Month: November 2020

My ARP is titled “Managing Academic Integrity Within Post-Secondary Online Education”. To provide you with some context, my overarching research question is: What factors should be considered in order to create a post-secondary online environment with academic integrity?

There are three theoretical frameworks I am looking at further exploring: the Social Cognitive Theory, the Self-Efficacy Theory, and the Community of Inquiry Framework. Academic integrity is not a new concept for educators. However, with the rise of technology in post-secondary education, it is important to consider the impact technology is having on academic integrity. The ability to access information is easier and faster than ever, making this issue surrounding academic integrity more apparent.

The Social Cognitive Theory: Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) would be explored as the theoretical framework to understand students’ varying perceptions of and justification for cheating” (Burnett, Enyeart Smith, & Wessel, 2016).

The Self-Efficacy Theory: Bandura’s theory of Self-Efficacy is based on one’s own beliefs and their ability to succeed. This theory would be explored as a predictor of academic integrity (Baran & Jonason, 2020).

The Community of Inquiry Framework: The Community of Inquiry (CoI) Framework would be explored in order to understand the link between CoI, or the quality of course, and academic integrity (Garrison, 2013).

Questions Regarding Frameworks:

• Are the SCT, Self-Efficacy theory, and CoI appropriate theories and frameworks in reference to my research question?
• Do you see the opportunity to implement the use of other theories to aid in creating an online post-secondary environment with academic integrity?

Thank you for your time and I look forward to seeing your comments and feedback.

References:

Baran, L., & Jonason, P. (2020, August 31). Academic dishonesty among university students: The roles of the psychopathy, motivation, and self-efficacy. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7458306/

Burnett, A.J., Enyeart Smith, T.M. & Wessel, M.T. (2016). Use of the Social Cognitive Theory to Frame University Students’ Perceptions of Cheating. J Acad Ethics 14, 49–69. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-015-9252-4

Garrison, D. R. (2013). Theoretical foundations and epistemological insights of the community of inquiry. In Akyol, Z., & Garrison, D. R. (Eds.), Educational Communities of Inquiry: Theoretical Framework, Research and Practice (pp. 1-11). http://doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-2110-7.ch001

Disseminating my research is never something I thought about. I figured I would do my ARP and that would be that.

My topic surrounds academic integrity and creating an honest environment for online examination. With COVID all courses have moved online, whether this was an intention or not. Through this movement, there has been more ways to cheat on exams than every before.

My topic brings me to the following big underlying question:

How would you ensure that it gets into their hands?

Website and professional development program are the two concepts I’m toying with. With everything going on, people need some flexibility. Flexibility on timelines and delivery methods. I do majority of my reading on a computer. with the lack of free time, I try to use every spare minute. Website and asynchronous professional development programs provide this sense of freedom.

One topic:

How can instructors create an honest online exam environment?

Sub questions:

Can a collaborative platform assist with creating this environment?

Does a test attestation have any impact?

I want to create a website that houses professional development to help instructors. The website itself is a learning tool. Not only can you access my research, but you can learn and develop the skills in order to create an honest online examination environment (at least this is the hope).