Academic Integrity Policy Notion International School Maryotyah Giza, Egypt 4/3/2018 Noton Internatonal School Pedagogical Leadership Team Page 0
The heart of Notion International School Philosophy is the commitment to develop internationally minded people who recognize their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, helping to create a better and more peaceful world. We teach the British Accredited Curriculum through inquiry-based teaching methods and approaches. Students at Notion International School will have the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge while becoming lifelong learners with an open mindedness towards the perspectives of others. Our Vision To build a life-long learning community that promotes international mindedness as well as embraces its own culture and identity. Our Mission Statement Notion seeks to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessments. Our aligned programs with the IB framework equip students with the needed knowledge, skills and attitude to become an active citizen of the 21st Century. Notion encourages students to become active, compassionate, tolerant, open minded and long life-learners who are proud of their own values and beliefs and ready to contribute to a better world. International Baccalaureate Mission Statement The International Baccalaureate Organization aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. To this end, the IBO works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate, and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right. IB learner profile the aim of all IB programs is to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world. IB learners strive to be: Inquirers They develop their natural curiosity. They acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show independence in learning. They actively enjoy learning and this love of learning will be sustained throughout their lives. Knowledgeable They explore concepts, ideas and issues that have local and global significance. In so doing, they acquire in-depth knowledge and develop understanding across a broad and balanced range of disciplines. Thinkers They exercise initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively to recognize and approach complex problems, and make reasoned, ethical decisions. Communicators They understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in more than one language and in a variety of modes of communication. They work effectively and willingly in collaboration with others. rincipled They act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness, justice and respect for the dignity of the individual, groups and communities. They take responsibility for their own actions and the consequences that accompany them. Page 1
Open-minded They understand and appreciate their own cultures and personal histories, and are open to the perspectives, values and traditions of other individuals and communities. They are accustomed to seeking and evaluating a range of points of view, and are willing to grow from the experience. Caring They show empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. They have a personal commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference to the lives of others and to the environment. Risk-takers They approach unfamiliar situations and uncertainty with courage and forethought, and have the independence of spirit to explore new roles, ideas and strategies. They are brave and articulate in defending their beliefs. Balanced They understand the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional balance to achieve personal well-being for themselves and others. Reflective They give thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experience. They are able to assess and understand their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development Page 2
School philosophy relates to academic honesty: As stipulated in the Academic Honesty in the IB educational context, academic honesty is: making knowledge, understanding and thinking transparent.' Notion International School, in its vision, aims to develop life-long learning community. Since early age, our students are encouraged to follow simple lifelong rules: discipline, respect, honesty, perseverance and enthusiasm as well as understanding the value of work and 21 st century work ethics. They are encouraged to adapt themselves to all life situations in a global context. For this purpose, certain IB Learner Profile Attributes encourage authenticity and intellectual property. Principled : They act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness, justice and respect for the dignity of the individual, groups and communities. They take responsibility for their own actions and the consequences that accompany them. Thinkers: They exercise initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively to recognize and approach complex problems, and make reasoned, ethical decisions. In addition, the candidates must also have knowledge and practical skills, which enable them to apply these concepts to their work. Page 3
Responsibility of students, teachers and the school Students are responsible of their learning Since early age they are encouraged to Tell the truth and be responsible for their actions Acknowledge new innovative ideas of others Work independently with minimal support from parents, or peers Use Netiquette L earn paraphrasing, note taking and referencing Acknowledge any information taken from text book, magazines and the Internet. Understand the importance of group work and collaboration F ollow the regulations of examinations and assessments Understand the consequences of misconduct, for example, plagiarism, copying another s work, using unpermitted notes or collaboration Candidates should not : Use notes during an examination except with permission from the teacher. Cheat during an examination. Copy the work of another student. Submit copied work as their own. Complete an assignment for another student. Allow another student to copy their work uy or take essays or assignments already done on the Internet or by another person. Copy works of art without acknowledging the source. reach the computer usage rules. Save unauthorized programmes on their calculator. Submit an IT program done by another person. Steal examination papers. M odify students' results on a computer or database. Teachers should: In Approaches to Learning (ATL), teachers promote self-management, social, communication, thinking and research skills Teach students how to use the library and the Internet Teach take noting, paraphrasing, collect data Teach how to acknowledge sources formally in a written or oral form Teach how to write footnotes. Teach how to plan, prepare and present a research. Teach how to use quotations and assess sources. Crate with students an essential agreement about the consequences of academic honesty misconduct E nsure that the skills particular to a subject and required for academic good practice be reviewed regularly throughout the programme. All the work submitted for assessment is the authentic work of each student Page 4
Adhere to the IB regulations in the field of assessment and inform their IB coordinator of any problems. Teachers (including extended essay, personal project and exhibition supervisors) must provide students with rubrics to enhance their learning outcomes Teachers are advised to provide students with examples of conventions for acknowledging sources. The examples must include a variety of sources (CD-Roms, D VD s, photographs, illustrations, works of art and data) in addition to journals, books and web sites. Therefore, all students are entirely responsible for ensuring that all work submitted for school work and assessment is authentic The school should E nsure that students receive guidance on the skills of academic writing in a structured way (e.g. essay, book report or personal project) E nsure a good practice of ATL and study skills E nsure adequate resources at school library and classrooms to support study skills E nsure that candidates understand the consequences of academic honesty misconduct E stablish a code of honour or an essential agreement to promote academic honesty within the school Consider subscribing to an online plagiarism-detecting service such as Turnitin.com and submitting students work randomly \ Generate on-going workshop for all stakeholders education about academic honesty Parents' responsibility It is important that parents understand what academic honesty is, their responsibility as parents, and the relevance of these concepts. They must have an active role in their children's education and help them to have a high level of work ethics and habits. Parents can help their children to avoid short- and long-term consequences in ensuring that they: discuss acceptable and unacceptable behaviours with them support them in their work, more precisely see to it that they give priority to their academic work, set aside time and a particular space for it, discuss set deadlines with them and related expectations and encourage them to draw up a plan to be able to complete every task on time; set an example for them by being respectful of the school policy and teachers' instructions relating to work; give attention to positive behaviours, in particular when young people take the responsibility for their work and complete it on time, and congratulate them on it; give them constructive observations, in order to help them to have the sense of their own responsibility towards their academic work. Academic honesty is a shared concern while pursuing a common goal: to help our young people to show responsibility, honesty, trust and respect. Page 5
Regulations and disciplinary procedures FOR PRIMARY YEAR PROGRAMME PYP If plagiarism is detected in a piece of work or an examination paper or classwork, the student has to redo the work. It is considered a Level 3 Behavior. Please refer to the Behavior Policy for more details. Ø F or the first time, the student and parents are asked to meet with the coordinator. The parents receive a letter written by the teacher describing the situation. Ø If the incident occurs again, the parents and the student sign a contract. Ø In case of a third offence, the student will be disciplined according to the Student Handbook and Behavior Policy. FOR MIDDLE YEARS PROGRAMME (MYP) For MYP Guidelines: Encouraging academic honesty (MY1- Y11) In the MYP, approaches to learning skills are particularly relevant to academic honesty given the clear links to students developing competencies in self--management, research and communication. [...] MYP teachers are responsible for guiding and supporting students in the development of academic honesty in ways that prepare them for further study. As students gain experience in the MYP, they can develop the understanding and behaviors necessary to avoid pitfalls in formal high-stakes assessments as well as externally assessed coursework and culminating projects. (IBO, 2014) Students will be allowed to - Accept help from parents, older students and friends - Accept information taken from books, the Internet or persons - Acknowledge the source of direct quotations - Acknowledges reference materials in a bibliography - Knows what constitutes cheating and abides by the rules - Follow all test/exam rules - Ask beforehand what kind of external help is permissible Students will be disallowed to - Use notes during a test unless allowed by a teacher - Copy from another student during a test - Copy from the homework of another student - Give another student his/her own work to copy - Hand in work as his/her own that has been copied - Do homework for another student - purchase and submit pieces written by someone else, - Investigating improper conduct When there is every reason to believe that malpractice has occurred, the following steps will be taken: The teacher will inform the MYP Coordinator about the incident, The teacher will investigate the matter with the student(s) involved, In consultation with the MYP Coordinator, the teacher may resolve to issue a consequence (in such cases the decision will be communicated in writing to the student and his/her parents or legal guardians), The letter will be placed in the student's file should parents or legal guardians wish to appeal, the matter will be referred to the Head of the Page 6
School. After receiving a referral, the Head of the School will hold a hearing and investigate the charges of malpractice, inform the parents or legal guardians prior to the hearing, invite the student(s) involved to appear before the committee with a view to explaining the incident, Refer to the disciplinary consequences stated in the Academic Honesty Policy. present the outcome of the hearing and the disciplinary consequences in writing to the student(s), parents or legal guardians via Skolera. In cases when a student has been found guilty of academically dishonest behavior, a formal letter will be placed in the student's file, Students' due process rights will always be ensured (students and parents or legal guardians have a right to see evidence, statements, reports and correspondence about the case). Penalties applied to students guilty of malpractice Depending on the severity of the incident, as well as the frequency of occurrence, Consequences may include: First Time: - Students will be given different task that covers the same assessment criteria. - Parents will be informed. Second Time: - The work will not receive a grade. - Students sign a formal letter of commitment about future conduct. - Parents will be invited to school. Third Time: - Suspension from the school by a time determined by the head of school. Glossary of terms: Plagiarism: this is defined as the representation, intentionally or unwittingly, of the ideas, words or work of another person without proper, clear and explicit acknowledgment. Malpractice: The IB Organization defines malpractice as behaviour that results in, or may result in, the candidate or any other candidate gaining an unfair advantage in one or more assessment components Academic misconduct: The IB organization defines academic misconduct as behaviour (whether deliberate or inadvertent) that results in, or may result in, the candidate or any other candidate gaining an unfair advantage in one or more components of assessment. References: Garza, Cilena (2014). Academic Honesty, From principles into practice. IB AEM Regional Conference 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.ibo.org/contentassets/71f2f66b529f48a8a61223070887373a/academic-honesty.-principle s-into-practice---celina-garza.pdf International Baccalaureate Organization (2014). Academic honesty in the IB Educational context, Published Geneva, Switzerland. Page 7