The Honor Code

The following is a complete transcript of the Honor Code that was distrubuted to students on Thursday, Feb 7.

HONOR CODE FOR MONTGOMERY BLAIR HIGH SCHOOL

The faculty of Montgomery Blair High School is committed to develop in its students, honesty and integrity in all academic assignments. The faculty believes that requiring its students to adhere to a code of honesty creates a community of learners who has a sense of mutual respect, trust, and fairness.

The Honor Code

As a member of Montgomery Blair's learning community, each student pledges him/herself to follow ethical standards toward all academic work.

Following this code will ensure a sense of honor and high principles in the student body.

As a student of Montgomery Blair's Academic Community:

1. I will not willfully or knowingly tell an untruth to the administration or a faculty member.

2. I will not take or appropriate with the intent of using or keeping the property of any other member of the Montgomery Blair community without his/her expressed permission for me to do so.

3. I will not forge the signature of an administrator, faculty or staff member, the attendance secretary, the nurse, or a parent/guardian on a letter, in the plan book, or on any other document and use this document as if it were a valid signature.

4. I will not violate testing procedures.

5. I will not commit any act of academic dishonesty such as using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information, or study aids.

6. I will not intentionally fabricate or falsify any information or citation in any academic exercise.

7. I will not intentionally or knowingly help someone else violate the Honor Code.

8. I will not represent the words or ideas of another as my own work in any academic exercise.

9. I will not wear someone else's ID and pass it off as my own.

Definition of Academic Dishonesty:

Violations of Testing Procedures include, but are not limited to:

1. Talking during a test or talking while others are taking a test;

2. Copying from others during a test or examination:

3. Collaborating on a test, quizzes, or project without permission;

4. Using hand gestures, signals, or other forms of communication between people taking a test or quiz;

5. Bringing unauthorized papers into a test room on which answers have been previously written;

6. Using unauthorized materials to complete an examination or assignment;

7. Programming of notes, formulas, or other aids into a calculator without prior permission;

8. Copying parts of an exam and giving it to other students who have to take the test;

9. Changing, altering, or being an accessory to changing or altering a grade on a test, assignment, or project;

10. Violating any other specific procedures specified by the teacher.

Definitions of Fabrication include, but are not limited to:

1. Citing of information not taken from the source indicated. This may include incorrect documentation of secondary source material;

2. Listing sources in a bibliography not used in an academic exercise;

3. Submitting a paper or other academic exercise in which there is fictitious data, or deliberately or knowingly concealing or distorting the data;

4. Submitting as your own any academic exercise prepared totally or in part by another.

Definitions of Plagiarism include, but are not limited to:

1. Quoting another person's words, sentences, paragraphs, or entire work without acknowledging the source of the work;

2. Utilizing another person's words or thoughts without acknowledging the source of the information;
3. Copying another student's paper and submitting it as your own;

4. Copying or allowing another person to copy a computer file that contains another person's work;

5. Working together on a work and them submitting two separate copies of the work as one's individual work;

6. Copying the ideas of another's artistic work or handing in another's artistic work as if it were one's own;

7. Violating any other specific procedure specified by a teacher.

The Faculty's Responsibility:

It is the responsibility of all faculty members, to the best of their ability, to maintain the integrity of the learning process. As each semester begins, each faculty member is responsible for explaining the honor code as it applies to tests, quizzes, term papers, notebooks, projects, examinations, reports, homework, or any other work.

Each faculty member should provide a rubric for all extensive projects or special assignments. In the rubric, quality points should be specified for each section of the work assigned and graded. Information should be detailed as to the extent to which the use of study aids, data, collaboration with others, outside sources is permissible, and if so, how to document these inclusions properly.

Each faculty member should carefully review all the points that constitute plagiarism so students are fully aware of the pitfalls.

Consequences for Violation of the Honor Code:
(As deemed appropriate, the administrator/teacher will apply some/all consequences from the following list)

1. The student who does not tell the truth or who is found in possession of something that has been reported lost or stolen by another will be subject to the penalties stated below that apply and to possible involvement with the law enforcement officers.

2. The student who violates the Honor Code will receive a zero for the quiz, test, term paper, report, or project.

3. The teacher must contact the parent/guardian about the violation as soon as he/she is certain that it has occurred.

4. The teacher will report the infraction to both the student's administrator and counselor.

5. A student-administrator-parent conference/phone call will also be held.

6. The student who hands in another's artistic work as if it were his/her own or copies another's idea and hands in the work for a grade will receive a zero and the above consequences apply.

7. The student may suffer other consequences depending on the special programs, clubs, or teams on which the student participates.

8. The student who violates the honor code may also be suspended and, depending on the infraction may be recommended for expulsion.

Appeal Process:

The student who feels he/she is being unjustly accused of violating the Honor Code can appeal to his/her administrator or to the administrator or Resource Teacher who heads the Honor Council.

Depending on the severity of the infraction, a teacher may refer a student to the Honor Council if he/she feels the student has violated the Honor Code and further involvement of impartial people are warranted.

A student who is to speak before the council may request that his counselor/mentor, another student, or parent/guardian be with him during the hearing. It is understood that the person accompanying the student is present to support the student and not participate in the discussion.

Upon request to convene the council, the administrator and the resource teacher will contact the parent, and convene the hearing as soon as possible. The presiding administrator will provide the decision of the council to the parent and the student.

The student may appeal the decision of the council to the Principal of Montgomery Blair High School following the procedure outlined for appealing a decision to the principal found in the MBHS student plan book.

The Honor Council's Membership:

All Resource Teachers

Ms. McGinn

Ms. Wanner

Depending on the circumstances surrounding the situation brought before the council, the presiding administrator and the resource teacher will ask another resource teacher to sit on the council to hear the appeal under consideration.

Sources:

The Code of Academic Integrity of the MBHS Communications Arts Program

The Duke University Undergraduate Honor Code

The University of Maryland College Park, Code of Academic Integrity

The George Mason University Honor Code

(Student's signature)
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(Printed signature)
(ID Number)
(Home phone number)