The number of University of Otago students disciplined for criminal or nuisance offences continues to decline, but many more students are being caught out for plagiarism.
Staff dealt with with 531 students last year, the annual discipline reports released by the university this week show. The total was down 71 on the previous year and about 100 fewer than in 2008.
The number of cases considered serious enough to be sent to vice-chancellor Prof Sir David Skegg also declined, from 14 in 2009 to nine in 2010.
The number of students arrested by police and referred to Proctor Simon Thompson's office for work placement and supervision under the police diversion scheme declined marginally, 102 last year compared to 104 the previous year.
But more students are being caught out plagiarising others' work. Last year, 77 students were referred to division heads for dishonesty and plagiarism, more than twice the 2009 total and triple the 2008's. Most had marks stripped for presenting other students' work or material from websites as their own. Of those, 42 students were studying in the humanities division.
The increasing number of students caught did not necessarily signal an increase in dishonest practices, academic associate dean Associate Prof Sue Court said in a statement.
The doubling of detected cases in the division coincided with the introduction of Safe Assign software to check work against material available in print and on the internet.
"Once word-for-word copying has been detected by Safe Assign, teaching staff decide whether or not the copied material has been properly cited and acknowledged as deriving from written sources. In many cases the detection occurs at the lower end of serious ... and students are given a small penalty."
No-one from the university was available yesterday to say whether checking software was behind higher incidence in other divisions.
The bulk of 545 students last year seen by Proctor Simon Thompson and his staff had committed offences ranging from breaching university regulations and disorderly behaviour to to wilful damage and setting fires.
The Proctor saw about 570 students in 2009. It was "pleasing" to see a continued improvement in the number of students dealt with for disorder, theft and fires in the street, he said in his report.
Of students seen by Mr Thompson, 188 were let off with a warning. The rest were either fined, made donations to charity, paid compensation or carried out community work.
The 78 students fined collectively paid $12,725, while 115 students were given a total of 2039 hours of community work.
University of Otago selected discipline cases 2010
Vice-chancellor's decisions
• Second-year student arrested by police for throwing glass bottle during 2009 Undie 500 disorder 2009; excluded for second semester 2010.
• Student threw wine bottle and broke window of bus; failed to meet Proctor and Provost; excluded for first semester 2011.
• Postgraduate distance student excluded for 2011 for significant plagiarism.
• Final-year student involved in repeated plagiarism permanently excluded from enrolling for teaching qualifications at Otago and excluded from other papers for semester one 2010.
Provost's decisions
• Third-year commerce student fined $375 for setting fire to rubbish in a supermarket trolley.
• Two students who entered rooms at University College while drunk and stole several small items each given 30 hours of community service and required to pay $75 restitution.
Dishonesty
• Education student submitted three assignments containing extensive copying of material without acknowledgement; awarded zero marks for all assignments.
• Political studies student submitted assignment downloaded from website; student under considerable psychological stress, given warning and allowed to submit another assignment.
• First-year health sciences student copied terms test answers from another student; test marks reduced.
• Three design students found to have plagiarised material in a group assignment; all received 50% of awarded mark.
• Marketing student attempted to take notes into exam; final mark reduced.
• Master of health sciences student plagiarised substantial portions of thesis; required to resubmit thesis, with "pass" highest mark available.
• Pharmacy student forged signature in clinical placement handbook; marks downgraded and student required to write essay on legal consequences of fraud in the profession.
