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

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).

 
See the Academic integrity policy for more details.

[1] According to Article 21.1 of the IBO General Regulations: Diploma Programme (2016), “If questions arise about the authenticity of a candidate’s work before submission for assessment, the situation must be resolved within the school.”

[2] What constitutes minor and major components of course assessment is ultimately determined by the teacher in light of both term assessment and IB subject assessment. However, anything worth 20% or more of the term evaluation can be considered a major component.  

 

Last updated: 13.11.2020