STUDENT
PORTAL
Whitehouse upholds that academic integrity is an essential component in the foundation of scholarship and learning and is committed to fostering and maintaining a culture of academic integrity and honesty.
Students must always conduct themselves honestly and ethically and are expected to carefully acknowledge the work of others in their academic activities and creative endeavours, in the production of knowledge through authentic learning, research, scholarship, and avoid breaches of academic integrity related to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, cheating, collusion, fraud or unauthorised use of GenAI technologies.
Whitehouse students are required to be conversant with, agree and comply with the policy and procedure related to Academic Integrity, as they apply to them as learners in a course of study.
What is academic integrity?
The expectation that teachers, students, researchers and all members of the academic community act with honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility.
(TEQSA: What is academic integrity?)
What is Academic Misconduct?
It is behaviour which normally includes action taken with the intention of gaining an unfair advantage. It includes, but is not limited to, plagiarism, collusion, unauthorised use of GenAI, re-cycling or resubmitting work, cheating and fraud.
Types of Academic Misconduct?
Academic misconduct is a breach of the academic integrity policy, whether it is intentional or unintentional. It can take the form of:
- Using Generative AI (GenAI) tools and technologies that have NOT been approved for a specified assessment(s).
- Cheating: Copying from another student; impersonation in submitting own work for another student; engaging illegal contract commercial cheating services (e.g. “ghost writing’ as advertised on websites)
- Plagiarism: It is the action or practice of taking and submitting or presenting the thoughts, writings, or work of someone else as though it is your own work, i.e. without acknowledging, citing, or referencing the original source of the work
- Self-plagiarism: Submitting or resubmitting work that has been submitted and assessed (graded and returned) previously.
- Collusion: Presenting and/or sharing the product of unauthorised collaboration to an assessor as independent work, or knowingly allowing your work to be copied and passed off as the work of another person.
- Fraud: is a form of cheating that includes, but is not limited to, creating false data and falsifying collected data from systematic enquiry, experiment, research investigations, citing scholarship that does not exit (fabrication).
Why should students avoid academic misconduct?
Suspected breaches of academic integrity will be investigated and where proven can have serious negative consequences, depending on the severity level of the breach.
Contract cheating is illegal, an offense and can lead to serious financial and / or custodial penalties.
- It can leave students vulnerable to scams and blackmail by unscrupulous third-party academic cheating services in higher education
- It can cause serious personal reputational harm and future damage to employment prospects
- It compromises student learning and the acquisition of skills and knowledge
- It compromises the integrity of the qualification and harms the reputation of the education institution, and profession.
Thinking about committing academic misconduct?
- Carefully read the Policy, Procedure, and Student Academic Integrity Guide and become fully conversant with them.
- Consider the consequences!
- Don’t go down that path, instead talk to your teacher if you are having study problems, and
- Ask for help and work with your teacher to find a solution that avoids academic misconduct.
Useful Resources:
Whitehouse Academic Integrity Policy, Procedure
Whitehouse Student Academic Integrity: A short reference guide for students and teachers, June 2024
Whitehouse Assessment Policy and Procedure
Whitehouse Supporting Students Policy and Procedure
Understanding academic integrity | Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (teqsa.gov.au)
This section contains resources (forms; guides; handbooks) that support Whitehouse Policies and Procedures and that students can use when needed. The material is organised and grouped into three areas: (i) generic forms that apply to all students and courses; (ii) forms specific to Higher Education students / courses, and (iii) forms specific to Vocational Education and Training students / courses.