Academic Honesty – Plagiarism Policy
Students who present the work of others as their own are guilty of plagiarism and will receive a mark of zero for the work and will have the details of the plagiarism noted in their school records. Students who are guilty of cheating on tests or examinations will receive a mark of zero on the test or examination and have the details of the cheating noted in their school records.
PLAGIARISM POLICY
Growing Success Policy
Students must understand that the tests/exams they complete and the assignments they submit for evaluation must be their own work and that cheating and plagiarism will not be condoned.
The school will develop strategies for helping students understand the gravity of such behaviour and the importance of acknowledging the work of others. The school will also develop policies that address, at a minimum, the following:
• prevention of cheating and plagiarizing
• detection of incidents of cheating and plagiarizing
• consequences for students who cheat or plagiarize
Policies will reflect a continuum of behavioural and academic responses and consequences, based on at least the following four factors: (1) the grade level of the student, (2) the maturity of the student, (3) the number and frequency of incidents, and (4) the individual circumstances of the student
To the Student
When the teacher asks you to use your own words and ideas, it means that you should use your own words and your own ideas. You must demonstrate to the teacher that you can submit work that is your own. When a teacher asks to put your ideas into your own words, it does not mean that there is a correct answer for the assignment. It means that you have to come up with your own ideas to give to the teacher.
Plagiarism means submitting work to the teacher that is not your own. Cheating and plagiarism will not be condoned. When you take ideas and words that are someone else’s and pass them off as yours, you are plagiarizing. Plagiarism can involve some of these:
● Using work done by another student.
● Copying someone else’s work or homework.
● Taking another student’s work and changing some words.
● Cutting and pasting material from the Internet and submitting it as yours.
● Copying information from a book, magazine, website, movie, etc. and not naming the source.
● Leaving out quotation marks for direct quotes.
To the Teacher
Help students avoid plagiarising by:
● Defining the term and reminding them of it when setting out an assignment.
● Giving them examples of what constitutes plagiarism.
● Emphasizing the importance of using process skills to arrive at a product.
● Teaching them research skills so they can avoid plagiarising: note taking, paraphrasing, summarizing.
● Teaching them organizational skills: finding and organizing information to build understanding of a topic.
● Teaching them how to make an outline for a report or research essay.
● Having them keep a learning log to reflect on what they learned through the process: how research and organizational skills helped with the project, how could the product be improved, how can the research and organizational skills be improved.
● Assessing the process steps: notes, outline, summary, bibliography, drafts, etc.
● Informing students of the consequences of plagiarism.
Consequences
● When plagiarism has been detected, the teacher should discuss the matter with the student and inform the principal of the details.
● The student receives zero for the assignment because the student has not demonstrated achievement of the expectations for the assignment.
● There might be other opportunities for the student to demonstrate evidence of achievement of the expectations of the assignment (e.g. research, organizational, presentation skills) during the course. If other opportunities arise, the teacher may choose not to factor in zero for the plagiarized assignment in the calculation of the term mark.
Appeal
A student may appeal the teacher’s decision to the principal after discussion with the teacher. Based on Fresh Air: Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting in Secondary Schools
Toronto District School Board, 2006
