Student Integrity Violations in the Academy: More Than a Decade of Growing Complexity and Concern

Abstract

Academic misconduct in Canada is a growing and complex concern, worthy of increased attention and concerted action. Yet, the press appears to be more actively engaged (at least more vocal) in raising concerns about integrity violations than many in our post-secondary institutions. This chapter presents a synopsis of the seminal work by Christensen Hughes and McCabe (in the Canadian Journal of Higher Education 36: 1–21, 2006), followed by an exploration of its treatment by the press— in particular MacLean’s magazine—following its release. We also present select stories of student misconduct as reported by the Canadian press from 2010 to 2020. From a review of these contributions, we suggest that misconduct in the academy appears to be growing in complexity, severity and by the variety of third-party stake- holders involved. Types of cheating identified in this review include: the use of wearable, wireless high-tech devices for communicating with accomplices; paying (bribing) TAs for answers and inflated grades; exam impersonation; plagiarism; and contract cheating (customized essay buying from freelance writers and essay sweat- shops). Explanations provided in the press for these behaviours, include increasing numbers of international students, the proliferation of contract cheating services, and increased use of on-line assessment, resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. The chapter concludes with a call to action, for all post-secondary institutions, to a greater commitment to academic integrity, including stepping up efforts to educate faculty and students as well as to embrace innovation in assessment design and invigila- tion practice. We also suggest advocacy for introducing laws that will help to deter contract cheating services. Keywords Academic integrity · Student misconduct · Contract cheating · Media · Canadian · Assessment