Understanding Academic Misconduct within Higher Education in Canada: Implications for Laurier

1. Understanding Academic Misconduct within Higher Education in Canada: Implications for Laurier Julia Christensen Hughes University of Guelph August 29, 2007

2. Why Is Academic Integrity Important?

3. Core Purpose of Academe “To provide an environment, a place, where individuals may come to search for new meanings and new concepts of ‘Truth’.” (Besvinick, 1983, p. 567)

4. Our Mission Statements: • Pursuit of truth, education of students, conferring of degrees

5. Societal Expectations “Universities are perceived as epitomizing intellectual and social honesty, and they are expected to strive continually for that form of perfection” (Besvinick, 1983, p. 569).

6. Development of Moral Citizens “Wise societies since the time of Plato…have educated for character as well as intellect, decency as well as literacy, virtue as well as knowledge.”(p. 6) • Theodore Roosevelt “To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.” (p. 3)

7. Canadian Higher Education • Universities should be judged in part on their “service to democratic society as critic, conscience and public intellectual and by their preparation of students for citizenship.” (George Fallis, as cited by Fraser, Globe & Mail, 2005, p. F9)

8. The Integrity Imperative • Approach/process – academic integrity • Focus/product – citizenship behaviours

9. The Reality • Academic misconduct is commonplace • University curricula value neutral “The mystery is not why cheating is wrong or why students cheat, but why there is so little passion about this massive assault on the highest values of the academy.” (Alschuler & Blimling, 1995, p. 124)

10. Format • Some definitions • Academic misconduct & integrity • Why is academic integrity difficult to achieve? • Research • Rates of engagement • Institutional/contextual factors • 5 levers for change • Examples & possible steps for supporting integrity at Laurier

11. Some Definitions • What is (academic) misconduct? • What is (academic) integrity?

12. What is (Academic) Misconduct? • Intentional wrongdoing; specifically: deliberate violation of a law or standard of practice especially by a government official • Synonym: misbehaviour (Merriam Webster, on-line) • “Anything that gives a student an unearned advantage over another.” University Affairs, Mullens (2000, p. 23)

13. What is (Academic) Integrity? • Firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values: incorruptibility • Synonym: honesty (Merriam Webster, on-line) • “A commitment, even in the face of adversity, to five fundamental values: honesty, trust, fairness, respect, and responsibility” (CAI, Duke University)

14. Key Observations About Academic Integrity • Not just about “catching” students • Creating a culture/environment in which all members of the community are committed to – and held accountable for - upholding shared values

15. Why Academic Integrity is Difficult • Values difficult to define and uphold • Values may not be shared (age, culture) • Values are reinforced by the broader community

16. Community Values • Corporate scandals • Olympic/sports scandals • Church scandals • Political scandals • Celebrity scandals • Ends justify the means • Cheating to win – game playing philosophy

17. Olympic Athletes • Weinberg and Gould (2003) "Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology"

18. Who are our Students? • Bob Sharpe “Changes in Student Learning Behaviours” (COU No. 781) • Diverse • Excessive workloads • Learning disabilities (1/10) • International students • Sense of entitlement • Parental involvement • Technology savvy/connected

19. The Research on AI • Majority of students have cheated • Bowers (1964) • 39% serious test cheating • 65% serious cheating on written work

20. McCabe and Trevino (1996) • All individual serious test cheating behaviours had increased significantly • copying (26 to 52%) • helping another student to cheat (23 to 37%) • using crib notes (16 to 27%) • Unpermitted student collaboration (11 to 49%)

21. Experimental Design • Hetherington and Feldman (1964) • 78 psychology students • Multiple opportunities to cheat • 59% cheated • 87% cheated multiple times

22. Canadian Research • 11 Universities 2002 – 2003 • 14,913 undergraduate students • 1,269 1st year – high school • 1,318 graduate students • 683 TAs, and 1,902 faculty

23. Limitations of the Survey • Self-reported • Census versus random • Wide range of response rates/populations • Student concern with confidentiality • Not prescriptive or conclusive

24. Specific Behaviours • Work with others • Get Q&A • Copy a few sentences • Fabricate/falsify lab data • Copying during exam • Fabricate/falsify a bibliography • Fabricate/falsify research data • Turn in work by someone else • Buy paper off Internet

25. Specific Behaviours(high school, undergrad, grads) • Work with others (76%, 45%, 29%) • Get Q&A (73%, 38%, 16%) • Copy a few sentences (62%, 37%, 24%) • Fabricate/falsify lab data (50%, 25%, 6%) • Copying during exam (33%, 6%, 3%) • Fabricate/falsify a bibliography (30%, 17%, 9%) • Fabricate/falsify research data (29%, 9%, 3%) • Turn in work by someone else (22%, 9%, 4%) • Buy paper off internet (1%, 1%, 0%)

26. Institutional/Contextual Factors • Risk perception • Policies and practices • Quality of teaching and assessment

27. Risk Perception • Little chance of being caught • Students not likely to report one another • Canadian study (high school): • 12% embarrassed to tell friends • 14% likely or very likely to be caught • 43% likely or very likely significant penalties

28. Invigilation Practice As much as it pains me to say, if you eliminate hats during exams, that would be the right step.  I find that even when people are caught cheating during a test or examination, they are often just told to stop…I think this leads to the attitude some people take that cheating is not a big deal.

29. Faculty Response • Have ignored suspected case (46% F, 38% TAs) • Lack of evidence • Lack of support • Lack of time • Penalties • Most likely – reprimand or warning (59% F, 71% TAs) • Most preferred – failing grade (56% F, 59% TAs)

30. Policies and Practices • Vague, ineffective, cumbersome policies

31.  Understanding of Penalties To be honest, I really don’t know the penalties of cheating, and maybe that’s why I have no problem looking at another student’s multiple-choice answers when I get a chance.

32. Quality of Teaching and Assessment “Students are most likely to cheat when they think their assignments are pointless, and less likely to cheat when they admire and respect their teachers and are excited about what they are learning.” (Kiss, 2000, p. 6-7)

33. Interest level in course content Quality of teaching Test meaningfulness Test difficulty Justification for cheating Urge to cheat Actual copying Letting others copy Steininger, Johnson and Kirts (1964)

34. Canadian Study If the students themselves feel cheated when taking a course, they are more likely to use any weakness in the system to finish the course with minimal effort and move on. • “Students cheat when they feel cheated”

35. Assessment Practice Cheating seems most often to be required in order to physically complete the workload expected of students. I hate cheating, it feels horrible, but I wouldn’t have passed or made it this far without it.

36. As long as universities are not about learning, students will cheat…Are assignments given to teach the students the material, or are assignments given to determine what the student will get as a mark? There is only one primary purpose. ‘Cheating’ allows the student to get a better mark.

37. Students DO NOT COME TO SCHOOL TO LEARN…we come because a university education is deemed socially and economically necessary…We have been brain washed into a game, whereby we memorize vast amounts of material, regurgitate it onto paper in a crowded room, and then forget about it..

38. “If universities create ‘game playing conditions’, students will engage in ‘game playing behaviours’”

39. The Five Levers • Recommit to integrity as a core value • Provide quality education • Reform assessment practice • Review, revise and clarify policies and procedures • Provide educational/orientation activities

40. Recommit to Integrity • A few ideas… • What key things are you doing at Laurier? • What else might you do?

41. Recommit to Integrity • Clarify & reaffirm goals and values • Consider character development of students as a learning outcome

42. Provide Quality Education • A few ideas… • What key things are you doing at Laurier? • What else might you do?

43. Provide Quality Education • Develop T&L strategy • Support teaching centres/faculty development • Commit to curricular reform • Provide mandatory graduate education in T&L • Promote the SoTL • Reform P&T processes/implementation • Reconsider Deans’ and Chairs’ responsibilities

44. Reform Assessment Practice • A few ideas… • What key things are you doing at Laurier? • What else might you do?

45. Reform Assessment Practice • Assessment as a learning strategy (authentic assessment) • Educate faculty • Equal access to old exams, assignments • Mastery learning - pass/fail

46. Review, Revise and Clarify Policies & Procedures • A few ideas… • What key things are you doing at Laurier? • What else might you do?

47. Review, Revise and Clarify Policies & Procedures • Identify concerns and barriers (% working outside system) • Clarify evidence required • Revisit invigilation procedures • Ensure appropriate penalties (tracked) • Official warning • Support mechanisms

48. Provide Educational and Orientation Activities A few ideas… What key things are you doing at Laurier? What else might you do?

49. Provide Educational and Orientation Activities • Written material • On-line, acceptance letters, handbooks • Events • Clarify policies • Why important • Talk about and model integrity • Student support - time management, study skills, writing and research skills • Faculty support – course and curriculum development, assessment, AI

50. The Five Levers • Commit to integrity • Provide quality education • Reform assessment practice • Review, revise and clarify policies and procedures • Provide educational/orientation activities