Integrity Policy

Integrity Policy

Gonzaga Prep highly values the academic achievement of its students. Thus any activity which violates the integrity of the process of academic learning such that the academic product is impaired, divided, or corrupted runs counter to the values and mission of the school and cannot be tolerated.

Honesty and Integrity

Gonzaga Prep expects a high quality academic performance from every student, commensurate with his/her ability. Another, even greater concern, however, is that every student sees the tremendous importance of honesty and integrity in these academic pursuits. It is the school's sincerest hope that everyone understands the notion that NO grade, test, lab report, or paper is more important than one's personal integrity.

Cheating

It is by following the voice of conscience and choosing to be upright, honest and good that one becomes a person of integrity. At some times the voice of conscience is clear. It tells us that it is dishonest to forge a signature on a test, absence note, progress report, etc., and that it is dishonest to cheat on quizzes, tests, and on class exams. Such cheating may include:

leaving books or notebooks open during a test period
using unauthorized crib-sheets with study notes
writing answers on desk tops, or on hands, legs, arms and other parts of the body
looking on another's test paper
talking with another student during a test period directly, or by text-messaging
writing down answers copied from others when tests are handed in
talking with students from previous class periods in order to get test information
using unauthorized programs on calculators.

There are also clearly dishonest actions on written assignments such as:

turning in work which has been composed by another student
handing in a paper for credit which has already been graded in another class, without the approval of the teacher.
presenting material taken from another source as one’s own work.
for foreign language using translation programs or the words and grammar of native speakers.

Cheating in any form is clearly dishonest and not acceptable. It is not moral behavior.

Plagiarism

The Scott, Foresman Handbook with Writing Guide defines plagiarism as "representing the words or ideas of a source as your own" (Hairston and Ruszkiewicz, 553). Such instances include:

papers or passages of papers which are copied verbatim (word-for-word) from primary and secondary sources
papers or passages which are copied nearly verbatim
papers which are copies of a fellow or former student's work.

When we quote a source word-for-word, we should always place this quote within quotation marks. Then we should attribute the quote to its source by identifying the author, work, publisher, date, and location of the quote through some sort of documentation (e.g. footnote, endnote). We must do both: the quotation marks tell that "these are not my own words or ideas;" the attribution tells us whose words or ideas they are.

Another type of plagiarism that needs to be addressed is non-attributed paraphrasing and summarizing (i.e. “nearly verbatim” plagiarism). Paraphrasing and summarizing involve more than changing one or two words. They recount another's ideas in your own words and your own style. It may or may not be shorter than the original work, for the purpose is not so much to condense as to retell a work in your own words and style. Thus it should be evident that even here one needs to attribute the ideas to their source, for while the text is mine [these are my words], it is at the same time not mine [these are not my ideas].

To clarify this, Gonzaga Prep defines plagiarism in the following way: Plagiarism is the use of words, ideas, or information of another without informing the reader/listener of the source of these words, ideas or information. Any time you do not attribute information taken from a source to that source, you are committing plagiarism. One must document all sources used in composing a paper, report or presentation and acknowledge when a particular idea stems from another source. Both the complete documentation (e.g., a bibliography of sources) and the specific documentation (e.g., a footnote) are essential to avoid the suspicion of plagiarism.

Gonzaga Prep encourages all teachers to use turnitin.com as resource in detecting plagiarized work. Students who need computer resources to work with turnitin.com should contact their teacher or the Tech Center staff.

Working Together

What about working together? Often, teachers advise students to cooperate and work together. In science classes, it is commonplace for students to work with lab partners and get the same data. In foreign language classes, students are encouraged to assist each other in acquiring new language skills in dialogues and written exercises. When does working together cross the line into dishonest action? When I can no longer state with integrity, "This is my work."

Issues of concern include:

to copy answers when working together,
to copy another person's work with minor changes,
to stop trying to figure out a task or problem on one's own and simply to write down another person's solution.

These are instances when working together has crossed the line into dishonest behavior. Such dishonesty is in essence a capitulation: I have refused to learn any more on my own. I have given up on my potential to learn and chosen the easy way out. At Gonzaga Prep, we do not in any way support this type of behavior.

One solution is made clear in this example from the science classroom: when working on laboratory research, students work with partners. All lab data should be shared with my partner, but after that our joint work stops. Each of us should then process and calculate the data individually. Thus our lab reports will never contain verbatim results.

How to Avoid Cheating and Plagiarism

Be prepared. Always give yourself sufficient time for homework, essays, papers, presentations and study. With careful preparation, you will not put yourself into a situation where you might be tempted to compromise your integrity.

During tests and quizzes, avoid turning around, looking toward other students' papers, talking, etc. You do not want to give the impression of cheating. In the less obvious areas of working together on homework, lab reports and the like, always talk with your teachers. Find out what is acceptable and what is not. Do not assume that what might be acceptable for one teacher will be acceptable to another.

It always wiser “to err on the side of caution” than of carelessness. If you think you might need to cite a source for a passage, cite it! If you think you are taking too much help from another student, take less! If you are concerned about having over-relied on other sources, talk to your teacher before you turn the assignment in!

The Proper Use of Materials and Technology

Academic responsibility also involves the proper use of materials and technology. An area of concern is the misuse or abuse of such materials. Improper use includes:

damaging materials; for example, writing in books or magazines, tearing out pages, destroying computer files, putting inappropriate messages on computers.
sending e-mail or cell phone text-messages that are obscene or intended to harass.
using materials that are inappropriate in the Gonzaga Prep school setting; for example, the use of any books, periodicals, software and/or on-line services such as may be found on the Internet that are inappropriate for our school.
intentional alteration of computer operating systems. It should be noted that individuals, even students, who make unauthorized copies of copyrighted software may be subject to civil and criminal penalties.

Both the selection of materials and the use of materials should be consistent with the mission of Gonzaga Prep. Each student should answer the question, "Is this material appropriate to school?"

Summary

At Gonzaga Prep we wish to foster the integrity of each student. We also desire to support the real humility it takes to attribute all sources and the hard work it takes to develop the conscience in those areas where right and wrong may not be self-evident. We hope that this document will be a step further along the road to a healthy, adult, Christian conscience. (A special thanks goes to fellow Jesuit school, Creighton Prep in Omaha, for allowing us to use their policy as a model.)

VIOLATIONS OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

1st incident in student’s career at Gonzaga Prep

All students actively involved will receive a Zero for the assignment in question.
Faculty/Staff member observing the incident will contact a Dean of Students and submit a written description of the event.
Parents/Guardians will be notified by an administrator.
Notation of the incident will be made in the student’s discipline file.
The student will serve one Saturday Sanction and submit an essay of at least one typed page defining integrity and including a reflection on the event, which must be approved by the Administration and Faculty/Staff member reporting the incident.

2nd incident in student’s career at Gonzaga Prep

All students actively involved will receive a Zero for the assignment in question.
Faculty/Staff member observing the incident will contact a Dean of Students and submit a written description of the event.
Parents/Guardians will be notified by an administrator.
A Level 2 Sanction will be issued. (2 Saturday Sanctions)
The student will submit an essay of at least one typed page on integrity detailing his/ her commitment to maintaining academic integrity which must be approved by the Administration and Faculty/Staff member reporting the incident.

3rd incident in student’s career at Gonzaga Prep

All students actively involved will receive a Zero for the assignment in question.
Faculty/Staff member observing the incident will contact a Dean of Students and submit a written description of the event.
Parents/Guardians of the involved students will be notified by an administrator.
Student (s) will be placed on emergency removal.