Academic honesty is the cornerstone of an impartial and fair education system, emphasizing the importance of integrity, originality, and ethical behavior. Maintaining academic honesty is crucial as it upholds the credibility of our university as well as ensures a fair and level playing field for all students. Students who engage in academic dishonesty not only risk severe consequences such as suspension or even expulsion, but compromise their own educational journey as well. Embracing academic honesty is not just a commitment to university rules but a pledge to personal growth, authenticity, and the preservation of an honest pursuit of knowledge.
Policy: https://policy.wwu.edu/POL-U2100.02-Ensuring-Academic-Honesty
Academic dishonesty can mean many different things. Some of the most common examples are:
- Cheating, or helping others cheat, on tests
- Using unauthorized resources during an assignment or test
- Collaborating with others on an assignment without approval from instructor
- Submitting someone else’s work as your own
- Submitting someone else’s work without proper citations
- Not crediting participants for their part in a group project and/or claiming credit for work not done on a group project
- Submitting previous work, even if done by you, from another class
- Plagiarism, which is presenting as one’s own in whole or in part the argument, language, creations, conclusions, or scientific data of another without explicit acknowledgment of the source.
The penalty for academic dishonesty in this course is [INSERT SANCTION] and the submission of an Academic Honesty violation. Let me know as soon as possible if, for any reason, you have trouble learning the material or keeping up in class. I will do what I can to help, but it’s advisable not to wait until the last minute before an exam or assignment deadline. If personal issues are affecting your schoolwork, contact the Office of Student Life (650-3706) and/or the Counseling Center (650-3164) for help.
*Please note that academic honesty violations do not appear on transcripts
For more information on Academic Honesty, visit https://academichonesty.wwu.edu/
Sample Academic Honesty Code
For use on exams and/or assignments:
- I have permission to use, exclusively, information approved by my professor
- I will not use any resources other than those listed in the previous bullet point. I will not access any information not pre-approved by my professor.
- I will not plagiarize someone else’s work and turn it in as my own.
- I acknowledge that this information is intellectual property and copying/ spreading this information is considered academic misconduct.
- I understand that acts of academic dishonesty may be penalized to the full extent allowed by Western Washington University, including receiving a failing grade for the course. I recognize that I am responsible for understanding the provisions of the WWU Academic Honesty Code.
By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read the above statement and I agree to abide by this code.
Generative AI:
*Information taken from https://atus.wwu.edu/faqs-generative-ai-teaching-learning-technology
Faculty lead the effort in determining student violations of academic integrity. In the opinion of ATUS, the instructor needs to state when generative AI tools can or should not be used. A best practice would be to clearly outline AI policies, alongside plagiarism policies, within your course syllabus as well as on relevant assignments.
- If the instructor has allowed student use of AI, the allowed use should be made explicit within the assignment and/or syllabus, including the extent, methods, citations, and appropriateness of use.
- If an instructor prohibits student use of AI and a student ignores or subverts this within the course, it may result in a violation of academic integrity and is considered plagiarism (See also Syllabi@WWU).
- If violations occur, please follow the Ensuring Academic Honesty Policy and Procedure. Questions can be directed to academichonestyboard@wwu.edu.
- See also ATUS’s Evaluating Student Work when AI is Suspected
AI systems and the algorithms they use can impart cultural, economic, identity, and social biases of the source materials used for training data. Anyone using AI-generated content should ensure that unintended or undesirable instances of bias, or even potentially offensive or harmful material, is changed or removed (with grateful attribution to City of Seattle, Interim Policy).