Examples:

• Using the textbook or other materials, such as a notebook, not authorized for use during an examination.
• Observing the work of another student or allowing another student to plagiarize, copy, or observe your work.
• Using unauthorized material during a test-notes, formula lists, notes written on clothing, etc.
• Taking a quiz, exam, or similar evaluation in the place of another person.
• Providing or requesting assistance from another person in a manner prohibited by the instructor.
• Using a laboratory, computer, or calculator improperly or without authorization.
• Changing material on a graded exam and then requesting a regarding of the exam.
• Acquiring unauthorized knowledge of an examination or any part of an examination.
• Submitting the same paper in two different courses without the knowledge and consent of instructors.
• Signing in persons other than yourself for class attendance

Plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as the presentation of the ideas or the writing of someone else as one's own.

Examples:

• Reproducing another person's work, whether published or unpublished.(This also includes using materials from companies that sell research papers.)
• Submitting as your own any academic exercise (written work, computer printout, sculpture) prepared totally or in part by another.
• Allowing another person to substantially alter or revise your work and submitting it as your own.
• Using another's written ideas or words without properly acknowledging the source. If a student uses the words of someone else, he or she must put quotation marks around the passage and add indication of its origin, such as a footnote. Simply changing a word or two while leaving the organization and content substantially intact and failing to cite the source is plagiarism. Students should also take note that failure to acknowledge study aids such as Cliff's Notes or common reference sources constitutes plagiarism.
• If a student is unsure about a question of plagiarism or cheating, he or she is obligated to consult his or her instructor on the matter before submitting the material. If you have any questions, consult the Office of University Judiciaries.

Extended Example of Plagiarism

"The Red Pony, a minor American classic about a boy's discovery of the accidental but uncompromising cruelty of nature, was a tale that Steinbeck simply had to write, given his own boyhood perceptions. The story, as in all of Steinbeck's works, was nothing more than a vehicle for his larger theme, a theme that runs like a unifying thread through most of his literature: the eternal struggle between man as a unique deviation from mindless natural order, and man as a fated, helpless component of that order.

The three passages that follow are examples of ways that this passage may be unethically used within the student's work.

Example 1
Undocumented, verbatim use of Kiernan's actual words. The story, as in all of Steinbeck's works, was nothing more than a vehicle for his larger theme: the eternal struggle between man as a unique deviation from mindless natural order, and man as a fated, helpless component of that order.

Example 2
Undocumented paraphrase of Kiernan's actual words. The novel is only yet another way for Steinbeck to express his recurring and overriding theme, that humanity is caught between two contradictory relationships to nature.

Example 3
Undocumented use of Kiernan's main idea. Therefore, the major theme in Steinbeck's work surfaces in The Red Pony. As in most of his other novels, the author is preoccupied with the adverse role of humanity in relation to the natural world.

Listed below are examples of the proper use of source material:

Correct documentation of verbatim quotation from Kiernan's book: According to Thomas Kiernan, Steinbeck's The Red Pony "was nothing more than a vehicle for his larger theme . . . the struggle between man as a unique deviation from mindless natural order, and man as a fated, helpless component of that order."

Correct documentation of a specific idea from Kiernan's book: The major theme of The Red Pony, therefore, as Kiernan has suggested, seems to be the same as is to be found in Steinbeck's other novels: the examination of humanity's relationship to nature.

Thomas Kiernan, The Intricate Music: A Biography of John Steinbeck (Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1979), p. 21.

Judicial Procedures of Ohio University Regarding Academic Misconduct

Both issues are of great importance and must be addressed if the university is to maintain high academic standards, confront deceptive behavior, and assist in changing unethical behavior.

Should a faculty member suspect that you have been involved in academic misconduct, he or she will normally confront you and then determine what action should be taken.

The instructor may impose the appropriate grade penalty and/or file a formal judicial referral with University Judiciaries.

If the instructor accuses you of misconduct and takes action, one or both of the following may occur:

• A grade penalty, such as an F, may be imposed on the project or in the course.
• A formal judicial referral may be filed with University Judiciaries.

If the instructor files a formal judicial referral against you with University Judiciaries:

• You will receive written notification from University Judiciaries including the time and date of your scheduled procedural interview.
• During your procedural interview, the director or assistant director of University Judiciaries will outline your rights and options, clarify the charge that has been lodged against you, and provide you an opportunity to explain your perspective of the incident.
• You have the right to admit or deny the charge.

Should you admit to the charge, the director or assistant director will impose a disciplinary sanction appropriate to address the misconduct.

Should you deny the charge, you have the right to a hearing so that a broader exploration of the facts and circumstances may occur.

• If you are found responsible for misconduct either by your admittance or through the course of a hearing, the result could be a disciplinary sanction of expulsion, suspension, probation, or other sanction.

The Appeal Process at Ohio University Regarding Academic Misconduct

If a student wants to appeal the grade penalty, she or he should consult the following people, in sequence, until a decision has been reached:

1. the professor of the class
2. the chairperson of the department in which the class is being taught
3. the dean of the college
4. the university ombudsman

"I have been accused of academic misconduct!"

If you are charged with academic misconduct, don't panic! Read the charges carefully.

You may consider speaking with the professor to clarify the situation and/or pursuing clarification during your procedural interview with the director or assistant director of University Judiciaries. You may also consider speaking with a representative from Students Defending Students:

Students Defending Students is a volunteer organization that advises and counsels students who have been charged with violating the Ohio University Student Code of Conduct. This service is free. These volunteers will help you prepare your response to the charge by talking with the parties involved, providing education about the judicial process, and answering questions. Students Defending Students is not affiliated with University Judiciaries

For More Information

Sources

Academic Dishonesty and Honesty brochure prepared for the faculty at the University of Louisiana