Academic Integrity

Profile

Beijing World Youth Academy (BWYA) is an independent, international, day school located in Beijing. Founded in 2001 with a small cohort of students studying the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, it has now grown into a large K-12 school with over 1100 students. BWYA has developed a reputation for academic excellence coupled with a strong sense of community. We educate students with English and Chinese as the main language of instruction, as well as with a commitment to the Chinese government education policies for national students. BWYA is authorised with International Baccalaureate Organisation (IB), Cambridge International Examinations (CIE), and accredited by Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). The school is also a member of Association of China and Mongolia International Schools (ACAMIS) and East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS).

Mission

Beijing World Youth Academy strives to provide members of our community excellent learning opportunities that incorporate critical investigation, exposure to different cultural perspectives and assessment against objective criteria. Our mission is to develop principled, open-minded thinkers who are capable of integrating with diverse international communities and who are empowered to shape their environs for the improvement of quality of life for themselves and others.

Values

As a school community, these are our values:

Compassion: We respect and empathise with the rights, opinions, culture and feelings of others.
Trust: We believe that honesty, integrity and reliability in ourselves and others, forms the cornerstone of our community.
Solidarity: We value harmony and oneness while recognising the individuality of each person in our community.
Collaboration: We recognise that the development of the student is the shared responsibility between the student, the family and the school.

Schoolwide Learner Outcomes

We have adopted the International Baccalaureate ® (IB) Learner Profile, which describes a broad range of human capacities and responsibilities that go beyond academic success, as our Schoolwide Learning Outcomes as part of our commitment to help all members of the school community learn to respect themselves, others and the world around them.

As learners we strive to be:

Inquirers: We nurture our curiosity, developing skills for inquiry and research. We know how to learn independently and with others. We learn with enthusiasm and sustain our love of learning throughout life.
Knowledgeable: We develop and use conceptual understanding, exploring knowledge across a range of disciplines. We engage with issues and ideas that have local and global significance.
Thinkers: We use critical and creative thinking skills to analyse and take responsible action on complex problems. We exercise initiative in making reasoned, ethical decisions.
Communicators: We express ourselves confidently and creatively in more than one language and in many ways. We collaborate effectively, listening carefully to the perspectives of other individuals and groups.
Principled: We act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness and justice, and with respect for the dignity and rights of people everywhere. We take responsibility for our actions and their consequences.
Open-minded: We critically appreciate our own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. We seek and evaluate a range of points of view, and we are willing to grow from the experience.
Caring: We show empathy, compassion and respect. We have a commitment to service, and we act to make a positive difference in the lives of others and in the world around us.
Risk-takers: We approach uncertainty with forethought and determination; we work independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies. We are resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges and change.
Balanced: We understand the importance of balancing different aspects of our lives — intellectual, physical, and emotional — to achieve well-being for ourselves and others. We recognise our interdependence with other people and with the world in which we live.
Reflective: We thoughtfully consider the world and our own ideas and experience. We work to understand our strengths and weaknesses in order to support our learning and personal development.

Rationale

Academic integrity is a core value at Beijing World Youth Academy and central to carrying out our school mission to develop principled, open-minded thinkers.

This policy explains how we understand academic integrity, and outlines the responsibilities and procedures in place at our school to promote a culture in which academic integrity is valued and expected of all members of our school community.

Guiding Principles

The policies outlined in this document are guided by the following principles:

We understand that learning, research and knowledge building are collaborative, social processes that iteratively build upon the ideas and contributions of others. We expect members of the school community to include the ideas and contributions of others in their work, and to give credit when they do.
Academic integrity is a quality and skill set that is developed over time. We thus have structures in place to support and educate students so that they can actively explore the ideas of others in a principled manner.
In order to treat students fairly, we ensure that the work we assess is indeed genuinely that of the respective students.

Policy and Implementation

This section outlines the responsibilities of stakeholders, support provided to students, procedures for investigating and responding to alleged instances of academic misconduct, and rights of students and guardians during accusations of academic misconduct.

Responsibilities

Students

Students are to be principled learners who demonstrate ownership of their work and acknowledge the ideas and contributions of others.
In the case where students are to incorporate the ideas and contributions of others into their own work, students are to clearly distinguish the incorporated ideas and contributions from their own work through the use of a clear and transparent system of citation and references.
Students are to take advantage of the systems we have in place to support them, such as submit a complete draft for feedback before a final version is due, and are to seek guidance from their teachers if they are not sure whether they are correctly acknowledging the ideas and contributions of others.
Students are to obey instructions of task creators, teachers, supervisors and invigilators.

Teachers

Teachers are expected to encourage academic integrity through example in their own presentations, notes and lesson plans.
Although the consequences of perceived academic misconduct need to be addressed, teachers should focus on on the benefits of academic integrity, both to students and others.
Teachers must provide clear, explicit instructions that explain the extent and type of collaboration and resources allowed for all activities and assessments they run.
In the case of work in which students are expected to incorporate the ideas and contributions of others in their work, teachers must give instructions or advice on appropriate citation methods and conventions to use, and include a draft stage, during which students have the opportunity to receive feedback on their and address any issues that may make it difficult to distinguish their own ideas and contributions from those of others before the final version of their work is due.
Teachers are to investigate cases in which (i) student submissions contain ideas or contributions that do not appear to be referenced, (ii) ideas developed or language structures do not appear to be representative of work previously submitted by the respective students, and (iii) data asserted to have been collected does not appear to be genuine.
Teachers are not to accept or assess work they do not, after investigation, believe to be authentic.
Teachers are to report perceived instances of academic misconduct to their respective programme coordinators and section principals.

Administrators

Programme coordinators are to publicize and promote academic integrity to students and teachers, and ensure that a support structure exists to raise student awareness of the requirements and expectations related to academic integrity.
Programme coordinators and principals are to support teachers who, after investigation, believe a student's work is not authentic. Coordinators and principals are to collect relevant evidence to support the accusations, arrange to meet the respective student and his or her guardians, and follow the procedures for dealing with academic misconduct as outlined in this written policy.
Programme coordinators are to ensure that the school community adheres strictly to the instructions and requirements of external assessment bodies, such as IB and IGCSE, where relevant.

Parents and Guardians

It is the responsibility of parents and guardians to be familiar with the school's stance on academic integrity, as outlined in this document.
Parents and guardians are to encourage their children to take advantage of the opportunities the school provides to support academic integrity.
In the case of academic misconduct, parents and guardians are expected to participate in the investigations and discussions initiated by the programme coordinators and principals, and to respect decisions made by the school in line with the academic integrity policy.

Support provided by the school

IB Middle Years Programme

Teachers play an active role in educating students during subject classes, particularly in areas like Science, Individuals and Societies (I&S), and English. They focus on imparting essential skills in transparent citation and referencing, which fosters a commitment to academic integrity.

The school views the MYP Personal Project as an opportunity for students to use learnt skills to produce a significant research-based product. It also serves to hone skills related to academic integrity, such as acceptable referencing and citation. Supervisors, led by an appointed Project Coordinator, work closely with students to provide required support and feedback. Further, the school publishes a Personal Project Handbook that contains relevant guidance.

IGCSE Programme

Cambridge International Global Perspectives coursework is designed to ensure continuity in the way the skills of research, analysis, evaluation, reflection, collaboration, and communication are developed. It challenges learners to explore and make judgments on the global issues that matter to them. Cambridge International expects the learners to undertake the coursework under teacher supervision and guidance. Cambridge International encourages teachers to supervise work to monitor progress continuously. Moreover, to make sure candidates avoid plagiarism by stating their sources and must advise learners on how to reference published materials according to their level of study appropriately.

IB Diploma Programme

The school organises a Diploma Programme retreat for students early in the first year of the Diploma Programme. During this retreat, presentations, activities and discussions are set up that explore many topics pertaining to success in the Diploma Programme, including:

A presentation that addresses the importance of academic integrity and explores the school’s academic integrity policy.
An activity that exposes students to examples of correct and incorrect citation methods.

Throughout the two-year DP studies, teachers proactively provide students with guidance and assistance in developing research skills.

Procedures

Detecting instances of academic misconduct

One of the responsibilities of each subject teacher is to investigate submitted tasks that do not appear to be the authentic work of students.

If a teacher suspects academic misconduct, investigation may take the form of:

Passing the work through an on-line service in the case of suspected plagiarism.
Having the student explain submitted work, redo selected sections or do similar tasks under close supervision to demonstrate that the work is indeed his or her own.
Closely observing the student and confiscating forbidden resources in the case of a test or exam.

Evidence collected and conclusions of investigations are to be shared with the respective programme coordinator and principal, who are to then arrange a meeting with the respective student and his or her guardians and take further steps as outlined in this document.

Consequences of academic misconduct

All instances of suspected academic misconduct are added to the respective student's internal school record. We do our best to treat a first instance of academic misconduct as an opportunity for learning and to keep the record internal. We treat repeated instances of academic misconduct more seriously, however, and we may share the information with other institutions, such as schools or universities the student may apply to, university counsellor may mention instances of academic dishonesty in student references to other schools and universities, and should mention such instances if explicitly asked.

Plagiarism

In order to help students avoid accidental plagiarism or plagiarism due to ignorance of citation methods, teachers are expected to include a draft stage in their tasks so that students may receive feedback and address any issues identified during the feedback. Students are responsible for taking advantage of this system by submitting a complete draft and addressing any issues before the final version is due. If the final version contains plagiarism, the procedure is as follows:

The work containing plagiarism is not assessed.
If a semester or term grade is dependent on the task then no grade is awarded, and the omission that will appear on the student's academic record along with a comment explaining the reason. This may have negative consequences should the student wish to use the report as a document, for example, during application for admission to another school or a university. The university counsellor is kept up to date on this information.
If the task is externally assessed or moderated, such as an IBDP Internal Assessment or an MYP Personal Project or e-Assessment, it will not be submitted by the school. This may result in a student not meeting the requirements for the respective qualification. Students who fail to meet the MYP requirements may be refused admission into the DP at the school.

How the school responds to plagiarism depends on the age of the student, the type of task (internal or external assessments) and the number of instances of academic misconduct on record for the student.

Grades 6-8

Instances of academic misconduct in grades 6-8 are generally seen as opportunities for the school to support and educate students. The importance of academic integrity and the consequences of academic misconduct are discussed privately with the student. If feasible the student is given the opportunity to redo the task under close supervision so that a grade may still be awarded. If the academic misconduct appears to be intentional or frequent the procedure for grade 9 - 12 may be followed.

Grades 9-12

For work that is assigned and assessed by the school, the procedure is as follows:

First recorded instance:

A meeting with the student, their guardians, the principal and the programme coordinator is set up during which the seriousness of the situation and potential future repercussions are addressed. The student is given support, advice on how to avoid academic misconduct in future tasks, and a warning about the consequences in the case of future instances of academic misconduct. If it does not give the student an unfair advantage, and if feasible, the student is given the opportunity to redo the task under close supervision so that a grade may still be awarded. Otherwise the task will not be assessed.
Second recorded instance:

For DP students, the student will not be registered to take exams in the subject in which which the plagiarism took place. The student may, under close supervision, continue to pursue certificates in other IB subjects. For MYP students, no term grade is awarded and the student is no longer eligible for an MYP certificate. For IGCSE students, the student is not allowed to take the IGCSE mock exam and will not be registered with CIE for the subject in which the plagiarism took place. In all cases, a second meeting is called with the student, their guardians, the principal and the programme coordinator to explain these consequences, to once again stress the importance of academic integrity and to provide further support.
Third recorded instance:

The student is asked to leave the school. If this is not feasible, the student may be allowed to complete the academic year at our school, but will only be eligible to sit internal examinations in order to get a Beijing World Youth Academy certificate of attendance.

For work that is assessed or moderated externally, tasks are not submitted and the student is not eligible for the respective qualification. In this case, the school’s response commences from that described in the second recorded instance above.

Misconduct during proctored tests or exams

The following actions during a test or exam are also considered instances of academic misconduct:

Copying answers from another student.
Allowing another student to copy answers.
Having unauthorized materials on one's person.
Any form of unauthorized communication or collaboration.
Disobeying the instructions of the invigilator.
Disrupting the test or exam.

For all grades, procedures and consequences analogous to those outlined for plagiarism for grade 9-12 students above are followed in response to such actions.

Student and guardian rights

All allegations of academic misconduct are to be investigated by the respective section principals and programme coordinators. During the investigation, students suspected of academic dishonesty or their guardians may submit a written statement describing the event from their point of view. All written statements are to be kept in the school’s student records along with the account of the incident.

In the case of suspected academic misconduct during a formal, externally assessed test, instructions regarding student rights provided in the relevant external organisation's documentation are strictly adhered to.

Questions & Answers

Which citation convention should students use?

The school does not view any citation convention, so long as complete information about the sources used in a task is provided, as inherently superior to any other convention. Teachers may, however, encourage or even require a particular convention that they feel is most suitable for a particular task. It is important, however, that the referencing convention selected by the student is used consistently throughout a given task.

Can students be assessed on tasks that they have already completed for previous assignments?

Although students may link new tasks to tasks that they have done previously (and provide suitable references), they cannot be assessed on work that has already been done before a given task is assigned. Students cannot, for example, reuse data that was collected as part of a previous task unless they have been explicitly instructed to do so by the subject teacher.

Can teachers award a zero grade to a task that contains instances of academic dishonesty?

No. Assessment at our school is as student and context blind as possible; grades awarded are based on the quality of submitted work according to appropriate criteria. Zeros are only awarded to accepted tasks (with no instances of academic dishonesty evident) that are of too poor quality to be awarded a score greater than zero.

The correct procedure for a task that evidently contains instances of plagiarism would be to not assess the task but to report the case to the programme coordinator and principal as described in this document. Please see the school’s assessment policy for more information.

What if unintentional plagiarism is discovered in a student’s work after the deadline?

If the negligence appears unintentional (for example, the student has attributed the work of others but in an incorrect way), if there is sufficient time, and at the discretion of the subject teacher involved, the student may be given a further chance to correct the identified problems. Task content may not be altered after the project deadline, however.

How can teachers demonstrate academic integrity?

Academic integrity is expected of all members of the school community, including teachers. Teachers are, for example, to include references and citations in their own work if necessary, including in their written course descriptions and presentations to students. Teachers are also to ensure that any displayed work does not contain images that are not referenced.