Abstract:

Cheating and plagiarism are possibly the major academic offences. In the past, plagiarism detection systems have been inefficient and University policies underdeveloped or lacking rigor in addressing these issues. Strong integrity policies and efficient processes for dealing with plagiarism are required to assure quality, and promote and maintain standards, and academic integrity within Universities. However, it appears that even to this day, not all Higher Education Institutions are using plagiarism detection systems and that only a portion of them have developed and are indeed enforcing the policies. Students who plagiarize pose two challenges. A first challenge is when the student is not caught. Surprisingly, as we demonstrate, a second challenge arises when a student is caught. This paper presents some of the challenges academia faces in the detection, examination and determining an outcome, reporting, and recording plagiarism cases, with a particular focus on the last two phases. We offer recommendations on how academics and administration can address the challenges that follow the identification of an incident. Incidents can be processed effortlessly and efficiently only when systems are well designed. The process needs to be carefully mapped and structured. Flowcharts and decision trees assist the decision makers, while automated checks and ticks can improve consistency among staff. Using several examples and case studies we illustrate the need and the importance of standardized procedures. We then outline the steps and present guidelines on how the process can be streamlined efficiently. Further debate is required to discuss the necessity of national or indeed international registries to record incidences on academic dishonesty.

Keywords:

Integrity, ethics, processes and systems.