Case Summaries

The student had not cited the source of the text in their answers.

The student explained that their practice was to memorise large portions of text and present these in exams, and that this approach had earned them high marks in the past.

The provider concluded that the student’s method had been deliberate but that they had not understood that this approach could appear to present the work of others as the student’s own and that this was a type of academic misconduct. It decided that this was a case of poor academic practice. It imposed a mark of zero for the exam and allowed the student to attempt the exam again, for a capped mark.

The student complained to us because they did not feel it was fair to have a disciplinary concern on their record. We acknowledged that the student had been acting in a way that was familiar to them from their previous educational experiences. We decided not to uphold the student’s complaint (we decided it was Not Justified). The provider had made it clear to all students that answers given in closed book exams should be in the students’ own words. The provider had taken account of the student’s explanation in imposing the lowest penalty available under its procedures.