Course policies

Academic Honesty

The Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies considers breaches of the Senate Policy on Academic Honesty to be serious matters. To quote the Senate Policy on Academic Honesty. The Policy on Academic Honesty is an affirmation and clarification for members of the University of the general obligation to maintain the highest standards of academic honesty. As a clear sense of academic honesty and responsibility is fundamental to good scholarship, the policy recognizes the general responsibility of all faculty members to foster acceptable standards of academic conduct and of the student to be mindful of and abide by such standards. Suspected breaches of academic honesty will be investigated and charges shall be laid if reasonable and probable grounds exist.

Students who engage in academic dishonesty can be subject to disciplinary action under the Senate Policy on Academic Honesty. Lack of familiarity with the Senate Policy and Guidelines on Academic Honesty does not constitute a defense against their application. Some academic offences can also constitute offences under the Criminal Code of Canada, which means that you, as a student, may also be subject to criminal charges.

Students should review the York Academic Honesty policy for themselves at:
http://www.yorku.ca/secretariat/policies/document.php?document=69

Students might also wish to review the interactive on-line Tutorial for students on academic integrity, at: http://www.yorku.ca/tutorial/academic_integrity/

As a student at York University, you have a responsibility to not only understand, but also play an important part in upholding the integrity of the academic experience. The Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies at York University supports the International Center for Academic Integrity’s definition of academic integrity. That is, you will be committed to acting in all academic matters, even in the face of adversity, with honesty, trust, fairness, courage, respect and responsibility.

How can you demonstrate academic integrity in the completion of your course?

·         Respect the ideas of others: Your course work should represent your own knowledge and ideas. You should not falsely claim credit for ideas that are not your own, by presenting another’s work as yours. If you are quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing another person’s work in order to support your own ideas, identify the work and the author through proper citation practices. For more information about how to cite properly, use the Student Papers and Academic Research Kit (SPARK). You can improve your writing, research, and personal learning abilities through the Learning Commons.

·         Respect your peers: Know when you are allowed to collaborate. Ask your instructor about what group work entails when it comes to the sharing of work. In test situations and assignments, don’t steal or give answers to your peers. Cheating and aiding in a breach of academic honesty are both against York University’s academic honesty policy.

·         Respect your course instructor(s): Understand what the instructors are asking of you in class, in assignments, and in exams. If you are unsure, ask your professor or teaching assistant. They are committed to making you feel supported, and want to assess you fairly and with integrity. Please do not submit the same piece of work for more than one course without your instructor’s permission.

·         Respect yourself: When you act with integrity, you know that your work is yours and yours alone. You do not allow others to impersonate you on tests and exams. You do not buy or otherwise obtain term papers or assignments. You do the work. As a result, you know that you earned the grades that you receive, so you can be proud of your York degree. By acting with integrity in your course work, you are also practicing a valuable professional skill that is important in all workplaces.

·         Take responsibility: If you have acted in an academically dishonest way, you can demonstrate courage and take responsibility for your mistake. You can admit your mistake to your course instructor as soon as possible.

Turnitin

To promote academic integrity in this course, students will be normally required to submit their written assignments to Turnitin (via the course eClass) for a review of textual similarity and the detection of possible plagiarism. In so doing, students will allow their material to be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database, where they will be used only for the purpose of detecting plagiarism. The terms that apply to the University’s use of the Turnitin service are described on the Turnitin.com website.

Religious Accommodation

York University is committed to respecting the religious beliefs and practices of all members of the community, and making accommodations for observances of special significance to adherents. For more information on religious accommodation, please visit:
https://w2prod.sis.yorku.ca/Apps/WebObjects/cdm.woa/wa/regobs

Academic Accommodation for Students with Disabilities

The nature and extent of accommodations shall be consistent with and supportive of the integrity of the curriculum and of the academic standards of programs or courses. Provided that students have given sufficient notice about their accommodation needs, instructors shall take reasonable steps to accommodate these needs in a manner consistent with the guidelines established hereunder. For more information please visit the Disabilities Services website at http://www.yorku.ca/cds/

During regular course delivery York’s disabilities offices and the Registrar’s Office work in partnership to support alternate exam and test accommodation services for students with disabilities at the Keele campus. For more information on alternate exams and tests please visit http://www.yorku.ca/altexams/

Please note that with the move to an online/virtual learning environment, accommodated tests and exams will not be coordinated by Alternate Exam & Test Scheduling during the term. Instead, test and exam accommodations, such as additional time, will need to be put in place by course instructors.

Please let the course instructor(s) know as early as possible in the term if you anticipate requiring academic accommodation, so that your accommodation needs can be discussed and considered within the context of this course.