Understanding Provincial and Territorial Academic Integrity Policies for Elementary and Secondary Education in Canada

Abstract

Research on academic integrity and misconduct in higher education is not difficult to locate, as work in this area has increased dramatically over the past several decades. Overall, findings reveal that cheating is a serious problem plaguing higher education with many institutions documenting various approaches to address the relevant issues. A careful look at this literature, however, exposes significant gaps in our understanding of academic integrity and misconduct in Canadian elementary and secondary (or K-12) education, which is problematic as behaviours practiced in these settings during the formative years may influence behaviours in later life stages. Furthermore, school policies, which reinforce expectations for students and teachers in the workplace are of particular importance as K-12 teachers arguably impact students’ approaches to academic integrity. This chapter focuses on key questions related to K-12 education in Canada: Do provincial and territorial ministries of education address academic integrity through policy for K-12 education? If these policies exist, what evidence demonstrates their influence on the implementation of academic integrity education at the school level? To begin to examine these questions, I conducted an environmental scan of Canadian ministries of education websites to identify academic integrity and misconduct policies. I found that only a few education ministries outline student expectations for academic integrity and consequences for misconduct or describe teacher responsibilities for providing academic integrity education and responding to academic misconduct (i.e., Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan). To conclude this chapter, I discuss the implications of the presence or absence of effective academic integrity and misconduct policies for K-12 education in Canada and beyond, the impact on higher education and advanced training, as well as avenues for future research in the field.

Conclusions and Future Directions for Academic Integrity in Canada

“…Similarly, although restorative practices have been discussed as one approach to addressing breaches of integrity, Sopcak and Hood's (2022) chapter brings new depth to the discussion. We also know that academic integrity at the K-12 level has received inadequate treatment, which Stoesz (2022) addresses in her chapter.…”

Academic Integrity Policy and Instruction in K-12 schools in Australia, Canada, England and the United States

“…For an AIP to be effective, it must be integral to the school curriculum and instruction (IB, 2019). and Stoesz (2022) proposed that an effective AIP should involve all the key stakeholders including students, teachers, parents and SLPs, and be embedded in the curriculum, rather than simply providing a list of rules and penalties or simply meeting a curriculum or accreditation standards.…”

“…Conversely, studies also claimed that in many K-12 schools, there is no formal policy on the ethical use of information (Hossain, 2020;Stoesz, 2022). Based on a study conducted by Hossain et al (2022) with 126 schools in 30 European countries, 74% of Primary, 51% of Middle, and 33% of High Schools do not have AIPs in place.…”

“…A clear, contemplative and comprehensive academic integrity policy (AIP) provides a solid foundation for instruction and helps create cultures of integrity in schools at all levels (Bretag et al, 2014). However, the literature highlighted the significant gaps in policy and instruction relating to academic integrity in K-12 (Hossain, 2020;Menéndez & Valle, 2018;Stoesz, 2022, Tauginiene & Gaižauskaitė, 2019Vieyra & Weaver, 2016). In study, 431 first-year university students representing 75 countries were surveyed, and he found that only 1 in 10 middle schools, and 1 in 5 high school students received academic integrity literacy (AIL) education during their K-12 years.…”

“…A comprehensive study conducted by Johansen et al (2022) of 1654 upper secondary students across 51 institutions located in six European countries found that students' understanding of core elements of academic integrity was inadequate. Stoesz's (2022) study reported that only one province and one territory in Canada have academic integrity policies out of its 10 provinces and three (3) territories. Australia, however, is in a better condition, with 77.5 % of senior secondary schools having AIPs in place, although most primary schools have not yet implemented AIPs .…”