Polytechnic Pinch Points for Academic Integrity: Reflections from Student Conduct Officers
摘要
Polytechnic institutions take pride in offering hands-on, applied technical training with close ties to industry. Faculty members at polytechnics are often recruited directly from professional workplaces, bringing specific expertise in their area of specialty but often lacking traditional academic or pedagogical backgrounds. A teaching background may be an added bonus for some, but the reality is that many faculty members will not have taught in a classroom before. As such, academic integrity and issues of academic misconduct may not be top of mind for faculty in a polytechnic space. Through the collected reflections of two Western Canadian polytechnic student conduct teams, this chapter identifies five pinch points faced by faculty and staff in polytechnics when addressing academic integrity. The pinch points are (1) the wide spectrum of the student experience, (2) the diverse range of assessments, (3) the impact of connection to industry, (4) shortages of time and disconnected spaces, and (5) the role of regulatory bodies. The chapter offers practical recommendations for each pinch point to help polytechnic faculty and staff uphold academic integrity and effectively address these challenges.