According to the Academic Integrity Policy approved by Faculty Council, faculty are responsible for “provid[ing] guidance as to what constitutes violations of the Academic Integrity Policy and educat[ing] students about the ethical and educational implications of their actions. Syllabi should call attention to the Academic Integrity Policy.”
You may want to choose one of the four suggested statements below, and add clarifying or discipline-specific sentences as appropriate.
- Abbreviated Statement: Work done for this course must adhere to the University Academic Integrity Policy, which you can review in the Student Handbook or by visiting the Academic Integrity website.
- General Statement: DePaul University is a learning community that fosters the pursuit of knowledge and the transmission of ideas within a context that emphasizes a sense of responsibility for oneself, for others and for society at large. Violations of academic integrity, in any of their forms, are, therefore, detrimental to the values of DePaul, to the students’ own development as responsible members of society, and to the pursuit of knowledge and the transmission of ideas. Violations include but are not limited to the following categories: cheating; plagiarism; fabrication; falsification or sabotage of research data; destruction or misuse of the university’s academic resources; alteration or falsification of academic records; and academic misconduct. Conduct that is punishable under the Academic Integrity Policy could result in additional disciplinary actions by other university officials and possible civil or criminal prosecution. Please refer to your Student Handbook or visit the Academic Integrity website for further details.
- Statement Highlighting Plagiarism: The DePaul Student Handbook defines plagiarism as follows: “Plagiarism includes but is not limited to the following: (a) The direct copying of any source, such as written and verbal material, computer files, audio disks, video programs or musical scores, whether published or unpublished, in whole or in part, without proper acknowledgement that it is someone else’s. (b) Copying of any source in whole or in part with only minor changes in wording or syntax even with acknowledgement. (c) Submitting as one's own work a report, examination paper, computer file, lab report or other assignment which has been prepared by someone else. This includes research papers purchased from any other person or agency. (d) The paraphrasing of another's work or ideas without proper acknowledgement.” Plagiarism will result in a failure of the assignment or possibly of the course. If you are unsure of how to cite a source, ask!
- Statement Highlighting Cheating and Plagiarism: Academic integrity entails absolute honesty in one’s intellectual efforts. The DePaul Student Handbook details the facets and ramifications of academic integrity violations, but you should be especially aware of the policies on cheating and plagiarism. Cheating is any action that violates University norms or an instructor’s guidelines for the preparation and submission of assignments. Such actions may include using or providing unauthorized assistance or materials on course assignments, or possessing unauthorized materials during an examination. Plagiarism involves the representation of another’s work as your own, for example: (a) submitting as one’s own any material that is copied from published or unpublished sources such as the internet, print, computer files, audio disks, video programs or musical scores without proper acknowledgement that it is someone else’s; (b) paraphrasing another’s views, opinions or insights without proper acknowledgement or copying of any source in whole or in part with only minor changes in wording or syntax even with acknowledgement; (c) submitting as one’s own work a report, examination, paper, computer file, lab report or other assignment which has been prepared by someone else. If you are unsure about what constitutes unauthorized help on an exam or assignment, or what information requires citation and/or attribution, please ask your instructor. Violations may result in the failure of the assignment, failure of the course, and/or additional disciplinary actions.
Sample Sentences you may want to add and call attention to:
- Collaboration. In this class, you are permitted to study in groups to prepare for examinations so long as the resulting exam demonstrates your individual mastery of the concepts and skills tested.
- Group work. In this class, you are permitted to work in groups only for designated ‘group projects,’ which you are to submit as a group. All other assignments are to be prepared individually.
- Computer programs. In this class, plagiarism includes submitting as your own work a computer program that was written by someone else, or directly derived from someone else. A program is directly derived from someone else’s program if it is identical to someone else's program except for minor changes such as reformatting, change of variable names, etc.
- Using and citing electronic sources. In conducting research for this course, I encourage you to consult those standard reference tools, scholarly projects and information databases, and peer-reviewed academic journals that may be found on the internet in addition to traditional print resources. Keep in mind, however, that those electronic sources must be acknowledged. Please see the Modern Language Academy Handbook, section 4.9, for information on the correct citation of these sources.