sidered as intentional. Such acts include representing work commissioned 64 from another person as one's own, representing work copied from another student as one's own, and representing work copied from another source, un- changed, as one's own. Graph 9 presents the relation of plagiarism and student cheating as a Venn di- agram. The scope of plagiarism as misconduct is at the intersection of actual plagiarism and student cheating. Electronic detection of plagiarism only ex- tends to such acts of plagiarism in simple text format whose sources are acces- sible to the PD software. PLAGIARISM AS ACADEMIC PLAGIARISM MISCONDUCT STUDENT CHEATING Plagiarism detectible by means of electronic detection Graph 9: Plagiarism, plagiarism as misconduct and student cheating. In the case of an identified act of plagiarism, it must be examined whether it is a question of plagiarism as misconduct. This examination can be performed through the concepts of legal assessment of intent, for example (Table 2). Unintentional act o The person committing the act acted in good faith , not in- tending to cause the consequence, and not perceiving the o consequence. Good faith means that the person was unaware of the ac- o tual state of affairs. Justified good faith means that the person does not, and is not presumed to know about, the actual state of affairs. Negligent act o The act involves breaching the duty to take care that the o person committing the act should have complied with. Neglicence may be the result of negligence or carelessness. o Gross negligence may be the result of callousness or gross carelessness. Intentional o The actual intent of the person committing the act was to act cause the consequence (determined intent dolus determi- natus ) o The person committing the act has realised that there will certainly be consequences, even though it was not the ac- tual intent (direct intent, dolus directus ) Table 2: Scale for grading the degree of intent in an act or attempted act 64 In this context, the concept “work” includes both the work required for producing the end result, and the end result (e.g. text) itself or part of it. 51
When assessing intent, it is very challenging to establish the boundaries be- tween intent and negligence and care and carelessness. It is not always possi- ble to gain sufficient information about the intent of the person committing the act, or whether he or she realised that the act would result in a consequence. 6.3.5 Forms of plagiarism related to study attainment Common forms of plagiarism related to texts include: • The source of a direct or indirect quote is not referenced. • A direct quote is represented as is, marked as an indirect quote. • A superficially modified direct quote is marked as an indirect quote. 65 • A reference is given so that its scope in one's own text does not cover the 66 • quoted section in full . A reference is marked as referring to the primary source, even though a secondary source was used as the source of the quote in question. The following examples represent some of the most common errors and de- fects in references that do not as such constitute forms of plagiarism: • The reference covers the scope of the quote but it refers to an incorrect • source of the incorrect point in the correct source. The details of the source given in the reference are not included in the • bibliography. Information provided in the bibliography about the source is deficient or • incorrect. The reference covers a section in one's own text that is larger than the 67 • quoted section . 68 A direct quote does not meet the criteria of the right to quote . Plagiarism in a study attainment does not require the plagiarised source to be of a standard exceeding the threshold of work, and targets of plagiarism may include not only published but unpublished sources as well. For example, in a typical case of peer plagiarism, a student presents as his or her own a work performed by another student for the same or a corresponding assignment. In 69 the case of dishonest cooperation (collusion) , a student presents work per- formed in collaboration with another person as his or her own individual at- tainment. In addition, freeriding in teamwork results in a situation where a student presents work performed by another student as his or her own. The form of presenting common knowledge is protected by copyright. There- fore, in the case of a direct quote of a word form, appropriate reference is re- 65 For instance, changes to the word order and/or the direct replacement of a few words with others constitute superficial modification. 66 A reference is given so that it covers one sentence only, even though the quoted section ac- tually covers several preceding sentences, for example. 67 The reference covers e.g. an entire paragraph in one's own text, even though only one sen- tence in the paragraph in question includes a quote. 68 The criteria for the right to quote are presented in section 6.2. 69 In English, collusion. 52
70 quired by copyright. For instance, in accordance with Hirsjärvi et al., “–– ide- as, lines of thought and word forms directly taken from another must be marked with references in the appropriate manner.\" In addition to texts, pla- giarism may target various visual and audiovisual productions, compositions, choreographies, speeches and other performances, product models, concepts, 71 graphs and the codes of computer software and similar creations . Some of the acts considered as plagiarism in study attainments can be regard- ed as unambiguous plagiarism as misconduct, regardless of the situation. Such 72 acts include representing work commissioned from another person as one's own, representing work copied from another student as one's own, and repre- senting work copied from another source, unchanged, as one's own. 73 This report divides the forms of plagiarism in study attainments into the fol- lowing subcategories: 1. Direct copying 2. Copying by way of paraphrasing 3. Freeriding in a teamwork assignment 4. Collusion 5. Self-plagiarism. Graph 10 presents the continuum of plagiarism in connection with study at- 74 tainments. The principles of ethical writing are supplemented in the graph by mentioning the right to quote. The scope of the concept of plagiarism in a study attainment includes both unintentional plagiarism and plagiarism as misconduct. Intentional plagiarism or plagiarism resulting from aggravated disregard are regarded as plagiarism as misconduct. Ethical writing is the method that complies with good scientific practice. In the case of plagiarism as misconduct, the misdemeanour is a serious one that violates the principles of good scientific practice. 70 Hirsjärvi, Remes & Sajavaara 2006, 111. 71 Peer plagiarism of computer software code is a typical example of the forms of plagiarism as misconduct related to study attainments. The issue is analysed in the following source: Silpiö (2012, 75–77). 72 In this context, the concept “work” includes both the work required for producing the end result, and the end result (e.g. text) itself or part of it. 73 Forms of plagiarism are specified in more detail in the following source Silpiö (2012, 72–73). 74 Roig 2006. 53
Ethical writing Plagiarism in a study attainment a. Text is the student’s own Unintentional plagia- creation. rism in a study attain- Plagiarism as misconduct b. References and ment Plagiarism in a study attainment, intentional or bibliography are in order. resulting from aggravated disregard c. Indirect quotes - Deficient referencing made by attempting due to acceptable lack - Direct copying to not distort the factual of knowledge or skills content. or minor - Copying by way of paraphrasing - Freeriding in a teamwork assignment d. Right to quote fulfilled negligence - Collusion in the case of direct quotes. - Self-plagiarism Graph 10 Continuum of plagiarism related to study attainment. : When examining the scope of the concept of plagiarism in a study attainment, self-plagiarism, freeriding in a teamwork assignment collusion and are at least to a certain extent border concepts . As such, they are not compatible with the highly general definitions of the concept of plagiarism. However, they are often included in the scope of the concept of plagiarism in international reference literature, particularly in the context of higher education. In the case of self-plagiarism, the original source is not used and mentioned in the appropriate manner. In the case of freeriding in a teamwork assignment and collusion, it is a question of adopting another person's work in one's own name. The inclusion of these three subcategories in the scope of the concept of plagiarism in a study attainment emphasises the importance of understanding the issue and guides students to adopt procedures compliant with good scien- tific practices. * 54
6.4 Recommendation for the harmonisation of basic concepts related to the management of plagiarism Supplement the set of concepts defined and legitimised in the RCR guidelines of the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity for the use of higher education institu- tions • Define or confirm the concepts required in dealing with suspected cases of plagiarism in study attainments in accordance with the basic definitions specified above: − − student cheating plagiarism as misconduct − plagiarism in a study attainment • Examine whether these perspective-related basic concepts can be included in the guide- lines maintained by the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity on responsible conduct of research and procedures for handling allegations of misconduct in Finland. If the concepts derived from the requirements of the teaching context are not suitable for the RCR guideline, defined on the basis of research activity, an owner and a model for maintenance and legitimation must be defined for the ethical concepts of activity during • studies. Implement a review of the guidelines for dealing with cases of misconduct in higher edu- cation institutions in the way facilitated by the use of these basic concepts, in line with the series of recommendations included in section 7.4, to the extent and on the schedule de- fined by higher education institutions themselves. 55
7. GUIDELINES FOR PLAGIARISM MANAGEMENT AND THEIR USAGE IN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS IN FINLAND Anna Johansson, Elizabeth San Miguel, Totti Tuhkanen The incentive for the systematic comparison and development of guidelines for dealing with cases of cheating came up in several universities in the early years of the 2010s, as the first PD acquisition projects began to collect com- parative data about administrative practices and the ethical guidelines that support them in universities. Since ethical guidelines and the processes for examining cases of cheating were found to be described at a fairly general level in universities, they did not provide sufficient support to guide the use of electronic detection systems. Some guidelines related to ethical procedures were also limited to a certain subject or discipline only, not integrated with other normative guidelines in the higher education institution. Therefore, the administrative and ethical guidelines had to be updated to ena- ble them to support the inclusion of a new quality assurance procedure as a part of guidance and assessment processes. It was not easy to find owners for the reform or content experts to implement it. In research, the Guidelines of the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity were already used compre- hensively, but in education, the procedural guidelines and procedures had to be specified because the guideline of the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity does not include rules for dealing with cases of cheating related to the various forms of study attainment. 7.1 The use of PD systems creates the need for harmonising procedural guidelines By the end of 2013, most universities are using fairly recent and uniform guidelines for dealing with student cheating. The situation varies more in uni- versities of applied sciences, due, for instance to the introduction of PD sys- tems as early as in 2009. Now that the software tools have been in use for five years, it is natural that updating is required. Whether the use of electronic detection of plagiarism is obligatory or not var- ies by higher education institution. In some institutions all theses related to degrees, from bachelor's theses to doctoral dissertations are required to un- dergo a PD procedure. Some higher education institutions have started with PD checks of master's theses, and are gradually expanding the requirement to postgraduate degrees, lower-level theses and study attainments. The policy of some higher education institutions is that the use of PD systems is “possible” in connection with theses. The broad rules for use undermine the realisation of qualitative benefits and risk management that PD systems aim for. It may also increase levels of stu- dent inequality if the electronic checking of theses can be agreed on a case- by-case basis. The result of a PD check determines more categorically wheth- er a thesis is valid than other types of quality assessments. 56
Different rules for use cause friction in operational processes between higher education institutions. For instance, the preliminary examiners and the oppo- nent of a doctoral dissertation should be able to trust in the originality of the text being checked by the doctoral candidate's home university and that no re- sources need to be allocated to verifying the authenticity of the data. The pre- liminary examiners and the opponent should also have access, by request, to the background data provided by the PD report. In some cases, the preliminary examiners have completed the information in the official originality report of a doctoral thesis with an analysis performed using the PD system of their own university. Situations in which an analysis performed using another system has produced a significantly different – e.g. seven times higher – number of equivalence hits in comparison with the re- sults from the doctoral candidate's home university have raised questions re- garding inequality between students. The degree of reliability of the PD check report depends directly on the comprehensiveness of the PD system's refer- ence databases. The constantly evolving operating environment and the need to apply new good practices create pressure to revise and add to the guidelines on an almost annual basis. For instance, the Aalto University Code of Academic Integrity and Handling Violations Thereof guidelines were revised after a survey in autumn 2013. The previous version had been introduced in 2011. Similar “quick up- dates” are being prepared by other higher education institutions that have co- operated in a network. Therefore, many reasons justify the national, even international harmonisa- tion of guidelines for dealing with student cheating, including 1) the attempt to treat students equally, 2) the attempt to introduce more streamlined pro- cesses between higher education institutions in student affairs management of exchange students, Flexible Study Rights Agreement (JOO) students and postgraduate students, 3) enhancing qualitative monitoring and comparabil- ity, and 4) the broad-based introduction of good practices. However, this continuous monitoring, assessment, research and training pro- ject is lacking an owner unless the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integ- rity expands its operations into this area. The currently fragmented area would need a competent owner that would also take on the comprehensive re- sponsibility for development. Plagiarism management procedures should also be included in the audit pro- cedures of the Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC), as stated in the recommendations of the IPPHEAEN national report for Fin- land. 75 In connection with the necessity to assess the current operating models, the need to profile the operations of the Finnish Advisory Board on Research In- tegrity has been raised as a topic of discussion. Its role as supervisor and pro- vider of support in the 2010s meets with a rapidly increasing number of new 75 Glendinning (auth.) 2013: Plagiarism Policies in Finland. Executive Summary . IPPHEAE 2013, 1.3. 57
expectations, which are difficult to fulfil based on today's resources and ser- vice model. An external assessment might help the Advisory Board to profile its operations and prioritise its objectives. 7.2 Targets of development in the content and structure of guidelines related to PD activities For the purposes of this report, universities of applied sciences and universi- ties were requested to provide a description of their ethical rules and instruc- tions for dealing with cases of academic misconduct. The responses indicate that the instructions of universities were fairly uniform with regard to refer- ences to the Universities Act, university values and the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity's guidelines of good scientific practice, particularly in terms of concepts. The consequences for academic misconduct generally in- volved the rejection of the study attainment and the disciplinary sanctions de- fined in the Universities Act. Several universities also issued cautions. The pro- cesses for dealing with cases of academic misconduct were mainly centralised at the unit level, the faculty or similar, and the dean was responsible for sub- mitting severe cases for consideration by the rector. Descriptions of rules in universities are summarised in appendix 2. The same questions did not produce comparable responses by universities and universities of applied sciences. The comparison of universities of applied sci- ence revealed that in many of them, academic misconduct and its statutory consequences are briefly mentioned in the degree regulations. Under the Poly- technics Act, students must be heard when examining the matter. The rector decides on written warnings issued to students and the Board of the university of applied science on fixed-term suspensions. Some universities of applied sciences provide detailed instructions for dealing with cases of academic misconduct. Depending on the university of applied sciences, the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity's guidelines of good scientific practice are mentioned either in one or several documents. The number of documents, their titles, coverage, content and method of presenta- tion vary greatly from one university of applied science to another. Such doc- uments include the degree regulations, rules for the evaluation of study at- tainments, the ethical principles, the ethical guidelines for studying, the ethical issues in the thesis, thesis instructions, guidelines for ensuring good scientific practice, Urkund instructions, instructions for dealing with cases of academic misconduct and instructions for processing disciplinary matters. The definition of concepts used in the guidelines is mainly based on the guide- lines of good scientific practice, to which the article by Kari Silpiö in Chapter 6 introduces an additional conceptual analysis, useful with regard to the needs of universities of applied sciences. Not all universities of applied sciences have a board on research integrity or other corresponding body. Moreover, the board's composition and duties vary between universities of applied sciences. A common difference lies in whether the board handles cases of academic mis- conduct or the preliminary examinations of research plans with regard to re- search integrity. The material did not reveal the practices for the collection of 58
statistics on cases of academic misconduct. However, the survey did reveal that not all universities of applied sciences have clear policies or instructions for the utilisation PD systems. The guidelines of both universities and universities of applied sciences includ- ed the most variation in procedures for the storage, registration, archiving and reporting of analysis material. Only three universities in Finland compile systematic statistics of cases of aca- demic misconduct. Most higher education institutions described the preven- tion of academic misconduct in a fairly general way. Good scientific practices are mainly taught in various courses and seminars. Some higher education in- stitutions provide special courses on the topic. 7.3 Context of guidance Deficiencies in the availability and presentation of guidelines may restrict their use and efficiency. In terms of the functionality of the guidance system, quality awareness and cooperation with education groups and stakeholders, it would be useful if all guidelines concerning good scientific practices in research and education were maintained in an open, accessible network. In fact, most uni- versities' guidelines were available on open websites, but universities of ap- plied science were more likely to keep them on their intranet. One comprehensive document may be a sensible solution as regards the integ- rity and centralised maintenance of the guideline. On the other hand, commu- nicative and operational needs justify the division of content into functional sub-entities. In many cases, the solution is to describe the regulations for good scientific practice and acting ethically in one entity, and the process for exam- ining suspected cases of academic misconduct in another. In some cases, the ethical obligations have been tailored by publishing sepa- rate guidelines for teaching and studying. For instance, the University of Oulu and the University of Turku have published the ethical instructions of learning in a concise format, as a poster for teachers and students. Each electronically detected case of plagiarism is a violation of these ethical guidelines, based on the university's strategy, the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity's guidelines of good scientific practice and the Universities Act. The guidelines are the operational spearhead of controlling plagiarism and in a concise for- mat, they can be included in course instructions and the instructions for using the PD system. 59
Image 6: The University of Turku published posters of the ethical instructions for learning, and these are placed in all teaching premises. Objectives are described side by side for teachers and students. New Finnish and international students receive a pocket version of the ethical guidelines. The layout of guidelines can be implemented in many ways to form a well-functioning, com- municative entity. Good examples include the different types of software solutions of Arcada University of Applied Sciences, HAMK University of Applied Sciences and JAMK University of Applied 76 Sciences. Recommendations for higher education institutions in Finland, based on a comparative analysis of the structure, coverage and accessibility of guidelines, are summarised in a list of nine goals in section 7.4. 76 E. San Miguel: Kolme esimerkkiä hyvistä ohjauskäytänteistä ammattikorkeakouluissa 2013. 60
7.4 Recommendations for higher education institutions for training students to act ethically and for instructions for dealing with cases of academic misconduct Recommendation 1: COMMON CONCEPTS IN GUIDELINES : • The main concept is student cheating, with the sub-concepts of plagiarism in a study attainment, cheating in exams and cheating in attendance. Student cheating is a general concept that the sub-concepts do not comprehensively define. Recommendation 2: UNDERLYING KEY VALUES AND REGULATIONS MENTIONED • The Universities Act and the Polytechnics Act • The Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity's guidelines on the responsible conduct of research and procedures for handling allegations of misconduct in Fin- land 2012, professional values and principles of research integrity (incl. data pro- • tection in research) Act on the Openness of Government Activities, requirement for open science • POLICY: Ethical principles and ensuring learning in studies, equal opportunities, cheating should never be advantageous. Recommendation 3: ACCESSIBILITY OF POLICY AND GUIDELINES • Guidelines published on the open Internet, where all actors in the higher education institution have access to them, the institution's policy communicated to stake- • holders as well as the general public Key instructions published in Finnish, Swedish and English. Recommendation 4: PREVENTION, FACILITATING PROPER CONDUCT • The instructions describe good scientific practices and ethical conduct in studying, including key values and concepts (academic integrity), concrete reference tech- niques and principles for teamwork. Recommendation 5: ETHICAL PRINCIPLES INCLUDED IN THE CURRICULUM • Concepts related to student cheating in the Finnish Advisory Board on Research • Integrity's RCR guideline are included in teaching Information literacy, scientific writing, good scientific practices and the higher ed- ucation institution's expectations for students are included in students' education • at the degree programme level The requirements of ethical principles are taken into account in all degrees, at var- ious stages of the study path and study modules. Recommendation 6: ENSURING THE EFFECTIVE INDUCTION OF TEACHERS • Ensure that teachers clearly understand the significance of ethical conduct in • teaching and research in higher education institutions. Teachers are provided with precise instructions, competence goals and training, particularly in the prevention and identification of plagiarism. 61
Recommendation 7: ENSURING EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES IN EXAMINING SUSPECTED CASES OF STUDENT CHEATING • The authority and responsibilities of actors are defined • To ensure equality, the management of the process for examining suspected cases of student cheating is centralised with certain parties in the higher education insti- • tution The teacher concerned provides a report in the process, but he or she is not re- sponsible for managing the entire process of investigating suspected cases of stu- • dent cheating The principal method of hearing the student is oral to ensure interation to ensure • interaction The stages of the Investigation process are documented, a form or instructions for • reporting suspected cases of cheating are available All parties to the process have the right to demand rectification at the conclusion • of the investigation process Statistics are always compiled about the cases, excluding all personal information, and organisational level statistics are published. Recommendation 8: CONSEQUENCES ARE COMMENSURATE WITH ACTS COMMITTED AND DISCOURAGE RECIDIVISM • Failing a study attainment is not usually a sufficient consequence for cheating. A student also fails a study attainment when the detected misconduct is the result of always • failing to attain set learning objectives. subject to a sanction: the student is issued Detected cases of cheating are • at least a caution if cheating is detected. The consequences must be in proportion with the act committed: severe or recur- ring cheating results in a caution or being suspended for a fixed term. Recommendation 9: APPROPRIATE RETENTION PERIODS FOR DOCUMENTATION • Retention periods are documented in the higher education institution's record management plan/Archives Formation Plan (AFP): a sufficient retention period • must be observed Reports on electronic detection of equivalence are retained for short periods (e.g. one year) when they are not related to suspected cases of cheating, but longer if • they constitute part of the thesis assessment process Material concerning the investigation of cheating is documented and retained for a • sufficient period, which facilitates the compilation of statistics (e.g. 5 years) Material concerning a disciplinary punishment will be retained for a sufficient pe- riod (10 years at least) rather than permanently. 77 1/2014 77 Recommendations prepared by Aalto University lawyer Anna Johansson. 62
8. NEED FOR GUIDANCE AND ASSESSMENT OF THE GUIDANCE SYSTEM Markku Ihonen 8.1 Why must good scientific practice be taught? A university graduate is expected to be able to critically read, utilise and at least on a small scale, conduct research in person. The mastering of good scien- tific practice is an integral part of research. Good scientific practice (GSP) is described in the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity's guidelines Responsible conduct of research and procedures for handling allegations of misconduct in Finland (2012). In accordance with the guidelines, “Universities and universities of applied sciences should ensure that their students are well versed in the principles of the responsible conduct of research and that the teaching of research integrity is integrated into their graduate and postgraduate programmes.” The importance of teaching good scientific practice is also motivated by the mission to educate under section 2 of the Universities Act. Due to the changing media environment and new ways of using the media, us- ers are required to learn specifically how another person's work can be pre- sented in one's own literary, visual, audiovisual or other work. The deficient or at least variegated skills provided by basic education requires higher education institutions' particular responsibility for teaching good scien- tific practice / responsible conduct of research. Moreover, the number of stu- dents from other countries is increasing in higher education institutions. Their culture may involve different ideas of using text produced by another person as part of one's own text. The teaching of good scientific practice is also essential in order to prevent cheating and disregard in advance. If a student does not receive teaching in good scientific practice and its violations, one cannot presume that he or she would invariably know whether an example of intended conduct is proper. In that case, subsequent sanctioning may be unreasonable. 8.2 Preventing plagiarism in teaching Ensuring compliance with good scientific practice in theses and other study attainments constitutes an essential part of quality management in university education. The originality of work lies at the core of good scientific practice: When the student claims to have written the work he or she presents as his or her own, it really must be original.” Plagiarism is a serious violation against good scientific practice. Universities and certain other information organisations use electronic detection of the originality of text in order to detect plagiarism. However, educational institu- tions must focus on the teaching and learning of good scientific practice in- stead of subsequent control and sanctions. 63
Familiarisation with previous research, and its use in one's own work, is inte- gral to research. Utilisation requires appropriate referencing in accordance with the practices adopted by the branch of science and forum in question. One cannot learn scientific writing practices only by reading scientific texts. The idea of outcome-based curricula, generally adopted in Europe and advo- cated for instance in the the national framework for qualifications and other learning , emphasises the development of skills and attitudes parallel to in- creasing knowledge. In teaching good scientific practice, this means the follow- ing: knowledge can be provided, skills must be practised, and attitudes de- velop as the issue is systematically and naturally kept at hand, through genu- ine discussion and teachers' own example. It is important to point out that when students begin studying at a higher edu- cation institution, they are not required to master the scientific writing prac- tices . Also, the right to make mistakes is inherent in the learning process. Once the learning process has reached the stage when the student concludes a thesis independently, but under the teacher's guidance, the student is required to know how to use sources and mark references appropriately. 8.3 Good scientific practice in a curriculum and syllabus In order to ensure learning of good scientific practice, it is essential that the learning objectives for good scientific practice on the degree, study module and study unit level are recorded in the curriculum. The preparation of curric- ula must recognise the key study units in which students particularly focus on familiarising themselves with good scientific practice and on learning how to apply it. After that, the concrete methods for teaching and guidance must be planned for supporting the student's learning process. The assessment of learning is also planned so that it also covers the mastering of good scientific practice. A curriculum document on its own is not sufficient for ensuring student com- petence. Instead, practical teaching must ensure that the knowledge, skills and attitudes of all students develop sufficiently to enable their ethical conduct in studies and research. This can be achieved through suitable teaching and guid- ance methods, students' learning efforts, management of teaching, teachers' cooperation and feedback from students. The table on page 65 presents a general model for recording learning objec- tives per study level as part of a bachelor's and master's degree. The figure contains examples of some teaching and guidance methods that support stu- dents in learning. The recommendations for higher education institutions in educating students in ethical practices and the handling of violations are part of a broader entity, in which the best practices in higher education institutions were charted in the EU-financed IPPHEAE project in 27 European countries in 2012–2013. The in- 64
78 terim report on Finland repeats, as recommendations for the prevention of plagiarism in higher education institutions, the list included in Kari Silpiö's 79 Master’s thesis (here, regrouped with sub-headings): Aims, objectives and means • Aims and objectives for the policy related to student cheating an plagia- • rism Means for preventing and reducing student cheating and plagiarism Policies • Definitions of student plagiarism and student cheating • Plagiarism statement • Responsibilities for administration, teachers, library/informatics and students Processing and monitoring of cases • Process definition and clearly written instructions for processing stu- • dent cheating and plagiarism cases Plagiarism tariff for determining uniform sanctions • Creating statistics on student plagiarism and cheating Learning • Defining how students should learn to avoid plagiarism. • Educating staff and students on plagiarism and the plagiarism policy. 78 http://ippheae.eu/project-results. 79 Silpiö 2012. 65
8.4 Recommendation for training in good scientific practices at the various stages of study path 80 9/2013 80 The use of PD and training for use at different stages of studies. The model describes, on a general level, the needs and objectives for knowing good scientific practices at the various stages of studies at higher education institutions, and the usability of PD (= PT) in support of learning. The model was prepared by: Markku Ihonen, Elizabeth San Miguel, Irma Mänty, Anne Nevgi, Sanna Suoranta, Sari Tervonen and Totti Tuhkanen. 66
8.5 Protecting the teacher's work Violations of ethical principles and standards burden the university communi- ty, and student cheating is seen as a serious violation of joint values and ethos. However, teachers report that it is not easy to intervene in cheating. Reasons may include the vagueness of the phenomenon, ambiguity of one's personal role and responsibility, insecurity about the proper procedure, unwillingness to undertake the additional work involved in the investigation process, the fear of damaging the reputation of the higher education institution or unit or oneself, and other awkward thoughts and emotions. In addition, it is usual for plagiarism to be detected in a thesis, which easily leads to doubts concerning the quality of supervision provided. However, ob- servations indicate that in many cases the problem does not lie in deficient thesis supervision. According to students' reports, the quality of guidance var- ies considerably between teachers and units, but the appropriate use of the texts of others is always taught in seminars. In fact, the inclination of an individual student to engage in unethical conduct while studying often dates back to earlier times, even to previous stages of ed- ucation, or the student has independently chosen to cheat when writing the thesis. Reasons provided by students for misconduct include thoughtlessness, hurry or study pressure. Sometimes, difficult situations in life may lie in the background, such as their own ill health or that of a child, or financial trouble. However, no reason presented by a student can justify unethical conduct in studies. The higher education institution must provide support to students so that they have the courage and know how to ask for assistance when they find themselves in the situation of not being able to cope with assignments or stud- ies in general. In addition to information and guidance material, a benevolent and humane learning environment is a must. All members of the community are responsible for creating such an environment. The consequences of student plagiarism for teachers have not been sufficiently discussed and not much information has been available about them. The issue has been studied recently at the University of Helsinki, for example by Erika 81 Löfström and Anne Nevgi. Students' ideas about plagiarism are studied by Maija-Leena Huttunen in her recent master's thesis titled “Missä se raja 82 menee\" (Where's the limit). Plagiarism is placed in a broad operational con- text along with its interactive relations by the Academy of Finland project led by Löfström, “Teaching and Learning Academic Integrity in Social Sciences” (2011-2016). Plagiarism causes awkward feelings in the person who supervised the thesis or other work by a student. The situation may create strong negative emotions and thoughts that involve not only the student, but often also the teacher. 81 Anne Nevgi & Erika Löfström: “Plagioinnin kohtaaminen – yliopisto-opettajan näkökulma”. Abstract in the publication: Kasvatus & vuorovaikutus. Kasvatustieteen päivät 2012 , s 257. 82 Huttunen, Maija-Leena, (2013): \"Missä se raja menee\" Focus group study on students' ideas about plagiarism. Master's thesis in educational science. Institute of Behavioural Sciences. Uni- versity of Helsinki. 67
When plagiarism is detected as late as when the thesis is completed, the re- viewer of the work is the one who detects it. This may be another person, not the supervisor, or someone who reads the paper later. Emerging suspicion creates negative emotions in the supervisor of the paper, regardless of wheth- er he or she is criticised or suspected of poor supervision and guidance. Teachers need clear instructions for situations in which a student supervised by them is suspected of academic misconduct. When the higher education in- stitution has ensured that students receive sufficient information and training in writing texts in an ethically sustainable manner, it must be ensured that the teacher having supervised the work is not suspected of negligence in guiding the student without due cause. Instead, competent support must be provided for teachers. Such support must be easily accessible whenever teachers need it. The systematic use of the electronic plagiarism detection eases the mental burden of teachers. The use of such systems must be supported through or- ders and instructions issued by the management of the higher education insti- tution and open communication. 8.6 The use of electronic plagiarism detection software in teaching Electronic systems for the detection of plagiarism can be utilised in diverse ways in the teaching of scientific writing, above all in the marking of refer- ences. Students can enter their own texts into the software and read the report it generates. On the basis of the report, they can complete and correct the marking of references. When teachers review the same report, they can provide guidance to the stu- dent, possibly by using the tools in the PD software. Students can enter text in the PD system for repeated checking without saving it in the repository. Units responsible for teaching must ensure that all students have access to the soft- ware, at the latest in their thesis seminar. 8.7 Introduction of electronic detection of plagiarism and communicating about it in higher education institutions Finnish higher education institutions are committed to ethically sustainable procedures and have decided to intervene in cases of misconduct in studies, teaching and research, and process these in accordance with rules and regula- tions. This determined approach must be visible on the higher education insti- tution's website and other key communication material and the regulations and instructions issued by the management. When introducing electronic detection of plagiarism, the starting point should be to teach and learn good scientific practice, in which PD software can be highly useful. The tool can be used in diverse ways, for instance in providing all types of guidance feedback and even in finding missing references. As soon as the use of an electronic PD software tool becomes an everyday part of writing by students, it is no longer feared. 68
One of the key principles to be communicated is that all activities in a higher education institution, as in human communities at large, are fundamentally based on trust between actors. As a rule, no one is suspected of unethical con- duct, and an atmosphere of doubt is not invoked. Higher education institutions benefit from a communication strategy for the electronic detection of plagiarism. Openness is vital. It involves listening to all opinions, including reserved and negative ones. Communications should be linked to the PD service website, with free access to all members of the higher education institution's community. Since monitoring of the quality of teaching and research are integral to the quality control of the higher education institu- tion, a general open website about the topic is essential. 69
8.8 Recommendation for the assessment of ethical guidelines, plagiarism detection guidelines and guidelines for good scientific practice based on questions from several actor perspectives The following example of a series of questions enables the improvement of good scientific practice teaching methods and normative guidance procedures. Each party involved – the student, teacher and teaching organisation – should answer these questions for their part. If there is no answer, or the answer ap- pears to be unsatisfactory, there is room for development in the respondent's preparedness and procedures. Content-related viewpoints include good scien- tific practice, teaching of good scientific practice, and the management and monitoring of the process for examining cases of fraud. 1. The student asks 2. The teacher asks 3. The the higher education in- – the teacher* replies – the higher education insti- stitution asks tution** replies – the teacher*** replies • If I'm uncertain about the ethicalness of • What should I know about the princi- • At which stage of studies do you a course of intended conduct, who ples, rules and instructions of my provide induction for your students in should I turn to for support? higher education institution regarding good scientific practice and ethical good scientific practice in studying conduct in studies? • If I am alleged of cheating, how is my and research, and cheating or disre- personal legal protection as a student gard – and where can I get this in- • How does your subject ensure that and privacy protection secured in the formation? teachers' practices in teaching good examination process? Who can I turn to scientific practice and assessing the for information about my rights? • What kind of goals should I set for originality of students' texts are ade- teaching and guiding good writing as quately uniform? • What should I do if I find out that a part of my work? member of the higher education institu- • Do you know how to utilise a PD tion community has acted deceitfully, if • Where can I turn to for support in system as a teaching tool in teaching the staff does not intervene in a sus- using a PD software tool and inter- and practising scientific writing? pected case, or if I find out that some- preting the report generated by the one has used my text without permis- software? • How do you ensure that you are sion? treating your students equally with • How do I know where and how I regard to checking the originality of • What should I know about my higher should initiate an investigation pro- their texts? education institution's operational prin- cess (on the basis of a report on PD ciples, rules and instructions concerning results) and where do I get support • Do you know what to do if you sus- fraud in studying and research, proving for this? pect student cheating? it and the investigation process of fraud • Do you know how cases of suspected cases? • Where can I get support for work supervision when one of my students cheating and detected cases are doc- • Where can I get information about good is alleged of cheating or found guilty umented and statistics on them are scientific practice and ethical conduct in of it? compiled? learning and violations thereof? • Do you know how the student's priva- • Where, when and how do I learn to cy is protected during the process and manage these questions and gain expe- documentation? How is the student's rience thereof? How can I get to use a legal protection ensured when he or PD software in support of this type of she has expiated the ethical offence? learning? * = the teacher/teachers of a subject reply ** = the university/faculty/e.g. the Dean replies *** = the teacher replies in person . 10/2013 83 83 Assessment questions, working group: Markku Ihonen, Elizabeth San Miguel, Irma Mänty, Anne Nevgi, Sanna Suoranta, Sari Tervonen and Totti Tuhkanen. 70
9. SUMMARY OF OBSERVATIONS AND PROPOSED MEASURES This report provides an overview of the use of electronic technology for the detection of plagiarism in Finland's universities and universities of applied sci- ences in 2013. The history of system development was also reviewed in order to examine the way PD systems are used against the life cycle stages of various acquisitions. Higher education institutions in Finland are almost comprehensively prepared to use electronic detection of plagiarism. However, the utilisation rate of sys- tems and the way they are used vary by higher education institution and even by operational unit. Therefore, the benefits of technology are not fully exploit- ed in student guidance and the quality assurance of education. The acquired technology is the best on the market but there is still room for development in the general preparedness for using it. Neither instructions nor the goals set for use are fully complete. Higher education institutions can be roughly divided into users of a PD system or a PD service. The first group has acquired a system but has not integrated it in the basic systems of student affairs and research administration or the framework of normative guidance. The latter group has prepared deployment in accordance with the principles of enterprise architecture, with approxi- mately 20% of the preparation output being related to technological solutions and 80% to providing instructions for operational processes and organising user support. The competitive tendering processes in 2012–2013 have emphasised re- quirement specification based on the objectives of student affairs administra- tion and higher education institution pedagogy. Simultaneously, this has creat- ed a solid basis for consistent process management. The specification of crite- ria for the acquisitions left room for further development in process data secu- rity and data protection issues. The critical significance of Finnish published reference materials for the meaningful use of the PD system has become evi- dent, as the use of the system has become established. When preparing for subsequent licensing periods, it would be useful to prioritise these challenges that have emerged in current deployments as key issues in shared preparation efforts. The report also reviews individual phenomena and operating models that may undermine the reliability of PD systems. These clearly defined problems can be resolved by producing one-off solutions or ones that alter the operating meth- ods. It is essential to establish a procedure for sharing information about prob- lems involved in PD operations, and solution models between all system cli- ents. * The second part of the report examines plagiarism detection activities as part of the processes of teaching and work supervision from a perspective that analyses the preconditions for good student affairs administration, teaching and studying. First of all, the working concepts used for describing violations of good scientific practice in research, theses and various forms of study at- tainments are analysed. The analysis proves that the the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity's guidelines Responsible conduct of research and procedures for handling allegations of misconduct in Finland , which forms the 71
basis for all codes of ethic in Finnish higher education institutions, works well when examining cases or research misconduct, but its concepts and view- points do not cover situations involved in handling cases of plagiarism in dif- ferent types of study attainments. Subsidiary concepts for managing this oper- ational entity are required alongside the legitimate basic concepts of the guide- line. Chapter 6 describes the “critical minimum” of concepts that can adequate- ly align higher education institutions' guidelines for processing student cheat- ing with the needs created by plagiarism detection procedures. Chapter 7 compares guidelines for processing student cheating and good sci- entific practice guidelines of universities and universities of applied sciences and their relation to the overall framework of operational guidance. The con- clusions are based on the analysis of results from a questionnaire concerning procedural instructions and comparison of the contents and structure of web- sites containing guidelines. On the basis of the conclusions, nine recommenda- tions are made for higher education institutions to apply in the assessment and further development of their guidelines. The last chapter of the report describes the underlying values of plagiarism detection activities and the procedures for building a basis for the ethical use of information, in support of the goals of each stage of the study path. Reforms based on curriculum work are required for preventing the problem of plagia- rism. The required initial investments are high but this is a more cost-efficent solution than a retrospective model, i.e. reacting to problems after the risks have become reality. * The starting point of this report was the issue of ownership of a number of practices and technical aspects steering the detection of plagiarism: What is the authority for creating binding standards for acceptable procedures, and those subject to sanctions? Whose responsibility is it to ensure the equal status of students in various higher education institutions and processes between them that involve the electronic checking of study attainments? Which parties supervised the interests of Finland's higher education institutions in client guidance of PD system development that involves competition over visibility in reference materials? How are the expertise of general, student affairs, in- formation and library administration and authority combined in these com- mon issues? The issue of ownership must be solved in a number of contexts when we begin to seek common solutions to the development challenges involved in the tech- nology and organisation of plagiarism detection. Until now, the internal re- sources of higher education institutions have been allocated to finding solu- tions, and development has been slow. The PD survey process, implemented with the support of the RAKETTI network, has convincingly revealed the bene- fits of cooperation and the power it involves. The following pages include a summary in table format of the development targets highlighted in the report, and the parties required to cooperate in processing them. All that remains is to do the work. 72
Table 3: Proposals for action related to the sur- vey and bodies responsi- ble for their implementa- tion, and estimated vol- umes of work HEI's student affairs admin- Student affairs admin forum, Heads of student affairs in universities of applied science Hgher education institution's Higher education institution Higher education institution's Higher education institution's CSC LEARN/STUDY/COMPILE Estimated PD service provider work in- FUCIO, AAPA: SIG National library management ARENE, UNIFI archiving service put: working On page: istration FINHEEC Publisher weeks/ Measure: IT library TENK continuous activity Preparation of PD acquistion 29 x x X x > 1 + cooperation model for uni- cont. versitites and universities of applied science Improving the data security 29 X X x X x X 2 and quality of PD systems and operational processes Development of PD system 29 X X X X x x 3 testing procedures Development of Finnish ref- 29 X X X X X X < 1 + erence data materials cont. Active development of PD 35 X X X X 4 + system customership cont. A uniform indexing model 35 X x X X X > 1 + for service providers cont. National PD information 35 x X x X x X x x x X x x x x > 1 + website cont. Development programme 35 x x X x x X X X x 1 + for open publication archives cont. and parallel publishing Benchmarking of Slovakian 35 X x X X < 1 CRDT thesis database service Ensuring the integrity of 40 X X X X X 1 + indexing cont. Joint indexing of Finnish 40 x X X X X Cont. publication materials in PD systems used Harmonisation of user inter- 40 X x X 1 face vocabulary Comparison of e-learning 40 X X X > 1 platform integrations User management instruc- 40 X X X > 1 tions Expansion and introduction 53 X x x X 1 of GSP(S) concepts Harmonisation of guidelines 60- X X X x X x 1 61 Recommendation for train- 65 X X X X X x X x Cont. ing in good scientific practic- es at the various stages of the study path Protecting the work of 66 x X X Cont. teachers Self-assessment of the ac- 68 X x x X x Cont. cessibility and effectiveness of guidelines 73
APPENDICES APPENDIX 1: Problems in text identification of PDF files and recommendations for how to proceed Type of error Problem description Recommended action 1 A locked PDF or one PDF files that are locked or protected from printing and Publishers cooperating in referenc- saved in image for- saving do not show in comparison results because their ing are asked to perform saving for mat is not visible as text code cannot be copied for the purposes of indexing indexing before the distributed ver- reference or the comparative process. sion is saved as a locked PDF file. [reference problem] A PDF file can be saved in image format, which makes Researchers are instructed to use the final version of manuscripts for the page view a bitmap. Such documents cannot be in- originality checks instead of locked dexed as reference material and a PD system does not published versions copied from the approve their saving because it cannot detect any recog- Internet. nisable characters. 2 Locked PDF A PDF document can be partially locked. In this case, the As above. Avoid categorically locked partly visible PD system approves it for checking or as reference. The records and inform publishers of this as reference or originality check is only performed for these “open win- principle. is partly identified dows”, which results in an incorrect analysis. Only the (The aim is to establish a uniform unlocked sections of a document as reference data come nationwide practice for this infor- up as an equivalent finding. mation.) 3 Non-standard PDF Some equipment software combinations may produce 1. Favour native saving formats saved PDF files that work when viewed on screen, pass (such as MS Word .doc(x)) of soft- the download filter of a PD system but contain non- ware supported by the PD system in standard code, which distorts the detection result or pro- checking. duces an unreadable report of results. 2. When checking PDF files, ensure A widely known PDF standard problem involves the use the readability of the file and its of the LaTeX editor; depending on the software compo- compliance with standards using a nents, the saved PDF file can be valid or non-standard to PDF validator. a varying degree. There are several parallel conversion paths from .tex source code to a PDF . 3. Collect empirical information about the compliance with standards The LaTeX source code is converted into preview format of PDF files produced by various with a LaTeX software tool if the document contains EPS equipment assemblies and issue images only. This creates a .dvi file that can be convert- recommendations for the conversion ed into PS format using a dvips software tool and further modules to be used. into PDF format with a number of different PDF convert- ers. A .dvi can also be converted directly into PDF format using a dvi2pdf tool. If the document contains PDF, JPG, PNG or BMB imag- es, the .tex source code is converted into preview format with a PdfLaTeX software tool, which creates a PDF file directly. Conversion problems are probably related to the PS-PDF conversion stage. 4 An element in anoth- E.g. Elements produced with other software can be em- Relate this problem in PD system er file format bedded in a Word document. Even though most of the user instructions and the operating is embedded in the text is identified correctly, the embedded material may instructions to those performing the saved file produce incorrect results. checks. Advise the performance of manual checks for sections in differ- ent file formats. 5 Overlapping The source of the error may be transparent text on top of As in point 1. text layers the page view, added by the publisher to specify copy- right for the publication. This may add technical code to the PDF's text code that considerably affects the accura- cy of detection. 6 Hyphenation The optional hyphenation of the original text may be con- As in point 1. verted into “hard” hyphenation in the PDF file code, which prevents the identification of a word that includes a hyphen or line break as a word in the original source. In publications with a layout including several columns, fragmented words may account for dozens of per cent of the text. This undermines the detection result significant- ly. 74
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