Academic Offenses in General & Organic Chemistry LabsUniversity of KentuckyDepartment of Chemistry

What is Plagiarism?

• Plagiarism is taking someone else’s words or ideas and passing them off as your own.

• It does not matter whether it was done intentionally or accidentally.

Plagiarism

• Plagiarism constitutes theft of intellectual property and is against the law.

• When you use another person’s words or ideas without an appropriate form of attribution, you are plagiarizing.

Examples

• The examples given in the presentation are not all-inclusive of every possible scenario for academic offenses.

• This list contains some of the more common problems that have been seen in the laboratories.

Examples Involving Data

• Changing quantitative or qualitative data to improve the outcome of the experiment

• Using data collected during a previous semester

• Using data from another student without written permission from the Laboratory Supervisor

• Using product from another student without written permission from the Laboratory Supervisor

Examples Involving Text

• Copying text from another student’s lab reports

• Student reusing their own text from a previous semester

• Sharing information and/or text with another student

• Failing to reference sources and use quotations marks when needed

Examples Involving Exams

• Bringing unauthorized material to an exam, whether it is used or not, including, but not limited to– Cheat sheets– Writing exam material on desk– Use of an electronic device – Storing information in calculator

memory

Other Examples

• Graphs, tables, images, and/or equations copied from another student (including lab partners)

• Copying and pasting images, reactions, equations, and/or mechanisms from lecture notes, websites, or other sources

Other Academic Offenses

• Falsifying an excused absence

Avoiding Plagiarism

• Student must carefully acknowledge exactly what, where and how he/she has used other’s work.

• If the words of someone else are used, the student must put quotation marks around the passage in question and add an appropriate indication of its origin.

Avoiding Plagiarism

• Making simple changes while leaving the organization, content and phraseology intact constitutes plagiarism.

• You must change both the words and the sentence structure.

• You must reference the source of information for paraphrased or quoted material.

Working with Lab Partners

• Regardless of whether experiments in the lab are done alone or with other students, lab reports are to be written individually.

Working with Lab Partners

• It is okay to work with other students to – Discuss the experiment– Work on calculations to the point of

understanding– Discuss the concept(s) being covered

• Once you understand the material, you should part ways and work independently to write your lab report.– Calculations in report should be your work– Create your own graphs, tables, drawings,

etc.

Penalties

• Rule 6.4 of the University Senate is contained in the Students Rights & Responsibilities.

• The rule contains a complete explanation of all procedures related to academic offenses.

• These rules were revised and went into effect in Fall, 2006.

Penalties

• Rule 6.4.3 grants discretion to the instructor in assigning a penalty.

• For students in General and Organic Chemistry Labs, the minimum penalty is a zero on the assignment and a reduction in the course grade by at least one letter grade.

• There will be a record of an academic offense in your academic record.

Penalties

• For more serious offenses, even if it is a first offense, the instructor can assign an E or recommend a penalty of XE for the course.

• A second offense will receive a harsher penalty as outlined in Senate Rule 6.4. The penalty for a second or subsequent offense will depend on the penalty of the previous offense(s), regardless of when or where the prior offense occurred.

Who is penalized?

• Penalties can be given to both the student committing the offense and any other student who is an accessory to the offense (i.e. providing the lab report, data, or product) regardless of intent.

Helping a Friend

• If you give your report or information to another student, they can forward the information to as many people as they choose without your consent or knowledge.

• Keep your work to yourself and help your friend by explaining a concept to them rather than giving them your work.

Detection

• Lab reports will be scanned against other reports submitted during the current and previous semesters.

• Teaching assistants will report any suspicious work to the laboratory supervisor.

• Proctors will be present at all exams.

Is it worth it?

• The Department of Chemistry takes this matter very seriously and will not tolerate academic offenses in any way.

• Without exception, academic offenses will be treated according to Rule 6.4 of the University Senate.

Worth losing your degree? Your job?

• If you plagiarize in college and don’t get caught before you graduate, you’re not safe.

• Your degree can be revoked if plagiarism is detected after you graduate.

Plagiarism after College

• A list of plagiarism cases can be found by clicking here

• Consequences include lost jobs, revoked degrees, tarnished reputations, and failed presidential campaigns.