Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

Academic Integrity prohibits:

• Falsely representing somebody else's work as your own
• Copying the ideas or work of another student
• Copying from published work without proper acknowledgement (see plagiarism)
• Using co-authoring assistance in individual work, for example commissioning essay writing services (syndication)
• Using technical assistance in an assignment where disallowed e.g. using translation software in a translation assignment
• Signing attendance on behalf of a classmate
• Using false information to gain extensions or i-grades
• Cheating in exams
• Misrepresenting achievements on application forms

The International Centre for Academic integrity have identified six fundamental values of Academic Integrity:

Responsibility

Responsibility means holding yourself accountable for your own actions and discouraging misconduct by others. It also means learning to recognise and resist the urge to engage in unscrupulous behaviour.

Honesty

Honesty is an indispensable foundation of teaching, learning, research, and service. It is essential that you remain truthful about which ideas are your own, which are derived from others research and the methods you use to find, use and present information.

Trust

Trust enables you to research effectively and to gain confidence in your own work. It will enable you to collaborate, to share information, and to circulate your ideas and words, without fear that your work will be stolen, compromised or diminished

Respect

Showing respect for yourself and others means facing challenges with integrity, and taking opportunities to gain new knowledge by taking an active role in your education. This means contributing to discussions and listening to others' views, along with performing to the best of your ability.

Fairness

Fairness is shown when work is done honestly, to authors when you acknowledge borrowed work, to administrators when they respect and uphold academic integrity policies, and to alumni when they help to maintain the reputation of MIC.

Courage

Students who exhibit courage hold themselves and their fellow learners to the highest standards of academic integrity even when doing so involves risk of negative consequences, such as a bad grade, or reprisal from their peers or others. Only by exercising courage is it possible to create communities that are responsible, respectful, trustworthy, fair, and honest and strong enough to endure regardless of the circumstances.

To ensure you are not accused of cheating in an exam it’s vital that you do not:

• Copy from another student’s exam
• Communicate in any way with anyone other than the exam supervisors (invigilators)
• Bring anything that you’re not meant to into the exam hall, such as pencil cases, notes, etc.
• Copy from notes or books while in the exam
• Take any exam booklets from an exam room - even if you haven’t written on them
• Take mobile phones into an exam - even if they are switched off
• Break any of the exam procedures set out by the college

MIC takes cheating very seriously and it is considered a type of ‘academic fraud’ and an attempt to trick the examiners into giving you higher marks that you may not have achieved otherwise.

The best way to avoid syndication is to ensure that the work which you submit has been prepared by you alone.

Consider not sharing your own work with another student as they could either intentionally or unintentionally end up reproducing your work and you could be held accountable.

If an issue like this arises, contact the relevant lecturer or Head of Department immediately in order to protect your own interests.

It can seem innocent to work together with your friends/partner/class mates on an assignment, but unless it is a specific set group project or assignment, the best approach is to not work together. 

Plagiarism can include:

• Copying some or all of a text without quotation marks or citation.
• The use of part of a text with minor paraphrasing without citation.
• Use of an image without citation or permission.
• Use of music without citation or permission.
• Use of computer code, mathematical work, research results or spreadsheets without citation or permission.
• The re-use of your own work from a previous assignment without citation.

Types of Plagiarism

• Rewriting directly from books or sources
• Copying and pasting from online sources and webpages
• Buying, downloading or borrowing a paper
• Incorrect paraphrasing
• Incorrect use of citation and referencing
• Recycling an old paper - self plagiarism

When to Cite Sources

The following are examples of when you must cite your sources:

• Using statistics
• If the information is unique and not known by most people
• If you are using a direct quotation
• If you are using someone else’s ideas
• If you are paraphrasing someone else’s words

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing means instead of directly quoting from an author, you are putting his/her thoughts into your own words. You must still cite the original author when you are paraphrasing!

(This means the sentences should be entirely in your own words. Be sure you are not just replacing or rearranging words!)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a type of programmed or algorithm-based software system that attempts to mimic elements of human intelligence. AI often uses Machine Learning, where a computer is programmed with the intent and capability to recognise, learn and apply new information to a given situation.

Generative Artificial Intelligence (Generative AI) is a type of Strong AI, which uses machine learning algorithms to create new and original content like images, videos, text, and audio. Examples of Generative AI include ChatGPT, DALL-E, and DeepMind.

It is important for students to consider the benefits, limitations and ethical issues surrounding GenAI in the context of Academic Integrity in Higher Education as it pertains to their subject areas. 

Uses for A.I.

Recommendations for possible AI use are subject to approval from your lecturer.

Remember, while Generative AI can be a helpful tool, it is not always reliable. Be sure to prioritise your own academic judgement, the academic judgement of your lecturer and the scholarly works you have engaged with over a Generative AI output.

Challenges and Risks of A.I.

Students should consider the following when thinking about using A.I.

If a student's use of Generative AI is in violation of the Academic Integrity Policy, and aligns with the policy's definition of plagiarism or academic dishonesty, the student will have engaged in academic misconduct. 

Students cannot be penalised for academic misconduct when appropriately citing the use of GenAI.

Students may incur a grade penalty if prior communication has been issued to them advising that GenAI cannot to be used for a particular assessment or in a particular way within the assessment.