1.5 Learning with Academic Integrity

Life can be complicated; students often find themselves spending extra time dealing with medical, work or personal matters that can cause them to fall behind in their school work. Taking shortcuts may seem like a logical/reasonable solution, but it's not! Just don't do it. Instead, seek advice on how to implement the best strategies for school-work-life balance.  

Many students experienced a high school or secondary education where collaboration was free and open. Copying from sources was allowed without exception. Helping a colleague to complete their work was encouraged. Working with a partner on an individual assignment was allowed. But at the University of Alberta, many of these learning strategies go too far and are considered a breach of the Student Academic Integrity Policy. Not knowing what is and isn't allowed is not a valid excuse. Students are responsible for understanding what constitutes academic misconduct - read the Student Academic Integrity Policy and "Don’t Do It" document. One of the best ways to get information is to talk to your course instructors and TAs. They can help you understand and follow the complex rules of academic integrity. 

Developing good work habits, such as project and time management, organizational skills, note-taking, research skills, etc., takes time and effort. However, students that are successful tend to get their work done in timely and effective ways. Students that fail to master good work habits tend to employ less acceptable strategies that lead to inappropriate academic behaviour. You may think you're saving time, but you're not. Many plagiarizers and cheaters tend to spend just as much time and effort on misconduct strategies than they would have on just doing the work properly in the first place. Not to mention the added time and stress dealing with the misconduct charge and ensuing investigative process ...

Sometimes students feel course material is not critical to their learning goals. Or they get bored / complacent. In other situations, students feel like it's not important because they already know it, will be learning it again in a later course, or it's not worth much relative to the overall course grade. Some students feel they have already covered the material sufficiently in prior courses they've taken. Or, the material is just too hard and seemingly impossible to learn. Each of these scenarios can lead to inappropriate academic behaviour. Remember the big picture and why you've chosen to attend university -- all knowledge and skill development has a place in your future career and life goals. Just because you can't see it in the spur of the moment does not justify engaging in academic misconduct.

Peer pressure isn't confined to high school / secondary school. Even as a university student you may get trapped into following the lead of your colleagues. They may ask you for help and you may feel obligated to provide it to them. Maybe because you feel sorry for them, but also maybe because you're worried you'll lose them as a friend. If you don't do what they ask, and they drop you as a friend as a result, then they weren't really your friend. Good friends don't put you in sticky situations. It also may feel like everyone around you is cutting corners or taking liberties. If they can do it, why can't you? Be careful what you see and hear -- it may not be as accurate as you believe it to be. You need to be aware of what constitutes academic misconduct and ensure you avoid it at all cost.

Sometimes assignment or examination instructions may seem vague or a bit too basic. Sometimes the rules are unclear. In other situations, the rules may be wishy-washy or full of loop holes. You may be given an online exam with no proctoring supports or limitations. Doesn't anything go in a take-home or open book exam? If the assignment isn't specified as to be completed individually, why can't you work with someone else to finish it? If they didn't ask you to put your notes or phone away during an in-person exam, do you really have to? As an adult learner, you should be fully aware of how to complete your education with academic integrity. And your instructors should be able to trust you to complete your work honestly. If there is any uncertainty with the instructions/rules, it's the student's responsibility to get the clarification needed to complete the work ethically and with integrity. Unclear / missing instructions or the absence of proctoring is never a valid reason to engage in academic misconduct.