Academic Integrity Policy

Philosophy/Rationale:

Academic honesty/integrity  is highly valued at Redlands High School. Our school is committed to advancing the pursuit of intellectual excellence  and to maintaining the highest standards and expectations for academic integrity among all students. We believe in establishing a school  climate and educational environment that promotes ethical and responsible student conduct. Each student is responsible for helping to  keep this environment intact. Teachers and administrators at RHS understand that pressure to get good grades might create an incentive  to cheat. However, we are also certain that neither pressure for grades, inadequate time for studying or completing an assignment, nor  unrealistic parental expectations justify students acting dishonestly. As a professional learning community, we affirm that “learning for  learning’s sake” is intrinsically valued, and we will not tolerate any infractions that create or result in an unfair academic advantage for  one student or a disadvantage for another. Additionally, Redlands High School asserts the need to prepare our students for the reality  created by the technology explosion for the world of college and work, where cheating and plagiarism have dire consequences.  

What is academic honesty/integrity? 

Having academic integrity means valuing and demonstrating positive regard for  

• Intellectual honesty 
• Personal truthfulness 
• Learning for its own sake 
• The creations and opinions of others (i.e., intellectual property) 

You are acting with academic integrity to the extent that you demonstrate these values and in particular:  

• Take full credit for your own work, and give full credit to others who have helped you or influenced you, or whose    work you have incorporated into your own including AI-generated content.
• Represent your own work honestly and accurately. 
• Collaborate with other students only as specifically directed and authorized by your teacher. 
• Report breaches of academic integrity to a teacher, counselor, or administrator. 

In a nutshell, academic integrity means doing schoolwork honestly. Cheating is gaining an unfair advantage and is dishonest; plagiarism,  a form of cheating, is presenting someone else’s words or ideas as if they were your own. Students are sometimes legitimately unsure  about what is acceptable and what isn’t. Teachers should clearly communicate their expectations to students and make every effort to  avoid situations in which students are confused about how they are expected to meet assignment requirements. Likewise, if a student is  confused about what is unacceptable, they should consult their teacher before handing in the final version/draft of the assignment in  question. It is the responsibility of each teacher to clarify expectations about homework, research papers, and projects with their classes, preferably in writing on their course syllabi. It is the responsibility of the student to be aware of what constitutes any infraction in a particular course.

Examples of misconduct include but are not limited to:  

● Plagiarism: defined as the representation, intentionally or unintentionally, of the ideas, works, or work of another person without  proper, clear, and explicit acknowledgment (ex., properly citing information) 

● Collusion: supporting academic misconduct by another student, for example allowing one’s work to be copied or submitted for  assessment by another 

● Duplication of work: the presentation of the same work for different assessment components and/or core requirements (ex.  submitting the same work for two assignments) 

● Any other behavior that gains an unfair advantage for a student or that affects the results of another student (for example,  sharing assessment questions, disclosure of information to and receipt of information from another student about the content of  an examination via any form of communication/social media either before, during or after an exam/quiz). 

Examples of infractions include but are not limited to:

• Using unauthorized “cheat” notes, including notes on a cell phone, desk, or person  
• Looking at or allowing someone else to look at your own or another’s paper during any assessment  
• Repetitive missing of exams (without documentation such as a medical note), habitual absences on assignment due dates  
• Copying any class or homework assigned to be done independently, or allowing someone else to copy your own or another  

person’s work including lab assignments  

●    Submitting translation from internet translation programs  

• Copying of or closely paraphrasing sentences, phrases or passages from an uncited source for a paper, or for research, including  work submitted through turnitin®  
• Bringing unauthorized material into an exam room  
• Misconduct during an exam  
• Supporting or attempting to support, the passing on of exam related information   
• Failing to comply with the instructions of the adult facilitating the exam  
• Impersonating another student  
• Stealing an exam (before/during/after an exam)  
• Using an unauthorized calculator or other smart device during an exam  
• Deliberate exchange/copying of information from another student including during a test/quiz or of a lab write-up Flagrant copying of a secondary source, internet site, web-based information, and any work of another person - includes papers submitted through turnitin®  

● Attempting to obtain points by modifying a previously graded/turned in assignment 

● Giving or receiving test information to or from students in other periods of the same teacher    or same course  

● Submitting individual projects that are not wholly your own work 

● Involvement in a cheating conspiracy  

● Distributing unauthorized papers, labs or projects to other students  

● Air-Dropping and/or mass sharing or distribution of exam/quiz/assessment material to other students  

● Theft of assessment, instructional or administrative materials  

● Receiving payment or paying for unauthorized papers or projects 

● Altering grades on a computer database, gradebook, or returned work.   

RHS uses Turnitin.com. Turnitin is an originality-checking and plagiarism-prevention service that checks your writing  for citation mistakes or inappropriate copying. When you submit your paper, Turnitin compares it to text in its massive  database of student work, websites, books, articles, etc. The Similarity Report that it generates will help your teacher  identify possible instances of plagiarism. All RHS teachers who use Turnitin.com are trained to interpret the Similarity  Report in comparison to each student’s written document. This information is used to determine the percentage of  plagiarism in any written assignment.  

Consequences may include any of the following as determined by the teacher: 

• The student will have a reduction in grade/credit (up to and including “0” credit) on the assignment, lab, exam, test, or quiz based upon the teacher’s grading system; student MAY be given the opportunity to re-do assignment/assessment or per teacher discretion, an alternative assignment/assessment may be assigned. All assigned point values will be determined by the teacher.  
• The teacher will confer with the student and contact the parent/guardian by phone or e-mail to review the academic integrity incident within three school days of becoming aware of the incident.  
• A teacher may decline to write a letter of recommendation or report the infraction in a letter. A teacher may also rescind a recommendation letter after it has been sent.  
• The teacher will submit a written referral, with appropriate documentation, to an assistant principal who will meet with the student and counselor and document the incident/follow-up action in Aeries.

Disciplinary actions as determined by the administrator are progressive and may include one or more of the following depending upon the severity and/or instances of the infraction:

• After-school Campus Detention(s) 
• A verbal warning, and the student and parent will be required to sign the Academic Integrity Policy  
• The student may lose permissions to participate in or be placed on probation for extracurricular activities including but not limited to ASB, clubs, athletics, dances, rallies and academic programs (AVID, HEART Academy) 
• In the grading period directly after the incident, the teacher may mark “U” for the student’s Citizenship mark which could affect CSF eligibility
• If a college requires or requests information on cheating, the school may notify the college of any academic misconduct. For seniors whose class grade drops due to an infraction of the integrity policy, please take note that colleges may rescind  acceptances of students who earn a D or F in courses their senior year.  
• Exclusion from extra/co-curricular activities, including disqualification from Daisy Chain/Junior Usher.  
• NOTE: When appropriate, any violation may also be referred to law enforcement.  

PROCEDURES:  

Parents and students should understand that the teacher’s professional judgment, in conjunction with administrative guidance,  will determine whether a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy has occurred.  

 

Appeals Process: Students wishing to contest decisions/consequences resulting from an Academic Integrity Policy violation may  submit their written appeal to the school’s principal within 5 days of the initial consequence. 

 

The Academic Integrity Committee of Redlands High School gratefully acknowledges Del Mar High School and Fremont Union High  School District, whose policies Redlands High School has used as a model in formulating its own position on Academic Integrity. Revised and Reviewed by RHS Leadership Team 5/7/2024