Academic Integrity

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the theft and use of another individual’s words or ideas as if they were one’s own. Plagiarism of any length is not permitted at the American Studies Center. The unintentional use of another individual’s work will be considered plagiarism. The judgment of what is and what is not plagiarism resides with the authorities at the American Studies Center. Plagiarism present in either the BA or MA thesis will result in the student having to submit a completely new thesis with a different topic. In cases where plagiarism has been deemed to have occurred, further disciplinary action may be considered by the authorities at the American Studies Center.

Universities consider plagiarism a serious offense as it runs counter to the spirit of sharing and generating knowledge. Any piece of writing submitted will ask of you to demonstrate your understanding of the topic under review, and as part of that demonstration, you will need to cite the material you are engaged with. You must also distinguish your own analysis from those materials, as well as from the analyses of other authors you have read.

How to avoid plagiarism?

Give yourself enough time to do your research and to write your paper. Do not put yourself in a position where you do not leave enough time to give your assignment the attention it requires.

Do not cut and paste downloaded text directly into your paper. Summarize and paraphrase this source material first. Boldface or highlight quotation marks so that you will recognize quotations when you are ready to include them in your paper.

Set up a system that lets you track your sources. Create computer files where you can store downloaded source information… Create another set of files for your notes.

Include full source information for all paraphrases, summaries, and quotations. As you write, clearly differentiate between your ideas and those of your sources. Do not forget to include documentation.

Keep a list of all the sources you downloaded or took information from.
Make sure that you always have an up-to-date list of the sources you are using.

Use of Generative AI Tools

Our philosophy

ASC faculty embrace new tools, methodologies, and teaching styles. These also include a spectrum of digital tools under the umbrella of Generative Artificial Intelligence. While these continue to evolve, we see in them valuable assistants in the Center’s mission of research and instruction. At the same time, in line with our commitment to critical thinking, we remain measured in adopting them. More importantly, we believe that such tools may assist in academic work, but do not truly hone the mind and foster critical powers we are so deeply committed to.

What are Generative AI Tools?

What are Generative Artificial Intelligence tools? Simply put, they are tools that use learned algorithms to produce original content such as text, images, video, and audio. These algorithms, called deep learning models, are designed to mimic human learning and decision-making processes, and thus create original content based on patterns of human speech and writing (in the context of text creation). Over the years, generative AI has developed and is now used beyond simply generating text in response to user requests in conversations. However, most of these tools still have limitations that may not be obvious to their users.

GAIT Limitations

Generative AI tools, though groundbreaking, still have notable limitations as of 2024. One significant challenge is the quality and bias of the training data. These systems depend on extensive datasets to learn and generate new content. While GAITs are rapidly increasing in number (over 12,000 as of May 2024), their access to these datasets varies, which can limit the scope and depth of their output. Since much of the training data can be biased, incomplete, or of average quality, the final output may reflect these shortcomings. Additionally, generative models can sometimes produce content that appears convincing but is factually incorrect or nonsensical, leading to possible misinformation and confusion. This lack of reliability means that using GAIT for academic research and writing, which demand accuracy, precision, and in-depth knowledge, can be challenging and, at times, ill-advised.\

Unfair Advantage

Following the guidelines outlined in the course syllabus will help you maintain academic integrity and avoid academic misconduct, which can give you an unfair advantage. It is important to remember that using GAITs to generate content and submitting it as your own work is prohibited. Your instructors will offer more specific guidelines on the appropriate use of such tools, if any, and clarify what constitutes unauthorized assistance in the context of their course.

What is an unfair advantage?

using someone else’s ideas without appropriate referencing or acknowledgment (always follow citation guidelines regardless of whether you quote directly, paraphrase, or summarize content)
not conforming to specific guidelines on when you are allowed to use GAITs in a given assignment
resorting to unauthorized assistance
not being transparent about the use of GAITs

If you are not sure about what constitutes an unfair advantage, talk to your instructor before submitting the assignment.

The Scope of and Rules for Using Generative AI Tools

ASC students should always consult the course syllabus for information about the scope and limitations of GAITs in a given course. If questions arise regarding which GAITs can be used freely and without fear of violating the ASC Academic Integrity policy, students should consult the course instructors and coordinators. Keep in mind that instructors may have different approaches to GAITs, and their course objectives may require varying forms and levels of engagement with GAITs, depending on their respective disciplines. Consequently, one instructor’s approval to use a particular GAIT in one class does not automatically mean it will be permitted in all other courses.

If the course syllabus does not specify the use of GAITs, the university-wide resolution number 98 is in effect.

Citing GAIT

How to properly acknowledge, describe, and cite the use of GAITs?

If your instructor allows you to use GAITs in their course, you always need to acknowledge, describe, and cite their use when submitting your work. When you use GAITs for editing and/or proofreading, keep your drafts and outlines to demonstrate the extent to which you relied on GAITs to improve your writing.

Acknowledge the use of GAITs:

I acknowledge the use of [insert the name of GAIT(s) and link(s)] to [explain the extent to which you used them]. I confirm that all use of GAITs is acknowledged and referenced appropriately.

Describe the use of GAITs:

The following prompts were used in [name of GAITs]:

The output obtained was:

The output was adapted for my work in the following way:

Adapted from Loughborough University’s Student Handbook

Reference the use of GAIT(s)

For more information on how to cite GAITs, see: Citation, Documentation of Sources

Example:

I acknowledge the use of DeepL Write AI-powered edits [DeepL Write: AI-powered writing companion] to improve the style of my paper. I confirm that all use of this tool is acknowledged and referenced appropriately.

The following prompts were typed in the “source” section:

Plagiarism means that you use someone else’s ideas and don’t say they developed them.
Academic dishonesty, with cheating and plagiarism as the most popular examples, is a huge violation of the rules of higher education.

For sentence 1, I set the writing style as “academic” and the output was:

Plagiarism is defined as the appropriation of another person’s ideas or statements, presented as one’s own original work.

For sentence 2, I set the writing style “simple” and the output was:

Academic dishonesty is a major violation of the rules of higher education, with cheating and plagiarism being the most common examples.

I did not further adapt the output for my work.

In this case, you don’t need to add references in “Works Cited”.

Selected Case Studies

Recent developments in the field of generative AI have raised questions and concerns about the use and misuse of AI in academia. AI tools have the potential to be helpful and provide students with a new type of technological support, but they also pose a number of risks and challenges.

For starters, a student’s use of AI in any academic assignment should be based on honesty. Remember that you cannot copy AI-generated text and claim it as your own. If you acknowledge your use of AI writing tools by citing these tools, then you’re using AI writing tools with integrity.
Furthermore, if you choose to use AI tools in your assignment, you cannot overuse them. If a tool like ChatGPT is listed as okay to use in your syllabus, that does not mean it can write entire paragraphs for you or formulate your thoughts for you. Always make sure to consult the syllabus and ask your instructor before using GAIT.
However, you should not be afraid to use AI tools if they can help you overcome certain problems. For example, if you’re struggling with punctuation or grammar, always ask your instructor if you can use tools like Grammarly to improve the quality of your writing.
When editing your papers, GAIT might be used to search for spelling or punctuation errors. However, asking GAIT to change your style (e.g. from tentative to more forceful or from informal to formal), to replace all phrasal verbs with Latinate verbs, or to improve the internal structure all constitutes an inappropriate use of GAIT.
Similarly, if you’re having trouble keeping up with the lecture while taking notes, ask your instructor if you can use tools like Otter.AI to help you manage your notes and still focus on the lecture.
Just before your BA or MA defense, you can ask GAIT to give you a list of potential questions that might be asked of you by your reviewer and supervisor, based on your review and/or thesis. However, if preparing critical questions for a text is part of your course assessment, asking GAIT to do that for you would violate academic integrity rules.