Department of Computer Science
                         Academic Honesty Guidelines
                                       
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The following items are useful to read

    - Senate Policy on Academic Honesty in the York University
      Undergraduate Calendar

    - Computer Science statment on plagiarism and cheating in the departmental
      supplemental calendar

    - a couple of articles in the Faculty of Arts newsletter 1993 September,
      Vol. 6, Issue 1
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1  The Department takes the matter of academic honesty very seriously.

2  Academic honesty is essentially giving credit where credit is due.  When a
   piece of work is submitted by a student it is expected that all unquoted
and uncited ideas and text are original to the student.  Uncited and unquoted
text, diagrams, etc., which are not original to the student, and which the
student presents as their own work is considered academically dishonest.

3  Statment 2 does not imply that students must work, study and learn in
   isolation.  The Department encourages students to work, study and learn
together, and to use the work of others as found in books, journal articles,
electronic news, private conversations, etc..  In fact, most pieces of work
are enhanced when relevant outside material is introduced.  Thus faculty
expect to see quotes, references and citations to the work of others.  This
shows the student is seeking out knowledge, integrating it with their own
work, and perhaps more significantly, reducing some of the drudgery in
producing a piece of work.

4  Information can be divided into four types (Faculty of Arts newsletter)
   1  the person's own ideas
   2  common knowledge
   3  paraphrase/summary from another's work
   4  direct quotation, includes photocopy of diagrams, tables, etc.

Type 1 information is the person's own interpretation, program or ideas.

Type 2 information is tricky.  In computer science this could consist of ideas
and information learned in other courses, since a purpose of a course is the
dissemination of common knowledge, and in general life experiences.  If in
doubt treat as type 3 information.

Type 3 requires a citation to the original work(s) and a brief statment
crediting the author(s).  Quotations are not used.  See point 7.

Type 4 requires quotation and citation.  For diagrams, tables and other
directly copied (photocopied) material quotes are inappropriate but citation
is mandatory.

5  If students collaborate on small parts of a work then each student must
   give notice that this took place cite their collaborators.  If substantial
amounts of work are essentially identical, then it is best to submit a single
work using joint authorship.  It is disrespectful to faculty to submit two
essential identical pieces of work, even if notice is given.

6  As long as appropriate citation and notice is given students cannot be
   accused of academic dishonesty.  Instructors will evaluate each piece of
work in the context of their course and instructions given.  If single
authorship reports are expected, then joint authorship will receive lower
marks; for example, split the grade among the authors, receive an F or some
other rule could be used, this is instructor and course dependent.

7  In citations state where the original work comes from, who the author is,
   what use was made of the work; copied, paraphrased, general idea used as
basis, alternate technique for comparison, etc.