Online Teaching

Academic Integrity

You may consider including an academic integrity statement as part of your online exam. This can help re-familiarize students with Dalhousie’s commitment to academic integrity and can be effective in dissuading students from engaging in dishonest practices.

There are two ways to use these statements (examples below show both versions):

As quiz questions in the pre-exam quiz, where students agree/affirm by providing an answer
As a statement in the exam cover sheet/description that is accessible before time starts for the exam

We recommend against having students answer an affirming question at the start of the exam itself because they will be worried about finishing the exam on time and may not read the statement carefully.

Sample AI Statements

The University Academic Honour Statement was developed by the Academic Quality Team (AQT).

University Academic Honour Statement:
Academic integrity is a commitment to the values of learning in an academic environment. These values include honesty, trust, fairness, responsibility, and respect. All members of the Dalhousie community must acknowledge that academic integrity is fundamental to the value and credibility of academic work and inquiry. We must seek to uphold academic integrity through our actions and behaviours in all our learning environments, our research, and our service.

Please indicate that you have read and understand the above.
[ ] Yes, I have read and understand

In this example from Mathematics, students select each statement to indicate their agreement. Notice how the statements refer to practices and tools specific to the course. You can adapt it to the practices and tools relevant to your course.

Academic Integrity Question

All members of the Dalhousie University community, which includes students, faculty, and staff, shall treat others with respect and fairness, be responsible and honest, and uphold the highest standards of academic integrity. By agreeing to the below, I absolutely state that all work submitted will be entirely my own and will not violate Dalhousie University’s Academic Integrity policy.

[ ] I understand that this test is open book, and I can use my class notes, textbook, and supplementary textbook-like materials (such as Khan Academy) for reference.

[ ] I understand that I may not consult with another person for help with the test, whether in person, online, or any other means (including posting questions online).

[ ] I understand that I am allowed the use of an approved scientific calculator but not one that has graphing or other linear algebra capabilities.

[ ] I understand that I am not allowed to use any resources (websites, computational engines, etc.) that can perform linear algebra operations or have graphing capabilities.

[ ] I understand that I am not to discuss the test with other students in the course until the 24-hour test period is over.

[ ] I understand that the work submitted on this test is to be my own.

This example lists what students are allowed to do (and what they’re not allowed to do) and students affirm they understand.

Academic Integrity Question
Academic integrity is a commitment to the values of learning in an academic environment. These values include honesty, trust, fairness, responsibility, and respect. All members of the Dalhousie community must acknowledge that academic integrity is fundamental to the value and credibility of academic work and inquiry. We must seek to uphold academic integrity through our actions and behaviours in all our learning environments, our research, and our service.

This is an open book / open course material test. This means

you may access Brightspace and all the course materials including material you produced as part of this course
you may not access other content or other websites
no communication with other students while taking the quiz

Please indicate that you have read and understand the above.
[ ] Yes, I have read and understand

The Dalhousie Academic Quality Team has developed an Academic Integrity Toolkit for Course Instructors, which details course and assessment designs that promote student academic integrity. This toolkit describes recommendations for course design; designing ‘traditional,’ open book/take-home exams, and alternative assessments; and the resources and process if you have a suspicion that dishonesty has occurred in your course.

Online Proctoring

Online proctoring software verifies student’s identity and monitors them while they write an online exam. Often, this monitoring includes recording them through their webcam and/or recording the activity on their computer screens.

It may seem that online proctoring software is a dependable way to ensure academic integrity but there are important considerations that should be taken into account before deciding to use this kind of technology. This type of monitoring:

Causes a great deal of stress for students.
Can be seen as an invasion of privacy – Online proctoring monitors students in their own workspace. There are valid concerns about disadvantaging students who live with others, have children, or do not have a private, quiet place to complete their exam. These students will unfairly receive flags of academic dishonesty.
Some online proctoring software uses artificial intelligence to monitor and evaluate student behaviour. That software has been shown to be biased in its accuracy across gender and race.
The session is recorded. Students have concerns about how long the data is stored, where it is stored, and who can access the recordings.
Adds another source for technical difficulties for students, including the need for fast, reliable Wi-Fi.
Is not foolproof – there are still many ways for students to be dishonest that cannot be captured by the software.

If you are required to use online proctoring software (i.e., mandated in an accredited program), it is critical that you inform students about the software:

Provide information about what data will be recorded and stored
Ensure all students have a clear understanding of the software’s privacy policy
Conduct a practice quiz before the actual exam to familiarize students with using the software, and address some of the stress, anxiety, and technical requirements known to accompany the use of this kind of software

See Appendix 5 in Communicating Online Exam Information to Students for an example of a statement that could be added to your exam description if you are using online proctoring software.