13. Linking Academic Integrity and Classroom Civility: Student Attitudes and Institutional Response

Abstract

This paper explores the notion that student behaviour regarding academic integrity and classroom civility are linked, and that intervention methods used to resolve classroom incivility may be used as a response to academic dishonesty. We advance the view that academic integrity and classroom civility refer to a student’s willingness to respect the rules and regulations of the institution; and that, acts of academic dishonesty and incivility refer to student behaviour in breach of institutional policy and/or not consistent with the social norms of the institutional culture (e.g., inappropriate human interactions). The perceptions and attitudes of first-year students toward academic integrity as they transition from high school to university are examined. Two hundred and thirty-nine first-year students volunteered to participate in this study. The preliminary findings of the open ended response regarding their observations and experiences with cheating and plagiarism in high school and in university are reported with a view to offer suggestions regarding institutional intervention strategies.