05/04/2024

Continents Meet with Integrity: An Invitation to the FAITH Conference

Written by Salim Razi

A culture of academic integrity and sustainable change are achieved by designing and implementing effective policies (Morris, 2016) which are blueprint documents reflecting institutional perspectives to establish a culture of academic integrity. Policies should be carefully developed and implemented with the collaboration of all stakeholders. Policy deficiencies can be seen as a threat to the realization of academic integrity and accordingly, to the quality of educational outcomes. Although most policies focus on detection and reaction to academic misconduct, they are expected to prioritize the deterrence of any misconduct for creating and maintaining a sustainable culture of academic integrity.

Academic integrity is best achieved by the cooperation and the active participation of all stakeholders in an institution. An effective decision-making process involves learning from one’s past experiences and learning from others’ experiences. Relevant to this goal, the "Facing Academic Integrity Threats (FAITH) Project" (Erasmus+ Cooperation partnerships in higher education) brings transnational partners together to have a more robust decision-making process. The three-year project is coordinated by Dr. Salim Razı of Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University Centre for Academic Integrity (COMU CAI) and co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, Turkish National Agency; where the European Network for Academic Integrity (Czechia), University of Konstanz (Germany), University of Maribor (Slovenia), and University of Porto (Portugal) are its partners.

The three project results of the FAITH deal with (PR1) policy for good practice by establishing minimum standards for academic integrity in higher education institutions, (PR2) proactive approach to prevent academic misconduct through the help of pedagogical materials, and (PR3) support for victims of academic misconduct via an interactive web portal to promote a culture of academic integrity. The project also deals with the ethical implementation of GenAI from both policy and pedagogy perspectives.

The FAITH Conference, to be hosted by COMU CAI which plays a pivotal role in advancing academic integrity across Türkiye and beyond, is a multiplier event of the project. It will take place from the 5th to the 7th of August 2024 in Çanakkale, Türkiye. The conference mainly aims to highlight innovative research and practical applications that support the establishment of minimum standards for academic integrity in higher education institutions by presenting the results from the FAITH project. The three keynote speakers, namely Professor Mary Davis, Dr. Sarah Elaine Eaton, and Dr. Zeenath Reza Khan, as experts of academic integrity out of the FAITH consortium, will bring their own perspectives to the interpretation of the project results. The conference will also provide a platform for other academic integrity researchers to present their studies.

Çanakkale is steeped in history, most notably for its proximity to the ancient city of Troy and its significant role during the Gallipoli campaign in World War I. Like Istanbul, Çanakkale also connects the two main continents of Europe and Asia to one another via the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge, holding the record of having the longest mid-span suspension bridge which was opened at the same time as the official start of the FAITH project in 2022. Inspired from the bridge, the FAITH consortium has aimed to transfer the project results with the rest of the world, especially in the regions where integrity is much needed. Therefore, in our call for the conference, we specifically invite delegates from all over the world and believe that our gathering in Çanakkale will mark a historic moment in the calendars of academic integrity community members. Registration for the FAITH Conference is open to both presenters and listeners until the 31st of May, and free of charge for all participants. To secure your spot at the conference, please register via our webpage.

References
Morris, E. (2016). Academic integrity policy and practice: Introduction. In T. Bretag (Ed.), Handbook of academic integrity (pp. 409-411). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-079-7_79-1

Salim Razı, Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Türkiye

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