staff to undertake once every three years or upon induction into the university. This module would need to be updated and aligned with the Student Code of Conduct Policy. It would also be part of the Academic Expectations framework and count as professional development. • The module would cover new forms of academic misconduct, technology, authentic assessment and tailoring modes of delivery to mitigate breaches of Academic integrity, statistics of misconduct breaches and any policy or procedure revisions. jcu. edu. au • To establish an online module for all students to undertake prior to completion of their award (preferably at orientation or in their first year of study). This would be a non-award but have hurdle status. • The module would cover ethics (scenarios), new forms of academic misconduct (a compendium of what we know), technology, statistics of misconduct breaches and any policy or procedure revisions. The module would seek to gain insights from students into issues associated with understanding academic integrity and use the student voice and ideas to seeks ways to mitigate future breaches of academic integrity for JCU.