Cheating Their Way to the Top:
Moving Toward Cultures of Academic Integrity

Can Participatory Policy Making and Restorative Justice Help?

Center for Peace and Governance,
King Prajadhipok's Institute, Bangkok, Thailand

Cheating is a concern in many schools and universities all over the world. How can cheating and plagiarism be prevented? Do "academic integrity" policies work? What can be done when students are found cheating? Often there are no easy answers for administrators caught between students, instructors and parents. This workshop provides an opportunity for educators and university policy makers to explore questions such as: What leads to cheating and plagiarism? Are there connections between school cheating and cultures of corruption? Participants will have opportunities to consider the potential of participatory decision-making and restorative discipline processes to help educational institutions lay firm foundations for academic excellence and integrity of future public leaders. The workshop will be of interest to educators, educational administrators, leaders of student organizations and others interested in educational institutions.

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Cheating and Corruption: Prevention and Intervention from School to Society

Day 1: Morning

• Introduction: Dr. Vanchai Vatanasapt
• The scope of the problem: Prof. Catherine Morris
• Why do students cheat or plagiarize? Dr. Amornvit Nakornthab
• Participant discussions in small groups: Current policies for academic integrity at participants' institutions
  • Who developed the policy?
  • What was the process of policy making?
  • What processes are used to address infractions of the policy?
  • What works and what doesn't?
  • What are we aiming for?
  • Large group discussion

Day 1: Afternoon

• Basic features and goals of participatory policy-making: Prof. Catherine Morris and Dr. Vanchai Vatanasapt
  • Identifying the stakeholders
  • Learning the interests and values of the stakeholders
  • Negotiating a policy that suits all stakeholders
  • A hypothetical case study: Identifying stakeholders

Day 2: Morning

• What happens when an academic integrity policy is breached? Presenter: Dr. Kittipong Kittayarak
  • Forms of discipline: Punishment versus "restorative discipline"
  • Basic features and goals of restorative discipline
  • Discussion: The challenges of developing and implementing restorative discipline policies

Day 2: Afternoon

• A simulated multi-stakeholder policy discussion: Using the hypothetical case study: Facilitators Prof. Catherine Morris and Dr. Vanchai Vatanasapt
• Debriefing: How realistic is it to involve the stakeholders in policy making?

Day 3: Morning

• Cheating at School and Cultures of Corruption: What is the connection? Guest speaker.
• Roundtable participants' discussion: Facilitators Prof. Catherine Morris and Dr. Vanchai Vatanasapt
• Closing

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Vanchai Vatanasapt, MD, is the Director of the Center for Peace and Governance at King Prajadhipok's Institute. Dr. Vanchai was the President of Khon Kaen University, Thailand, and is on the UN Advisory committee for the International Center for Conflict Resolution in Education (ICCRE).

Catherine Morris, BA, LLB, LLM, is the managing director of Peacemakers Trust, Canada, and an Adjunct Professor and former Executive Director of the Institute for Dispute Resolution at the University of Victoria, Canada.

Amornvit Nakornthab, PhD, is director of the Center for Policy Research in Education, Faculty of Education, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Dr. Amornvit has been a key figure in education reform in Thailand and has worked to raise public awareness of the need for updated curricula, teaching methods, and higher education administration.

Kittipong Kittayarak, LLM (Cornell), LLM (Harvard), JSD (Stanford), Director General Department of Probation, Ministry of Justice, Government of Thailand. Dr. Kittipong has been worked to shape judicial reform in Thailand and is a leading proponent of restorative justice in Thailand. He has served on the Board of Directors of Transparency International Thailand.

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