Student Academic Integrity Resources: What is an Academic Integrity Violation?

Cheating can be defined as the use of unauthorized devices or other aids during academic assessments and/or copying another student's work to gain an unfair advantage over others.

Examples:

• Using a prohibited device (phone/iPad) during a test/exam.
• Using answers from a student in another section of the class for an assessment.
• Submission of work that is not your own.

Honesty is a fundamental value of academic integrity and requires that all students act in an honest behaviour at the College. If you remain organized with good time management skills, you will not find yourself in a position to make this mistake. In the event you do fall behind or need help, all you need to do is ask. There are several services available to help you at the college.

Contract cheating comes in a variety of forms where there is a monetary or non-monetary exchange for work. Examples include having someone else

• provide original work (Essay Mills, ghostwriters)
• provide other academic work (labs, homework, reflective discussion posts, presentations)
• complete on-line or in-person tests, or attend mandatory classes
• provide professionally edited versions of the student’s work for submission

Copyright Infringement is the use of any work protected by Canadian or International Copyright Law without the explicit permission or right to use the work.

Examples:

• Photocopying or scanning of significant portions of written materials (such as textbooks).
• Creation of digital copies of protected materials, including movies, music, and books.
• Selling of illegal copies of protected materials to staff or students.
• Uploading course materials from the College to on-line "study sites" such as CourseHero.

Always make sure you are purchasing/using legitimate copies of materials. While students do have limited rights to copy excerpts of materials for their own personal study, it is important to know there are limits and penalties for going beyond those limits. If in doubt, library staff are well versed in copyright law and can assist you in navigating through what materials and portions of materials can be copied.

Forgery is defined as an act of producing a copy of a document or signature for which you are not legally entitled to create/sign, and in some cases could be considered a criminal offense.

Examples:

• Creating and/or submitting false documents such as employer co-op/placement/applied project feedback.
• Creating and/or submitting medical notes, reports, and/or signing another person’s name.

Ensure you keep track of all documentation required for your program and the applicable deadlines. Proper time management and organization are sure ways to keep ahead of deadlines and prevent you from making a mistake like this that could come with significant consequences.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, plagiarism is "the action or practice of taking someone else's work, idea, etc., and passing it off as one's own". 

Examples:

• Using someone's work or ideas and passing them off as your own.
• Using someone's work or ideas from the internet, textbooks, or library resources without citing them properly.
• Using someone's images as part of a presentation or assignment without citing.
• Handing in a group assignment, where one member has not provided proper citations.
• Resubmitting your own work that has already been submitted for grading in another course or program.

Whether or not the action is done intentionally or unintentionally there are severe consequences that may occur. Always give credit where credit is due!

Sabotage can be defined as any act that intentionally hinders the academic success of another student or group of students. 

Examples:

• preventing another student from completing their assignment
• destroying someone's work
• removing or destroying materials needed by others
• deleting someone's computer files

Violations made with intent, such as sabotage, may come with higher-level sanctions that will affect your own academic succession and/or progression at the College.

Unauthorized Collaboration can be defined as working with one or more individuals to complete required coursework without the permission of your faculty.

Examples:

• Splitting up assignment questions among a group and sharing the answers to decrease your workload.
• Talking with a classmate during a test or exam.
• Completing an independent assignment with the help of classmates or friends.

Collaboration Online

With the increase of social media platforms and venues, it is important to recognize what is considered appropriate academic behaviour in an online environment. Before posting, commenting, or sharing information about your academic work, be sure you understand the potential risks involved in doing so. 

• Has your faculty member told you it is okay to collaborate on the assignment with classmates?
• If you post parts of your assignment details online, are you infringing on the copyrights of the College or the course faculty?
• If you post specific examples/questions will this leave a footprint online that would give future students an unfair advantage?
• If you answer someone's questions about an assignment will you be aiding academic dishonesty by helping them complete their work?

These are all tough questions, and you may not always have the answers. First and foremost ensure you understand the assignment and ask your faculty member if it is okay to seek help from others, or for you to give help to others in your class.