Over 120 Harvard University students were recently accused of cheating – something Ohio University was forced to change their policy for when its own cheating scandal arose six years ago.
In 2006, more than thirty-five OU graduate students from the engineering college were accused of plagiarism, said Jenny Hall-Jones, interim dean of student affairs.
Although not mandatory, faculty members that catch their students cheating have the option to refer them to the Office of Community Standards and Student Responsibility.
The judiciary process includes a procedural interview and optional hearings and appeals, said Ardy Gonyer, assistant director for the Office of Community Standards and Student Responsibility.
Academic dishonesty is an A-level violation, meaning that students could face charges up to suspension or expulsion, Gonyer added.
“It’s a core value of an academic institution to do your own work,” Hall-Jones said.
OU’s cheating scandal forced the university to establish its honor code, which students began signing at the President’s Convocation last year to keep students more accountable, Hall-Jones said
“The honor code at Ohio University is set up into two parts — behavior and conduct out of the classroom and behavior and conduct in the classroom,” said Evan Ecos, chair of Honor Council.
OU e-Learning is exploring new options to reduce academic dishonesty for online classes. While most courses still use a proctor for exams, there are many technologies coming for issues of authentication, stating that digitally enhanced fingerprinting and webcam-based proctoring are not out of the question, said Deborah Gearhart, vice provost for e-learning and strategic partnership.
Although cheating is a serious academic offense, both Hall-Jones and Gearhart agree that sometimes blunders can happen.
“I also know that people make mistakes,” Hall-Jones said. “I think sometimes students can stumble upon plagiarism without realizing it.”
Gearhart believes that there is a tremendous amount of pressure put upon college students to perform well that can sometimes lead to poor decision-making, she said.
“We as educators must be conscious about not stressing [students] out too much,” Gearhart said.
bl171210@ohiou.edu
