Academic misconduct and consequences

WHAT IS ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT?

The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) defines academic misconduct as“behaviour that results in, or may result in, the student or any other student gaining an unfair advantage (or a behaviour that disadvantages other students) in one or more assessment components” (2016, p.12). It should be noted that academic misconduct includes both deliberate and unwitting behaviour. Not knowing what constitutes academic misconduct does not acquit one from its consequences and penalties.

According to theIBO’s General Regulations: Diploma Programme (2016), academic misconduct includes the following categories and definitions (p.12-13):

a. Plagiarism: this is defined as the representation, intentionally or unintentionally, of the ideas, words or work of another person without proper, clear and explicit acknowledgment

b. Collusion: this is defined as supporting academic misconduct by another candidate, for example, allowing one’s work to be copied or submitted for assessment by another

c. Duplication of work: this is defined as the presentation of the same work for different assessment components and/or DP core requirements

d. Misconduct during an IB examination (for example, taking unauthorized material into an examination, behaviour that disrupts the examination or distracts other candidates, or communicating with another candidate)

e. Unethical behaviour such as the inclusion of inappropriate material in any assessment materials or the breach of ethical guidelines when conducting research

f. Any other behaviour that gains an unfair advantage for a candidate or that affects the results of another candidate (for example, falsifying a CAS record, disclosure of information to and receipt of information from candidates about the content of an examination paper within 24 hours after a written examination via any form of communication/media).

Other examples of academic misconduct include:

• Copying the work of another candidate or allowing one’s work to be copied by another candidate
• Completing an assignment for another student
• Submitting the work done by another student, parent, friend or private tutor
• Not acknowledging sources, whether deliberately or unwittingly
• Falsifying data used in an assignment
• Falsifying CAS records and journals
• Falsifying lab data or work
• Stealing examination material and/or exam papers
• Bringing unauthorized material into the examining room such as unauthorised software on a graphic calculator, smart phones, smart watches, laptops, tablets, wireless headphones, and other electronic devices
• Disrupting an examination or failing to comply with the rules set by the invigilator
• Impersonating another candidate
  
  

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Recent technical advancements in AI tools, such as ChatGPT, have raised concerns in MH and the broader educational community as students have the potential to use these tools to produce assignments and essays.

Why not ban the use of AI?

Neither MH nor the IB bans the use of AI software. According to the updated IB Academic Integrity Policy, “The simplest reason [for not banning AI tools] is that it is the wrong way to deal with innovation. Over the next few years, the use of this kind of software will become as routine as calculators and translation programs. It is more sensible to adapt and teach students how to use these new tools ethically” (2023, p.53). MH takes a similar stance on the use of AI software. The school acknowledges that AI technology will inevitably be commonplace, and instead of banning its use, recognizes its potential as a learning tool and encourages its use in a critical, transparent, and ethical way, not least to foster academic integrity among students as they learn to make ethical and critically-minded decisions in the construction of knowledge and production of authentic academic work.

Is AI reliable?

It is crucial that students understand that AI is subject to bias and error and does not constitute a reliable source. Students should not rely on AI for accurate answers and must verify AI generated answers using other knowledge and methods. Students should be reminded that texts currently produced by AI tools are biased and often inaccurate, repetitive, and formulaic.

What constitutes misuse of AI?

While the IB does not ban the use of AI software, it does stipulate that the use of AI tools should be in line with the IB's academic integrity policy (See: Statement from the IB about ChatGPT and artificial intelligence, 2023). Similarly, at MH, the use of AI is governed by the same rules as the use of other sources and assistance in learning and the same rules apply to the misuse of AI as other forms of academic misconduct. Students should be aware that any work produced—even if only in part—by such tools is not considered their own and needs to be properly credited and referenced. Using AI software to produce an assignment or essay (or part of an assignment or essay) without properly acknowledging, quoting and citing one’s source in the body and bibliography of the assignment/essay, is equivalent to PLAGIARISM and constitutes a form of academic misconduct subject to the same consequences as other forms (see below). Moreover, it is crucial that students follow the rules and guidelines of individual instructors on whether AI can be used to complete an assignment or examination. AI should not be used on assignments or examinations when the use of assistance or aid material is not permitted, such as IB examinations. Rules and guidelines will differ between instructors and assignments. When in doubt, students should always consult individual instructors on whether they can use AI in a particular way on an assignment or examination.

How is AI use detected in assignments?

While there is no software that can definitively identify text that has been generated by AI, there are applications and detector tools, which examine texts for specific patterns and attributes indicating the probability of a text being AI generated. The school currently has access to the online plagiarism detection service Turnitin, which shows the percentage of text that has likely been generated by an AI writing tool and highlights the segments that seem to be AI authored. Students and teachers are expected to use Turnitin for essays and assignments (see Use of Turnitin section below). Teachers are encouraged to use other AI detector tools if they suspect a student’s work of being AI generated without permission or proper referencing of sources. If a student is suspected of misusing AI, the same school rules and procedures on academic misconduct will apply.

WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT?

Internal Procedures and Penalties at MH[1]

Internal procedures and penalties are those enforced by the school for incidents of academic misconduct relating to homework, classwork, lab work, essays and internal exams which do NOT include final work submitted to the IBO towards completion of the Diploma Programme (such as final exams, Written Assignments, Individual Orals, the CAS project and portfolio, Comparative Study and Process Portfolio, the TOK essay and the Extended Essay), but may include early drafts of such work. 

First offence on minor assignments (such as homework, classwork, lab work, CAS entries, small projects and quizzes):

• The teacher makes the student aware of the gravity of the matter and the student is given the opportunity to respond to the charge.
• The student is reminded of the school’s Academic Integrity Policy and the IB categories of academic misconduct.
• If the student is found guilty of academic misconduct, they may or may not be given the opportunity to re-do the work in question (this decision is made at the discretion of the teacher).
• If the student is not given the opportunity to re-do the work, then the student receives a zero for the given work.
• The teacher makes a note of the incident and keeps relevant evidence on file.
• The student is made aware of the consequences of committing further offences of academic misconduct. 

First offence on major components of MH course assessment[2] (such as midterm and final exams and major term assignments/papers/projects) OR second offence on minor assignments:

• The teacher makes the student aware of the gravity of the matter and the student is given the opportunity to respond to the charge.
• The teacher informs the DP coordinator and the principal and submits any statements and evidence of academic misconduct.
• If the student is found guilty of academic misconduct, the student is given a zero for the work and could face both removal from the course and suspension from the school.
• The incident is recorded in the Learning Management System (INNA) and accessible only to administrators.
• The student is made of aware of the consequences of committing further offences of academic misconduct. 
• If the student is under 18 years of age, their parents are informed by the principal or DP coordinator.

For IB students only: First offence on major subject components completed outside the exam room before submission to the IBO (CAS project, TOK essay, EE, WA, CS, PP and other IA work):

• The teacher makes the student aware of the gravity of the matter and the student is given the opportunity to respond to the charge.
• The teacher informs the DP coordinator and the principal and submits any statements and evidence of academic misconduct.
• If the student is found guilty of academic misconduct, the student is given the opportunity to re-do the work, but could face suspension from the school.
• The incident is recorded in the Learning Management System (INNA) and accessible only to administrators.
• The student is made of aware of the consequences of committing further offences of academic misconduct. 
• If the student is under 18 years of age, their parents are informed by the principal or DP coordinator.

Second offence on major components of MH course assessment (e.g. midterm and final exams, major term assignments/papers/projects) or second offence on IB work intended for eventual submission to the IBO (CAS project, TOK essay, EE, Written Assignments and other IA work) OR third offence on minor assignments:

• The teacher informs the DP coordinator and submits any evidence of academic misconduct. The principal is informed.
• The DP coordinator and/or the principal meet with the student and the student is given the opportunity to respond to the charge. If the student is under 18 years of age, their guardian is invited to be present at the meeting.
• The student is invited to present a written statement that addresses the suspicion of academic misconduct.
• If the student is found guilty of academic misconduct, the student will receive no credit for the course and may face removal from the subject in question, expulsion from the Diploma Programme and further disciplinary measures such as expulsion from the school.
• The incident is recorded in the Learning Management System (INNA) and accessible only to administrators.

Note: If the student’s first offence is in one subject, say Chemistry, and subsequent offences are in another course, such as Psychology, the student will face consequences in the subject in which they committed their last offence (in this case Psychology)

External Procedures and Penalties

If questions arise about the authenticity of a candidate’s final submission of work towards completion of the diploma programme (such as IA, WA, EE, TOK essay, CAS portfolio or final exams) the school will follow IBO procedures as outlined in Article 21 of General Regulations: Diploma Program (2016) and Academic Integrity (2019).

• The school will conduct an investigation and provide the IB with statements and other relevant documentation concerning the case.
• The DP coordinator will lead the investigation and collect all relevant statements and documentation from parties involved, i.e. the teacher or examiner and the student.
• In such cases, the student must be invited to present a written statement that addresses the suspicion of academic misconduct.
• The majority of cases of suspected academic misconduct will be presented to an IB sub-committee of the Final Award Committee. If the sub-committee decides that a case of academic misconduct has been established, a penalty will be applied in the subject(s) concerned.
• If no grade is issued for a subject that contributes to a candidate’s IB Diploma, no IB Diploma will be awarded to the candidate.

For a detailed account of IB investigation procedures and penalty matrices for both school maladministration and student academic misconduct, please consult the appendices of the IBO’s publication Academic Integrity (2019).