Academic Integrity is a foundational component of study in Australia and is based on the common values of honesty, respect, responsibility and a desire to give people credit for the work they have done in a fair and authentic way. We expect all students to pursue their studies with integrity and uphold the College’s reputation in training, education and research.
All Morling students should be familiar with the Australian College of Theology’s policy on Academic Misconduct (available on the ACT website) and/or the College’s policy on plagiarism (available on the College website).
Plagiarism is a particular form of Academic Misconduct. Morling College regards the action of any student who plagiarises or misuses the work of other persons as dishonest and incompatible with the Christian standards of the College.
Wilful/Intentional Plagiarism is to be distinguished from inadequate and/or inappropriate attempts to acknowledge the words, works or ideas of someone else. The same rules apply regarding plagiarism when writing non-essay type assignments (reflections, sermons, exegesis) etc. as when writing standard academic assignments.
Some common forms of plagiarism
Morling College encourages cooperative learning and it is expected that students may discuss assignments with each other. However, unless a group task is required, students should prepare their own assignments, and the organisation and presentation of the assignment must be the student’s unaided work. If you are in doubt at all about plagiarism, then consult with your lecturers for clarification.
Self-plagiarism occurs when you submit a previously submitted assignment, or a section of that work, in a new assessment task without appropriate citation. This includes submitting written work you created for a different Unit, a different Award, or even at a different Institution.
Due to the integrative and formative approach of study at Morling it is likely that you will cover similar topics and research areas in various Units. As you progress through your Award your writing should reflect a deeper understanding of the fundamental concepts, an engagement with up-to-date research and critical thinking, and new insights you have gained through personal, ministry and spiritual formation.
In very rare cases you might need to quote a short section (no more than 2 sentences) of an assignment you have previously submitted. If this is the case, you should treat the quotation as you would any other source and correctly cite it.* You may also wish to refer to something you have published.
Note: if you have a required number of texts for a Bibliography, your own work does not contribute to this requirement.
*If you are using EndNote, you will need to create a citation for material that is not formally published. Use “Thesis” as your Reference Type and fill in the appropriate Fields:
Recent improvements in chatbots and AI content creators have raised significant ethical questions around intellectual property, copyright and academic integrity.
The ACT Academic Integrity Policy states that "the use of artificial intelligence tools (including, but not limited to, ChatGPT or similar), in any assessment task, including project or thesis" is a form of academic misconduct. There are two exceptions to this rule:
If you are in any doubt as to whether the use that you are planning to make of an AI-enabled software application or website falls within the category of “preliminary research” you should contact the lecturer to check.
Another authorised use of AI, in all assignments, is to provide the kind of editorial assistance that can be provided by a “fellow student, friend, family member etc”:
It is appropriate for a student to ask a fellow student, friend or family member to:
Assistance of this sort may be obtained through the use of AI-enabled applications such as ChatGPT, Grammarly or GrammarlyGo, provided any use of AI for this purpose is fully referenced, as set out in our Chicago and APA referencing guides.
Other permissible uses of AI may be authorised within the written instructions provided to students for particular assignments, and should be similarly referenced.
Turnitin is a tool that identifies levels of similarity between your writing and published work, whether online or in print. Assignments at Morling are usually submitted online via Moodle and Turnitin.
A Similarity Report identifies similarities between your writing and previous assignments you have submitted or assignments that have been submitted by other students (at Morling and in other institutions). Students are encouraged to check their Similarity Report so that they can resubmit by the due date if they identify areas of concern.
There is more information about Turnitin on the MC101 Study Skills page of Moodle.
Students should familise themselves with the relevant policy regarding Academic Misconduct. Policies can be found on the Morling website. The current policy links are below – but it is always best to go to the website in case there have been updates.