OSC Ethics Seminar on Academic Integrity

September and November 2002

Dr. Nancy Stanlick

Department of Philosophy

(most recent update: 09/17/02)

Ethical Issues in Academic Dishonesty

Syllabus for September Meeting

And

November Meeting (TBA)

This syllabus contains information on course requirements for the September 2002 meeting of the Office of Student Conduct Academic Integrity Ethics Seminar. Please take note of the requirements and be prepared for the meeting of the seminar.

Description and Objective: This is a 2-hour overview of ethical issues involved in instances of academic dishonesty.   It will begin with a discussion of the distinction between plagiarism and cheating and the ways in which plagiarism occurs (both intentionally and unintentionally) and how to avoid it.   Specific topics to be explored may include lying, theft of intellectual property, self-deception and academic integrity. Others are different theories of ethics and how they are related to instances of academic dishonesty.  The objective is to develop a sense of how particular issues relevant to academic dishonesty may be part of a larger social context in which it is often held that the end justifies the means, and why plagiarism and cheating are academic analogs to perjury, grand theft, forgery and lack of respect for self and others.

Requirements:  You are responsible for attending, participating in discussion, submitting a brief outline and narrative, and/or successfully completing a short quiz or assignment at the close of the session. The essay, outline or assignment/quiz must, of course, be your original work. The outline and essay (listed below) are due 3 working days after the meeting of the seminar (due on Sept. 23) by 5:00 p.m. in the Department of Philosophy office in CNH 411.

• Discussions during the meeting, possible short quiz or written assignment in class.
• Outline of a selected ethical theory (TBA)
• Essay on theoretical outlooks on academic integrity and honesty/dishonesty

Overview of Required Readings:

             The readings for the course are available online (see list below). Works include (but are not limited to) selections from the ethical theories of Aristotle, Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill. The works of Aristotle, Kant and Mill are available online.  You will need some of the following:

             1.Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, Books I, II, and III.  

Go to http://books.mirror.org

2.Kant’s Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, Sections I and II.  

Go to http://www.library.adelaide.edu.au/etext/k/k16prm/

             3.Mill’s Utilitarianism, Chapters 2 and 3.

Go to http://www.library.adelaide.edu.au/etext/m/m645u/

4. REQUIRED: Bernard Gert’s chapter on “Cheating” in the text, Morality: Its Nature and Justification. This text is available online through NetLibrary. Go to http://www.netlibrary.com. This service is available through the UCF Library. You must use on-campus servers, Pegasus, or connect with a proxy server as a UCF student to gain access to NetLibrary. Check the index and see esp. pp. 191-194 and (possible) handout during the meeting.

You will also find lecture notes on Aristotle, Kant, and Mill at the following URLs.

             1. Aristotle http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~stanlick/aristotleethics.html

             2. Kant http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~stanlick/kantethics.html

             3. Mill http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~stanlick/millethics.html

Other Works and Sites Relevant to this Course:

             a. UCFs Golden Rule Student Academic Behavior.   Go to http://www.ucf.edu/goldenrule/studaca.html

             b. Plagiarism: How to Recognize it and How to Avoid it. Go to http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/wts/plagiarism.html

             c. Buying Papers on the Internet??? Not a good idea. Go to http://www.schoolsucks.com and http://www.turnitin.com

             d. A simple statement of academic integrity. Go to http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~stanlick/acinteg.html

Consider these Questions:

• What is your reaction to the claim that if you cheat, you are only cheating yourself? How about this? When you cheat, you are cheating other students.
• If you buy a term paper over the Internet (or find one in a file cabinet, or borrow an old one from a friend), are you plagiarizing when you understand the material and re-write the paper in your own words?
• Which of these views of the justification of plagiarism or cheating most closely resembles your own?  If none of these are related to your reasons, what was your reason?

• What matters most is good grades.  That's one of the major factors in entrance to law school (medical, graduate, etc.).
• If I don't get good grades, my parents will cut off my funds.
• The subject matter of the course is too difficult for me, and I need the course to graduate.
• This class doesn't have anything to do with my major, so it doesn't matter if I cheat or plagiarize.  What's the point in knowing English literature when I want to get a job in technical writing (or whatever)?
• I had to study for a test (or tests) in another class and didn't have time for this one.
• I won't get caught, and it's easier to cheat on a test or buy/borrow/steal a paper than it is to put in hours and hours of studying/writing.  Anyway, I have more important things to do.

Additional Note: If you have any questions regarding this 2-hour seminar or its requirements, please contact me by e-mail at stanlick@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu . You may also stop by during my office hours for this term. They are listed on my website at http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~stanlick/ .