Conference presentation
Addressing academic integrity through embedded interventions for novice mathematics students
SCU Scholarship of Learning and Teaching Symposium (Online, 08/11/2022 - 10/11/2022)
08/11/2022
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Abstract
Academics in pathway programs engage with students who may be academically less prepared than students in bachelor programs. These students bring forth a diversity of prior experiences, however, this can present challenges. Among international students, differences in academic practices can lead to behaviour that is acceptable in their home countries but deemed unacceptable at their new institution (McGowan & Lightbody, 2009). These differences can manifest in the form of academic integrity breaches (Song-Turner, 2008). Investigating such breaches can be challenging, depending on the assessment and discipline. While research in sciences has explored related mismatches in academic practices (Paxton & Frith, 2014), less exploration has occurred in mathematics (Seaton, 2019), where assessments are driven by procedures with a finite number of outcomes.
MATH1003 Quantitative Methods with Economics is offered within Southern Cross University s (SCU) Diplomas of Business and Hotel Management. Under the current assessment scheme, two tasks require students to present (i) calculations with explanatory summaries and/or discussions for given business scenarios (due end of Week 6); and (ii) a formal report addressing supply and demand in a business setting (due beginning of Week 4). Interventions have been embedded within MATH1003 workshops to reduce the likelihood of students being referred for academic integrity investigation for these tasks.
For the calculations task, referral can occur when summaries and/or discussions are deemed too similar to peers. To address this, students are asked to discern potential integrity breaches within three submissions for an exemplar question. The intervention for this task was introduced in 2018 and staged in Week 6 tutorials under SCU s former 13-week session-based teaching model (with the task falling due in Week 7). The timing of this intervention has changed with the transition to the Southern Cross Model, where the calculation task has replaced an examination task. The intervention is now staged in Week 6 workshops, ahead of the task due later that week. Despite this change in timing there continues to be a reduction in academic integrity referrals for this task.
The report task gives students experience in report writing in an authentic business context. To address potential academic integrity concerns in this task, students are asked to compare a submission for a similarly structured report against marking criteria and offer insights on report components where academic integrity concerns could arise. The low number of referrals for this task to date suggests this intervention also promotes awareness and practice of academic integrity within MATH1003.
McGowan, S & Lightbody, M. (2009). Another chance to practice : Repeating plagiarism education for EAL students within a discipline context. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 4(1): 16-30. https://doi.org/10.21913/IJEI.v4i1.193??
?Paxton, M. & Frith, V. (2014). Implications of academic literacies research for knowledge making and curriculum design. Higher Education, 67, 171-182. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-013-9675-z??
?Seaton, K. A. (2019). Laying groundwork for an understanding of academic integrity in mathematics tasks. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 50(7), 1063-1072. https://doi.org/10.1080/0020739X.2019.1640399??
?Song-Turner, H. (2008). Plagiarism: Academic dishonesty or blind spot of multicultural education? Australian Universities Review, 50(2), 39-50.?
Details
- Title
- Addressing academic integrity through embedded interventions for novice mathematics students
- Creators
- Michael Brickhill - Southern Cross University
- Conference
- SCU Scholarship of Learning and Teaching Symposium (Online, 08/11/2022 - 10/11/2022)
- Identifiers
- 991013143713802368
- Academic Unit
- SCU College
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Conference presentation
- Local Fields
- Evidence Based Practice - SoLT