Academic Discovery
Academic Integrity
Anderson University supports and promotes academic honesty and personal integrity and regards cheating, plagiarism and all other forms of academic dishonesty as serious offenses against the university community.Cheating or academic dishonesty is defined as the "deception of others about one's own work or about the work of another." Examples of cheating include, but are not limited to:
- Submitting another's work as one's own or allowing another to submit one's work as though it were his or hers.
- Failure to properly acknowledge authorities quoted, cited or consulted in preparing written work (plagiarism).
- Use of a textbook or notes during an examination without the instructor's permission.
- Getting or giving unauthorized help on assignments.
- Tampering with experimental data to obtain a desired result or creating results for experiments not done (dry labbing).
- Tampering with or destroying others' work.
- Submitting substantial portions of the same academic work for credit or honors more than once without permission of the present instructor.
- Lying about these or other academic matters.
Students who are guilty of such academic violations can expect to be penalized. Instructors whose definition of cheating differs from that stated above have the responsibility and obligation to so inform students, in writing, at the beginning of the course. Instructors who fail to do so have no basis for disciplinary action in instances of purported student dishonesty outside the above provisions.
In all instances of academic dishonesty, instructors are urged to discuss incidents with students and, if necessary, refer them to the Dean of Students for more extensive counseling. The course instructor shall have authority to deal with instances of academic dishonesty within these guidelines:
- Faculty members must report any student who has violated the policy on academic integrity to the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean. After two reports against a student, action will be initiated under provisions of the Judicial Code and could lead to dismissal of the student from the university.
- The maximum assessable penalty for a first offense shall not exceed double the original value of the assignment plus no option to make up the work in question.
- Work may be redone for full or partial credit.
- Alternate assignments may be given for full or partial credit.
- Work may not be redone and no credit given.
Students have the right to appeal action under this policy through the regular channels as established by the grade appeal process. Grounds for appeal are:
- Insufficient evidence of dishonesty
- Penalties in excess of those allowed under the above guidelines
- Provisions of grade appeal cited in the Student Life Handbook
