The Student’s Responsibility: A Deep Dive into Curtin's Expectations for Honest and Ethical Conduct in All Assessments

 Curtin University is recognized globally for producing highly capable and ethical graduates. The value of a Curtin degree is intrinsically tied to the academic integrity of its community. While the institution provides resources, policies, and systems to uphold this integrity, the ultimate responsibility rests squarely on the shoulders of the students.

Academic integrity is more than just avoiding plagiarism; it is a holistic commitment to honest and ethical conduct in every academic undertaking. This essay provides a deep dive into Curtin’s core expectations, exploring what true student responsibility entails in the face of modern assessment challenges, from the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the ethical handling of collaborative work. For every Curtin student, understanding these expectations is the foundational step toward a successful and credible academic career.

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I. Defining the Core: Academic Integrity vs. Misconduct ⚖️

Curtin’s expectations are rooted in a clear definition of what constitutes ethical behaviour and what is deemed misconduct.

1. The Principle of Authorship

The most fundamental expectation is that all submitted work represents the student's own intellectual effort. When an assessment requires individual work, the student must be the sole author of the ideas, analysis, and writing, except where credit is explicitly and correctly given to others.

2. Curtin’s Pillars of Misconduct

Curtin’s Academic Misconduct Rules broadly categorize breaches of responsibility. Students must be acutely aware of the following:

• Plagiarism: The use of another person’s words, ideas, or work without appropriate acknowledgment. This includes copying and pasting, poor paraphrasing, or inadequate referencing.

• Collusion: Presenting work as individual when it was prepared in whole or in part with one or more other persons, contrary to the assessment instructions (e.g., sharing drafts for individual assignments).

• Cheating: Any dishonest practice in formal examinations or tests, such as bringing unauthorized materials, using unapproved electronic devices, or obtaining unfair assistance.

• Contract Cheating: Submitting work that has been generated by a third party, whether paid (e.g., essay mills) or unpaid (e.g., a friend writing the paper). This is considered a particularly severe breach of trust.

The responsibility of the student is to actively ensure they avoid all these forms of misconduct, not merely to wait to be detected.

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II. Responsibility in the Digital Age: Navigating AI and Technology 🤖

The rise of generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini) has introduced new complexities, yet the underlying principle of student responsibility remains unchanged: authorship must be authentic.

1. The Ethical Use of AI

Curtin's policy on AI is centred on unit-specific instructions. The student's primary responsibility is to read and adhere to the assessment guidelines.

• If AI Use is BANNED: The student is responsible for ensuring zero AI-generated content is submitted. Using an AI tool to generate ideas, outlines, or text is a form of cheating or contract cheating.

• If AI Use is PERMITTED/REQUIRED: The student must still maintain responsibility for the final output. This involves critical verification of AI output, ethical integration of the tool, and, crucially, transparent citation of the AI tool used, as per required academic conventions.

The responsibility here is to understand that AI is a tool, and just like a calculator, its unauthorized use is a breach of integrity. The student must demonstrate their own learned capabilities, not the capabilities of an algorithm.

2. Protecting Digital Property

The student is responsible for safeguarding their academic work. This means:

• Never sharing final or near-final drafts of individual assignments electronically or physically.

• Securing login credentials for all learning platforms (LMS).

• Actively refusing to share past assignment papers with current students, as facilitating misconduct is also an act of academic misconduct.

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III. The Student’s Proactive Role: A Framework for Honesty ✅

Student responsibility goes beyond passive compliance; it requires proactive engagement with the learning process and the university's support systems.

1. Master Referencing and Citation

The primary defence against accidental plagiarism is mastery of the required citation style (e.g., APA, Harvard, Chicago). The responsible student must:

• Seek Training: Attend library workshops, utilize Curtin's study skills resources, and access online guides.

• Use Tools Correctly: Utilize referencing management software (e.g., EndNote) to ensure accuracy.

• Know the Difference: Clearly distinguish between direct quotes, paraphrasing, and summarising, and know when each requires a citation.

2. Utilize Turnitin as a Learning Tool

Curtin encourages students to see Turnitin not as a police mechanism, but as a formative learning aid.

• Check and Correct: Responsible students use the similarity report, where available for draft submissions, to review matching text. If a high similarity score is due to poor paraphrasing or missing citations, the student has the responsibility to revise the work before the final submission.

• Understand the Report: Students must understand that a high score does not automatically mean plagiarism, but it always requires human review to ensure all matched text is ethically treated and correctly cited.

3. Seek Clarification on Collaboration

Before embarking on any group work or discussion, the responsible student must clarify the limits of collaboration with the unit coordinator. Questions to ask include:

• "Are we allowed to discuss the case study?" (Yes)

• "Are we allowed to compare our final answers/calculations?" (Usually No)

• "Can we share our outlines?" (Varies – must be clarified)

When in doubt, the responsible student always asks.

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IV. The Ethical Imperative: Upholding the Degree’s Value 🎓

Ultimately, the student’s responsibility to act with honesty and integrity is an ethical imperative that transcends the assessment grade.

A Curtin degree is an investment in the student's future, and its currency in the professional world relies entirely on its reputation for rigor and integrity. Every act of misconduct diminishes that value, not just for the individual but for all Curtin graduates.

By choosing to uphold ethical conduct—by doing their own work, referencing diligently, and seeking help when confused—students demonstrate the character and professionalism that Curtin seeks to instill. This commitment is the true mark of a responsible scholar and a future leader, reinforcing the quality and ethical standing of a Curtin education in the global landscape. The responsibility is theirs, and the reward is a degree earned with unquestionable merit.