- University Policy
- Definitions
- Regulations for Dealing with Academic Dishonesty
- Departmental Procedures for Handling Academic Dishonesty
University Policy
Pittsburg State University has no student honor code. A Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities, approved by the Faculty Senate and the Student Government association in 1990, is printed each term in the back of the Schedule of Classes; the Code is also included in the PSU Student Handbook.
Article 30 of this code, "Academic Misconduct," states that "it is the policy of the Kansas Board of Regents that student academic dishonesty will not be tolerated on the campuses of the Regents universities."
Definitions
Article 30 states that
"Academic misconduct shall include, but not be limited to, giving or receiving of unauthorized aid on examinations or in the preparation of notebooks, themes, reports, or other assignments, or knowingly misrepresenting the source of any academic work."
In the English Department, plagiarism is the most frequent kind of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism is defined as attempting to pass off as one's own work the ideas or words of another. Students who copy material from another student's paper or from a published source without appropriate documentation and submit it as their own work are committing plagiarism.
Other types of activity, such as turning in papers acquired from "research" services, copying answers from another student's test paper, or using notes or books as test aids when such aids are not permitted, are also considered academically dishonest by this department. The instructor may at his/her discretion also declare other activities to be academically dishonest.
Regulations for Dealing with Academic Dishonesty
Article 30 of the student code states that
"an instructor may, with due notice to the student, treat as unsatisfactory any student work which is a product of academic misconduct. If an instructor deems other judicatory action for academic misconduct by a student to be advisable, or if a student wishes to protest a grade based upon work judged by an instructor to be a product of academic misconduct, the case shall be reported to the Dean of the School/College in which the course is offered who may refer at the departmental level where feasible, appropriate mechanisms for acting upon such reports."
If a case of academic dishonesty cannot be settled at the departmental level, the instructor or the Dean may refer it to the Academic Honesty Committee for further action, or it may be appealed to the Committee by the student.
The Academic Honesty Committee investigates cases of alleged academic dishonesty and may determine that an accusation of academic dishonesty is unfounded or it may impose one or more of the following sanctions if it finds that Academic misconduct did occur:
- The Committee may issue a statement that academic misconduct has occurred.
- It may warn the student that any further academic misconduct will result in a more severe penalty.
- And/or it may further reduce the student's grade.
If the instructor, the Dean, or the Academic Honesty Committee feel that more severe penalties are called for in a particular case, one or more of the parties may forward a recommendation to the Vice President for Student Affairs who will convene the University Discipline Committee.
The University Discipline Committee may impose one or more of the following sanctions:
- The Committee may put the student on probation and ban the student's participation in specified privileges or extracurricular activities for up to one year.
- It may suspend the student from attending classes and participating in other privileges and activities for up to two years.
- And/or it may expel the student for an indefinite period.
More than one sanction may be imposed on a student for the same act or acts of academic dishonesty. All judgments will be communicated in writing to all parties involved.
Departmental Procedures for Handling Academic Dishonesty
Instructors are strongly advised to include in their syllabi a statement regarding plagiarism and cheating. A sample statement may be found in the Course Syllabi section of this manual.
Instructors who suspect a student of plagiarism or cheating must notify the department chairperson of the case before confronting the student. The department chairperson will assist the instructor in determining whether or not sufficient evidence exists to support a charge of academic dishonesty.
Generally, the instructor should not make accusations or take disciplinary action against a student without having direct evidence to document the plagiarism or cheating.Without such evidence, the instructor's only hope is that the student will confess when confronted with the instructor's suspicions. However, if the student denies the accusation, and there is no direct evidence, then the charge may not be upheld if the student appeals the instructor's disciplinary action.
When discussing academic dishonesty with the student involved, the instructor should keep detailed and accurate notes made at the time of the interview, noting in particular any admissions, confessions, or denials made by the student.
Factors that instructors may consider in determining the degree of academic dishonesty involved in a particular case are
- the level of student
- the level of course
- the type of assignment
- the extent of the offense.
Usually, the higher the degree of academic dishonesty, the more severe the penalty.
In cases of proven academic dishonesty, the instructor has the following options for disciplinary action, depending on the degree of academic dishonesty involved:
- Imposing a grade penalty on the student, including failing the student on the assignment in question.
- Reducing the student's course grade, including failing the student for the course.
- Notifying the student's major department, if the student is not an English major.
- Referring the case to the departmental Honors and Scholarship Committee (for undergraduate English majors) or to the departmental Graduate Faculty (for English graduate students), which will determine if any further action against the student seems warranted, including revoking academic scholarships or graduate assistantships and/or dropping the student from the English major or the graduate program, as appropriate.
- Referring the case to the Academic Honesty Committee if the instructor wants the student put on probation, suspended, or expelled from the University.
Once an instructor imposes disciplinary action on a student for an act of academic dishonesty, he or she must notify the department chairperson and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and must file the evidence in the departmental office.
A student who is proven to have cheated or plagiarized in an English class will not be allowed to resubmit the assignment and receive a new grade as if no academic dishonesty had occurred.Courses failed because of academic dishonesty may be retaken only with the permission of the Dean of Arts and Sciences. If permission is granted, the course may be repeated once in accordance with the University policy governing the retaking of courses.The grade earned in the second attempt will become the official grade for the course, but the failing grade from the first attempt will remain on the student's transcript. Correspondence courses and credit-by-examination may not be used to replace courses failed because of academic dishonesty. Students who are disciplined for academic dishonesty have the right of appeal as outlined in article 30 of the Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities.
