Assessment of Academic Misconducts for Enhancing Integrity among Postgraduate Students in Public Universities in Rivers State

Kayii; NumbaraBari Emmanuel; Wonu; Nduka

doi:10.56201/wjeds.v9.no7.2024.pg140.152

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Assessment of Academic Misconducts for Enhancing Integrity among Postgraduate Students in Public Universities in Rivers State

Kayii, NumbaraBari Emmanuel & Wonu, Nduka

Abstract

Assessment of academic misconduct for enhancing integrity among postgraduate students in public universities in Rivers State is the central focus of this analytic descriptive survey. The study focused on all participants from three distinct workshops: the Faculty of Education at Rivers State University, the Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences at Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, and the "Grantmanship workshop" at the University of Port Harcourt. However, the researchers sampled 522 participants using the stratified random sampling technique. Three research questions and three hypotheses guided the study. The researchers designed a 45-item questionnaire, known as the "Academic Misconducts Assessment Questionnaire (AMA-Q)," to collect data from the participants. They subjected it to content and face validity to ensure its alignment with the research objectives. Using Cronbach's alpha to test the instrument's reliability yielded coefficients of 0.79, 0.83, and 0.77 for different parts of the instrument, indicating a satisfactory internal consistency. We analysed the data item by item using the mean, based on the real numbers' limits: 4.00-3.50 (SA), 3.49-2.50 (A), 2.49- 1.50 (D), and 1.49-0.50 (SD), and tested hypotheses using ANOVA. The findings, among other things, revealed that academic misconduct among postgraduate students is a common phenomenon across public universities in Rivers State. The grand mean values for Rivers State University (RSU: 3.41), Ignatius Ajuru University of Education (IAUE: 3.37), and the University of Port Harcourt (UP: 3.46) indicate that respondents generally agree on the prevalence of listed behaviours, such as plagiarism, contract cheating, falsification of records, and unethical collaboration. Universities in Rivers State should collaborate to standardize policies and guidelines on academic integrity, ensure uniform enforcement, and foster a culture of ethical behavior among postgraduate s

Keywords

AssessmentAcademic MisconductIntegrityCommon FormsPreventive Strategies

References

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Assessment of Academic Misconducts for Enhancing Integrity among Postgraduate Students in Public Universities in Rivers State

Abstract

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