If you are taking a course from the Department of Computer Science, you should familiarize yourself with this statement, the College
statement on Academic Integrity, and the College
statement on Community Standards.
In short form, you must:
- indicate on your assignment any assistance you received.
- not share actual program code with other students.
- not look at solution sets or program code from other years.
- not use generative AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Bard).
- be prepared to explain program code you submit.
- adhere to the College statement on Academic Integrity.
- adhere to the College statement on Community Standards.
Violations will result in a formal Academic Integrity report submitted to the Dean of Academic Services and sanctions which may include:
- a zero for the assignment.
- an F for the course.
- separation from the College for one or more semesters.
- separation from the College permanently.
In long form:
You must indicate on your assignment any assistance you received.
In addition to providing proper citation -usually as part of the comments at the beginning of the program- it is also important to make sure that the assistance you receive consists of general advice that does not cross the boundary into having someone else write the actual code.
You must not share actual program code with other students.
It is fine to discuss ideas and strategies, but you should be careful to write your programs on your own. In particular, you should not ask anyone to give you a copy of their code or, conversely, give your code to another student who asks you for it. Similarly, you should not discuss your algorithmic strategies to such an extent that you and your collaborators end up turning in exactly the same code. Discuss ideas together, but do the coding on your own.
You must not look at solution sets or program code from other years.
The prohibition against looking at the actual code for a program has an important specific application in computer science courses. Developing a good programming assignment often takes years. When a new assignment is created, it invariably has problems that require a certain amount of polishing. To make sure that the assignments are as good as they can be the department reuses assignments over the years, incorporating a few changes each time to make them more effective.
You must not use generative AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Bard).
You will utilize generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Bard in your future computer science career. However, if you use these tools as a student to solve class problems it will bypass the essential process of developing problem-solving skills integral to your growth as a computer scientist. Unless permission is given by the instructor, the use of generative AI tools is prohibited.
You must be prepared to explain any program code you submit.
Whenever you seek help on an assignment, your goal should be improving your level of understanding and not simply getting your program to work. Suppose, for example, that someone responds to your request for help by showing you a couple of lines of code that do the job. Don't fall into the trap of thinking about that code as if it were a magical incantation-something you simply include in your program and don't have to understand. By doing so, you will be in no position to solve similar problems on exams or in a career after graduation.
Citation:
The rules that make up the core of this statement were derived from the Stanford University Department of Computer Science Honor Code.