Academic Honesty: Independent vs. Collaborative Assignments

Learning to work independently, and with others (collaboratively) are both important lifelong skills. In general, school assignments will be directed to develop either individual working skills (independence) or the ability to work in a group (collaboration). Teachers design assignments, projects and learning opportunities so that students have rich experiences in reaching their learning outcomes. 

If a student cheats, they are robbing themselves of the chance to learn and truly understand. To use outside help or materials not allowed in an individual assignment or test is cheating. If a student is unclear about whether an assignment is an individual or a group assignment, it is their responsibility to ask their teacher. Cheating is a serious offense, and parents are always contacted. Students will not be given credit towards reaching an outcome if it is confirmed that they are cheating. Their teacher will work with students and parents to determine how to make amends and what the full consequences could be. Consequences can include re-doing a test/quiz, hosting a face-to-face meeting with parents, and receiving a “No Evidence Recorded” in serious cases. 

Examples of Cheating/Plagiarism include:

  • Submitting someone else’s work as their own
  • Not giving credit (referencing) to a source of information
  • Submitting work that was completed by a parent
  • Copying someone’s work (with or without permission)
  • Allowing someone to copy work
  • Over-dependence of French-English translation software and producing work in French-English that does not reflect the actual level of student independent language use
  • Use of artificial intelligence (AI) applications, such as Chat GPT to over-inflate knowledge and skill levels; teachers utilize software tools to screen for assignment submissions which are not authentic samples of student work
  • Passing notes or getting/giving information from another student during a test or quiz
  • Getting information from another student who has already written a test or quiz

 

​​Plagiarism Policy

When ideas are taken from other sources without giving credit, this is known as plagiarism. Plagiarism is the unacknowledged use of somebody else’s words or ideas.

We expect our students to act with academic integrity, and to use their own knowledge to demonstrate authentic learning. We expect our students to be honest and ethical in their schoolwork and in how they deal with others. Our teachers support students' authentic and ethical learning through teaching when and how to cite resources, by using online tools like Turnitin, and a variety of other ways.

When To Give Credit in Your Work

Need To Give Credit​

  • When you are using or referring to somebody else's words or ideas from a magazine, book, newspaper, song, TV program, movie, web page, computer program, letter, advertisement, or any other source.
  • ​When you use information gained through interviewing another person.
  • When you copy the exact words from somewhere.
  • When you reprint any diagrams, illustrations, charts, and pictures.

Don't Need to Give Credit 

  • ​When you are writing your own experiences, your own observations, your own insights, your own thoughts, your own conclusions about a subject.
  • When you are using common knowledge, common sense observations, or shared information.
  • When you are using generally accepted facts.
  • When you are writing up your own experimental results.

Academic Expectations

Students are expected to behave according to the CBE Student Code of Conduct. Students who knowingly misrepresent the work of others as their own, or allow their work to be copied, act outside of the parameters of academic integrity. If this happens, we use Progressive Student Discipline so that teachers, parents, and school leaders can help students take responsibility for their learning to achieve their academic goals. ​