Fostering Academic Integrity in Online Courses Larry MacPhee, CTEL Joyce Kincannon, CTEL Wally Nolan, CTEL Advice for Faculty

 Is cheating inevitable?  Why do students cheat?  Why is it my problem? 3 General Questions

Why do they do it?  Easy to get away with  Insufficient time  A friend needed help  Passing grade is vital  Everyone else is doing it  Nobody cares if I cheat  Course is too hard  Teacher is unfair  Course is useless.

Is this my problem?  Credibility is at stake  of the Instructor  of the Course  of the Program  of the Institution  Student morale is at stake.

5 Course Design Elements Syllabus Design Content Delivery Student-Instructor Relationship Assessment Design Monitoring Tools

1. Syllabus Design Clearly define course objectives Define inappropriate behavior Specify consequences Link to institutional policiesinstitutional policies Warn students of monitoring tools Discuss relevance of course Establish deadlines Clearly define course policies.

2. Content Delivery Change assignments each semester Know your audience Required vs. supplemental info Tell students what is important Design assignments for the web. Link to resource pages Keep audio & video clips short Avoid PowerPoint Use student prompts Lean and rich, not flashy and fluffy Offline learning is ok.

3. Good Communication Offer frequent reminders Respond promptly to questions Build a respectful relationship Encourage student collaboration Monitor student communication Moderate discussions.

4. Assessment Design Randomize questions and answers Use large question banks, multiple versions Set short time windows for objective tests Proctor objective tests in labs Thwart paper mills like “SchoolSucks.com”SchoolSucks.com Spread points across many assignments Consider use of “honor statements” Assume student access to all resources Investigate suspicious activity.

5. Monitoring Tools Enroll a “mole” in your class discussions Look for same wrong answer patterns Check test start and end times Check test takers’ IP addresses Interview suspects sequentially Track student scores during the course Look at grade distributions over semesters Use comparison tools like “TurnItIn.com”TurnItIn.com

New Technologies Google, Encarta, WiFi, IM, cell phones, OCR

Additional Resources Software Secure Duke University’s Center for Academic IntegrityCenter for Academic Integrity Designing Online Courses to Discourage DishonestyDesigning Online Courses to Discourage Dishonesty by Barbara Christe 30 seconds to a Darwin Biography (courtesy Encarta.com)Darwin Biography