The basic principles of academic ethics are not among the topics in which each university or its component should develop specific criteria and procedures. This is partly because problems with their observance at one institution strongly threaten the reputation of the entire higher education system. It is therefore desirable that the most important Czech universities unify their criteria for assessing plagiarism and the rules of academic ethics in connection with internationally common practice.
The basic principles of academic ethics are not among the topics in which each university or its component should develop specific criteria and procedures. This is partly because problems with their observance at one institution strongly threaten the reputation of the entire higher education system. It is therefore desirable that the most important Czech universities unify their criteria for assessing plagiarism and the rules of academic ethics in connection with internationally common practice.
Project Results in 2022
Twenty six of Czech and Moravian Universities has joined the project called Social safety and Security at Czech University in the Context of Academic Ethics, in which we came to the following results:
Analysis of existing examples of good practise of strengthening of social safety and security at Czech Universities was created. It is an internal document, shared by all associated universities, that will serve as a basis for setting out next steps of strengthening the social safety and security.
Within the framework of the topic, working groups were created across partner universities mapping the issue. Experience was shared in the form of workshops implemented by chosen universities and through continuously published thematic articles (in Czech language).
This outcome was continuously implemented not only within the organized events and articles in Universitas magazine, but strengthening the perception of the importance of topics related to the academic ethics and social safety and security took place at the level of individual partner universities in the form of training and promotional events.
The brochure with recommendations for public universities in the area of social safety. The brochure follows on from the article prepared by the author team of the University of West Bohemia. However, it war enriched with the knowledge of the project team as well as experience obtained thanks to the sharing of good practice from abroad.
Project Results in 2021
Twenty of Czech and Moravian Universities has joined the project called Strengthening the Academic Integrity of University Students with a Focus on the Risks and Opportunities of Distance Learning and Assessment Methods, in which we came to the following results:
- Analysis of the regulations of the participating universities and their components in relation to the ethical aspects of distance education
- Analysis of the existing practice of Czech and foreign universities from the COVID-19 pandemic with online testing with an emphasis on the emerging needs of academics and students in this area
- A set of practical recommendations aimed at supporting teaching and verification of results in an online environment and examples of good practice from Czech and foreign universities
- A set of recommendations for prevention of contract-cheating
- Manual for the use of non-textual resources in student works
- Workshops focused on the topic of plagiarism prevention in student works
- Workshops on the issue of academic ethics in non-contact teaching with a focus on online testing
- Conference focused on the issue of distance education and online teaching with an emphasis on the area of online testing and prevention of student cheating
- Support of teaching and verification of results in an online environment and ethics in contactless teaching with a focus on online testing - articles in the online magazine Universitas
Project Results in 2020
The team of the project Strengthening the Prevention of Plagiarism in Student Works project came to the following shared definition of plagiarism, which it presents for discussion:
Plagiarism is defined as the use (of ideas, content, or structure) of another work without properly referring to the source to gain some advantage where the original work is expected.
This definition is set in a broader context in the methodological materials prepared by the project team in the form of a handbook for academics and a handbook for students. Both manuals were published by Karolinum in Czech and English and are free to download.