The Graduate Honor System (GHS) at a glance The 4 pillars (violations) with case studies. Hierarchies and penalties

The Graduate Honor System The Graduate Honor Code* establishes a standard of academic integrity to: promote honesty and ethical behavior investigate all suspected violations of the Graduate Honor Code disseminate information concerning the GHS try all cases involving academic infractions of the Graduate Honor Code brought before the System assure that the rights of all involved parties are protected and assure due process in all proceedings (*)

Picture from: CheatingSabotageFalsificationPlagiarism GHS - Violations

Picture from: ProbationDismissalSuspension Suspension in Abeyance GHS - Consequences

Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code Action 1: Graduate Honor System Probation Not suspended, but on probation until graduation Receive zero on the assignment Optional: A record of the action kept in the folder (registrar office) Required to attend meetings to understand the GHS Sanctioned to perform hours of service to the department The notation “placed on GHS probation” will appear on transcripts A grade of F for the course in which the offence occurred

Action 2: Suspension in Abeyance Allowed to remain in the university to complete semester Grade of F (will appear on the transcript as well) After completion, suspended for a period (not more than 2 semesters) The suspension will appear on transcript After re-enrollment at VT, the student will be placed on probation Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code

Action 3: Suspension Immediate suspension, plus suspended for extra period All credit lost for work during the semester, F will appear on transcript The notation: suspended for violation will appear on transcripts After re-enrollment at VT, the student will be placed on probation Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code

Action 4: Permanent Dismissal Permanently dismissed, not allowed to finish the semester All credit lost for work during the semester, F will appear on transcript The accused never re-enroll in the university The notation “permanent dismissed for violation of the GHS will appear on transcripts Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code

Picture from: CheatingSabotageFalsificationPlagiarism GHS - Violations things-you-must-remember/

Cheating “Cheating is defined as the giving or receiving of any unauthorized aid, assistance, or unfair advantage in any form of academic work” (*) (*)

Cheating –Example 1 A student was caught using notes and books on a web-based quiz being taken in a common computer lab. The syllabus clearly stated that no additional resources or help from classmates could be used while taking the quiz. Action: Probation with a record (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System) Picture from:

Cheating – Example 2 A student submitted a written take-home exam. The professor noted striking similarities between the exams of two students. The first student removed an exam from the professor’s mailbox and used that exam to complete the paper. This same student had been convicted previously for an Honor Code violation. Action: Permanent Dismissal (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System) Picture from:

Plagiarism “Plagiarism is a specific form of cheating, and is defined as the copying of the language, structure, idea, and/or thoughts of another and claiming or attempting to imply that it is one's own original work”(*) (*) Cartoon used under Creative Commons from BLAUGH.comBLAUGH.com

Plagiarism – Example 1 A student cut and pasted information from article and did not provide citation for the information. Action: Probation with a zero for the Assignment, permanent F for the course and an F* to appear permanently on the student’s transcript because academic advantage would have resulted from the violation. (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System) Picture from:

Plagiarism – Example 2 A graduate student plagiarized significant portions of a project and report in partial fulfillment of the requirements of a non-thesis option Masters degree. Text, data, and figures were used, and not cited, from another student’s report and from many other sources. Action: Suspension in Abeyance (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System) Picture from:

Falsification “ Forgery of official signatures, tampering with official records or documents, fraudulently adding or deleting information, fraudulently changing an examination or testing period or due date of an assignment, and the unauthorized accessing of someone else's computer account or files. ”(*) (*)

Falsification – Example 1 After taking an exam and receiving a grade on a test given in a course taught by two professors, the student altered the already graded exam to receive additional credit from the professor that did not grade the exam. Action: Probation with a permanent record, required meetings, and a grade of F for the course (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System) Picture from:

Falsification – Example 2 A student requested a course transfer to apply credit from a class at another university to a class at Virginia Tech. The student provided false information in an altered transcript included with the course transfer request. The student had never taken the course that was requested for transfer credit. Action: Permanent Dismissal (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System)

Academic Sabotage “Academic sabotage is purposeful vandalism directed against any academic endeavor or equipment. It includes, but is not limited to, the destruction or theft of written material, laboratory or field experiments, equipment used in teaching or research, or computer files or programs”(*) (*)

Academic Sabotage – Example 1 A student sabotaged a research project by hiding and altering software in a purposeful manner. The project was extremely delayed and large portions of data had to be reconstructed. The software belonged to the state and the University. Action: Suspension (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System)

Academic Sabotage – Example 2 A student stole a computer from a computer lab that appeared to not be used. The computer contained research data and the academic work of another student. The accused student unknowingly removed that information from the computer, which was not completely recoverable. Along with University charges, the student faced state charges. Action: Permanent Dismissal (example from Hierarchies of the Virginia Tech Honor Code: Twenty Years of Case Studies of the Graduate Honor System)

Quiz What is the purpose of the GHS? What are the four pillars (violations) we must know about the graduate honor system? Give an example for each violation? What are the four possible actions the Graduate Honor System can take against a student found guilty of violating the Graduate Honor Code?