Academic Dishonesty, Discipline and Conduct

We consider honesty to be a primary Christian ethic and one which is especially important to a school community. Therefore, any form of academic dishonesty -- whether cheating or plagiarism -- carries very serious consequences. See the Standard of Conduct Discipline Plan for details.

Definition of Terms:

1. Cheating is any form of getting or giving information unfairly for a test or other graded assignment. It can involve giving or receiving answers to a test, quiz or assignment, or the discussion of test materials with students who have not yet taken the test. Copying is a form of cheating and involves submitting the results of another’s work as one’s own. 
2. Plagiarism is using the words or ideas (even if paraphrased) of another writer without giving proper credit. Whether intentional or not, plagiarism is stealing; it is claiming someone else’s work as one’s own. However, since relatively minor instances of plagiarism can occur even in a carefully written paper, we distinguish two levels of plagiarism in determining consequences. When in doubt, a younger or new student is more likely to be allowed a “technical plagiarism” ruling when the same mistakes made by an upperclassman could be called blatant plagiarism.

• Level 1:  Technical Plagiarism:  This occurs in a paper when a student has made a sincere, responsible effort to give credit where needed, but has made a few mistakes. For example, a student might give credit to the source of a direct quotation but forget to include quotation marks. Or a student might paraphrase inadequately. Or a student might make a citation error which makes the source of the quotation unverifiable. Note that while one or two of these errors might be classified as technical plagiarism, they are still serious errors, and numerous instances would have to be blatant plagiarism.
• Level 2:  Blatant Plagiarism:  This occurs when a student has, intentionally or not, passed off another’s work as his own. He might have taken anywhere from a few key sentences to the whole paper from another source without giving proper credit for those portions. Blatant plagiarism might occur in a paper which includes some correct citing of sources but in which a significant amount of material has been inadequately paraphrased, or has no credit given, or in which the “technical errors” are prevalent rather than rare.

Consequences:  
Cheating:  All instances will be reported to the office. For the first instance of cheating in any class, the student may lose one letter grade on his quarter grade. In cases of gross cheating (like copying a paper from the internet), a student may receive a zero on an assignment which amounts to a loss of more than one letter grade for the quarter. If there is a second instance of cheating in the same class in the same semester, the student will fail that semester. See the Standard of Conduct Discipline Plan for further consequences for repeated instances of cheating.

• Level 1 – Technical Plagiarism:  Students will be given a chance to re-submit the work with the necessary corrections made. Upon submission of the corrected work, the student will be able to receive a grade that is anywhere from 10% to 30% off, depending on the number of errors, the grade level of the student and the length of time the student takes making the corrections. (For example, you might lose 10% per day and be given a maximum of three days to submit your corrected paper.)  A student who does not submit the corrected paper to the teacher within the stated time will receive a zero on the assignment.
• Level 2 – Blatant Plagiarism:  Blatant plagiarism will be treated as cheating.

Discipline Plan:
Cheating and Blatant Plagiarism
1st Offense: quarter grade in that class lowered by one letter; loss of honor roll award; parent notification.
2nd Offense: quarter grade lowered; 3 days in-school suspension; parent notification; loss of honor roll award. If the 2nd offense is in the same class and semester, the student will also fail the class.
3rd Offense:  quarter grade lowered; 3 days at-home suspension; final warning; loss of honor roll award.
4th Offense:  expulsion

Technical Plagiarism
Students will be given a chance to re-submit the work by a given date with the necessary corrections made. Upon timely submission of the corrected work, the student will be able to receive a grade that is anywhere from 5% to 30% off, depending on the number of plagiarism errors, the grade level of the student and the length of time the student takes making the corrections. 

Definition of Terms:
In-School Suspension:  Student is isolated at school from 1-5 days; credit is given for work done.
Suspension:  Student stays home (not in the dorm) from 1-25 days; credit is not given for work done.
Expulsion:  Student is dismissed from school for the remainder of the school year. No fees are refunded, and no credit is given.

Mountainview is a Christian school, and we, therefore, have some standards which are based on the Bible and on Christian ethics. Other guidelines may be motivated simply by our understanding of what constitutes safe, sensible and respectful behavior in our circumstances. All members of the school community are expected to honor these guidelines, which we have chosen to help us maintain a positive and effective learning environment.

Moral/biblical Principles:  It is our expectation that all members of the Mountainview community will honor Christ in all behavior and interactions, both in and outside of school. We expect our students to internalize Scriptural principles and ask themselves if certain actions are consistent with Christian testimony. Consequences for infractions of these principles may be invoked even when the misbehaviors are not directly associated with the school. Some of the behaviors that we would like to see our students building into their characters are the following:

• Honesty:  Honesty honors God and builds trust, which is the foundation for positive relationships.
  • Cheating:  Students are to do their own work. Giving or receiving information to/from others for graded work or copying the work of another student is dishonest and unacceptable. 
  • Plagiarism:  Blatant plagiarism is equally unacceptable. Students are responsible for working on understanding and avoiding all forms of plagiarism, although “technical plagiarism” is dealt with more leniently.
  • Lying:  Integrity is essential for good relationships and mutual respect. Lying is unacceptable.
• Positive Communications:  All forms of communication, including websites and other electronic communications, should honor Christ and show respect for others and for the school. Gossip, uncharitable criticism, profanity, and any other detrimental speech/communications are unacceptable. Also included is any music that is played on campus or at a school activity: it should be Christ-honoring and respectful of others.
• Respectful Behavior:  All members of the Mountainview community (students, teachers, national staff) are expected to show respect and concern for one another and for the authorities over them, following the respect agreements that they have committed to.
• Sexual Purity:  Students need to guard their sexual purity at all times. This means avoiding…
  • the temptation of being alone in a secluded area with a student of the opposite sex,
  • engaging in displays of affection that would arouse sexual desires, and
  • all forms and means of pornography, including visiting pornographic websites.

Other Guidelines:  The following guidelines have been developed to facilitate the smooth and positive functioning of the school. While most of these guidelines are practical rather than moral in nature, a willful refusal to submit in any area becomes a moral issue.

English only:  Because we are an English-language school, we expect all students to speak English during school hours (both during and in between classes). The use of English socially is critical in attaining proficiency.

Electronic Devices:  While hand phones, mp3 players, earbuds/phones, and other electronics can be very useful, their improper use can also disrupt learning and hinder relationships. Therefore, there is no personal use of earbuds/earphones between arrival on campus until 2:30 pm (or the end of the school day). No hand phones or other electronic devices are permitted to disrupt class in any way, so they should be turned off during the entire school day. Any use of such devices is limited to teacher-directed educational use. Phone calls and text messaging is only allowed with teacher permission.
 
Any improper use of these devices will result in confiscation.  Confiscated phones will be held in the secondary office. Following a first violation, the student may collect the phone at the end of the school day.  For any additional violation, a parent must come to collect the phone. Confiscated phones or other devices may be examined by school administration. Students may be required to activate phones and remove passwords.  

Safety:  

• Illegal drugs may not be purchased, possessed, or used by Mountainview students at any time or place.
• Alcohol and tobacco may never be used on campus or in association with any school event, even if off campus. They are addictive and dangerous, especially for young people. However, the school does not consider alcohol or tobacco used under the supervision of one’s parents to be a disciplinary matter.
• Students are not to carry weapons or other dangerous materials on campus. This includes cigarette lighters, slingshots, knives with more than a 2” blade, guns [including pellet, BB, and paintball], etc.
• Students are to act appropriately in all areas. No running in halls, sitting on lockers or roughhousing.

Campus Policies:

• Students are to arrive for school and for each class promptly, being seated and ready by the bell.
• Mountainview is a closed campus. Students are to stay on campus during school hours. 
• Students may not go to the dorms without permission from the principal.
• Students may not skip class.
• Students are to spend the entire lunch period at the pavilion.      
• Students must ask permission to enter a teacher’s room. 
• Students are not to “hang out” in the locker area after 5:00 PM. 
• See the After-Hours Campus Use Policy in the Facilities section for other after-school guidelines.

Facilities Policies:

• Care of facilities:  Students need to treat the building and all of the equipment and supplies of the school well (i.e. desks, books, and lockers…) and use these materials in the way they were designed to be used. We expect them to actively participate in keeping our facilities clean and in good condition for all to enjoy.
• Lockers:  Nothing is to be left on top or on the floor in front of lockers. Lockers should be kept locked. The school reserves the right to inspect lockers at the discretion of the administration.
• Gum:  Gum chewing is not allowed on campus. 
• Food/drink:  Only water is allowed in the auditorium, on the gym floor, and in libraries and computer labs. In all other places where food or drink is allowed, all members of the community are expected to clean up after themselves.
• Auditorium:  Students are not allowed to use the auditorium unsupervised.
• Gym:  See the Gym Use Policies for full information about gym hours and care of the facility.

Vehicle Policies:

• Bicycles on campus:  Bicycles are to be ridden safely on paved roads and grassy areas only, and should be parked the designated section of the covered parking area at the secondary school.
• Skateboards on campus:  Please be careful to protect yourself, others and our facilities. 
  • Areas skateboards are allowed:
    • cement corridors around the gym at gym floor level (unless there is another activity in that area)
    • parking areas if no vehicles are present
    • cement sidewalks
  • The following actions are not allowed anywhere on campus:
    • No grinding 
    • No jumping of any kind
    • No riding rails
  • The following areas are always closed to skateboarding: 
    • in gym (on plastic flooring)
    • on all tiled floors (inside or outside)
    • around classrooms or offices between 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM during normal school days
    • in areas where there are a lot of people (even if the area is normally “allowed”)
    • in and around the gym seating area, including upper corridor playground 
    • playground 
• Off-limit Areas:  No one may drive on the track, soccer field or any grass areas, and may not enter school or gym corridors with wheeled vehicles of any kind. 
• Giving Rides:  Student drivers may never use motorized vehicles to give rides to dorm students. Other students may be given rides only if the driver first obtains permission directly from the parents.

Issues Dealt with Directly through the School Authority Structure: 

Any conflict which occurs outside of the classroom may be dealt with directly by the principal, but the restorative discipline approach (See the Restorative Discipline Plan section for more details), would still be used as possible. And in any situation, the principal may be invited to help the teacher and students find the best resolution.

 “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. “   Hebrews 12:11

Mountainview Christian School believes in a discipline plan that is fair, restorative, and consistent. We feel that all students have a right to go to school in a safe environment. Each student also deserves the opportunity to learn in an atmosphere of respect, free from the influence of disruptive classmates. Each student and teacher has a responsibility to help create and maintain a respectful, safe and stimulating learning environment. We realize that there will be times when students forget their responsibility or are temporarily unwilling to be cooperative. For this reason, we have developed a plan of discipline that has as its goal restoring both a safe and stimulating environment and restoring those who are negatively impacted by the misbehavior. Students and faculty will work together to create a school-wide Respect Agreement, and conflicts will be dealt with in a cooperative setting that seeks to restore. See the Flowchart below (or download here) for a visual summary of this restorative discipline plan. For more details about this approach, please see the next section on Restorative Discipline.

Restorative Discipline

Mountainview Christian School believes in a discipline plan that is fair, restorative, and consistent. We feel that all students have a right to go to school in a safe environment. Each student also deserves the opportunity to learn in an atmosphere of respect, free from the influence of disruptive classmates. Each student and teacher has a responsibility to help create and maintain a respectful, safe and stimulating learning environment. We realize that there will be times when students forget their responsibility or are temporarily unwilling to be cooperative. For this reason, we have developed a plan of discipline that has as its goal restoring both a safe and stimulating environment and restoring those who are negatively impacted by the misbehavior. This plan is based on Ron and Roxanne Claassen's book, Discipline That Restores. Following are the principles outlined in the book and the plan that is based on them.

The Principles of Discipline that Restores (DTR):  Misbehavior, disagreements, and conflicts are viewed as opportunities to learn to know each other better and as occasions where fairness and justice can be negotiated in an atmosphere where all people are valued.

Principle 1: Misbehavior is viewed primarily as an offense against human relationships and secondarily as a violation of a school rule (since school rules are written to protect safety and fairness in human relationships).
Principle 2: The primary victim of the misbehavior is the one most impacted by the offense. The secondary victims are others impacted by the misbehavior and might include students, teachers, parents, administrators, community, etc.
Principle 3: Discipline that Restores (DTR) is a process to “make things as right as possible.”
Principle 4: DTR recognizes both the danger and opportunity created by the misbehavior and conflicts that underlie the misbehavior. As soon as immediate safety concerns are satisfied, DTR views the misbehavior and conflict as a teachable moment.
Principle 5: Discipline that Restores prefers resolving the conflict or handling the misbehavior at the earliest point possible and with the maximum amount of cooperation (as little coercive force as possible.)
Principle 6: Discipline that Restores prefers that most conflicts and misbehaviors are handled using a cooperative structure directly between the ones in conflict.
Principle 7: DTR recognizes that not all persons misbehaving will choose to be cooperative. Therefore there is a need for outside authority to make decisions for the misbehaving person who is not willing to be cooperative. The consequences imposed should be tested by whether they are reasonable, related, restorative, and respectful.
Principle 8: DTR prefers that persons who misbehave and are not yet cooperative be continually invited (not coerced) and encouraged to become responsible and cooperative, and they should be given that opportunity at the earliest possible time they so choose.
Principle 9: DTR requires follow-up and accountability structures since keeping agreements is the key to building a trusting community.
Taken from “An Introduction to Discipline that Restores” (DTR) ©2002 Ron Claassen.

Our Plan of Restorative Discipline

So that we know that we have a shared understanding of each person’s responsibility in helping to create and maintain this kind of environment, the students and teachers will work together to develop a school-wide Respect Agreement at the beginning of the school year. This agreement is then posted in all classrooms. It identifies how students respect students, how students respect teachers, how teachers respect students, and how everyone respects the books, desks, and all facilities. This agreement does not replace the school rules. The Mountainview community thinks that respect is fundamental to creating a safe and stimulating school and classroom environment. Within this basic framework of respect, it is possible to resolve all conflicts in very constructive ways.

When a student is involved in a conflict (with other students, teacher, or school authority), we view that as a situation that needs to be resolved and as a teachable moment. All teachers have a number of informal constructive reminders to help off-task or disruptive students get back on task. (See Informal Process below.) Many times this resolves the problem.

If this does not resolve the problem, the teacher will refer to the respect agreement and/or state I-message reminders. See Formal Process, Step 1, below.

If the conflict continues, then the teacher invites the student to participate in a Teacher/Student meeting as described in Step 2, below.

If a student has not responded to any of these reminders, is not willing to constructively participate in a student/teacher meeting and/or continues to disrupt learning, another option to invite cooperation is the Focus Room, as outlined in Step 3. The Focus Room is a time/place away from the classroom that is designed to help students who are misbehaving or in conflict to “think” about what happened and to reconsider if they are willing to seek a cooperative and restorative resolution with their teacher. The Focus Room is intended to be an encouragement to a student to consider being more cooperative. The adult in the Focus Room will guide students through the “thinking” process. Students are guided to think about what happened, write a description or describe orally what they were doing that caused them to be sent, consider how the teacher and other students experienced the problem, and reconsider their options. If a rule has been violated, they discuss the rule, its purpose, and consider what the reasoning is behind the rule. They will also be asked if they would like to meet with someone to get the help needed to change their behavior to prevent the conflict from happening again. If they agree to cooperate, they will meet with their teacher to use a cooperative process to discuss the problems and to create a written agreement that will help keep the problem(s) from happening again in the future (return to Step 2).

If the student refuses to participate in a cooperative meeting with the teacher, or if the problem is serious and one that requires an incident report (most often related to situations that are issues of student safety), or if the student fails to keep the agreements made with the teacher, a Family Conference will be convened (Step 4). A Family Conference may bring together parents, student, and teacher with additional school personnel to support and encourage the student to develop a written plan they all think is reasonable, respectful, and restorative and that will resolve the conflicts. The conference is led by a conflict resolution specialist. Follow-up meeting(s) are scheduled and continue until the problem is resolved.

If a student continues to be uncooperative (repeatedly violates his/her written agreements, or is unwilling to make agreements) or is creating a safety concern or other serious concern, the school policies and procedures will be enforced as needed to create a safe environment (Step 5). As long as the student is enrolled at Mountainview, the student will continue to be invited to be cooperative.

The key to a safe and stimulating learning environment is the willingness of all people on the school campus to treat each other respectfully. In a respectful community, participants are willing to constructively resolve conflicts and misbehaviors. All agreements and decisions made in a respectful community are reasonable, restorative, constructive, and intended to re-integrate.

For safety reasons, any severe disruption will be dealt with immediately by the Superintendent and/or Principal.

The steps (also see Flow Chart) of Discipline that Restores (DTR) as described above:

Informal Process – Usual Constructive Reminders

The student is made aware of being off task or of their disruptive behavior by simple reminders:

• teacher gains student eye contact (not the evil eye)
• teacher moves closer to student
• teacher gently re-directs student activity to the lesson
• teacher pauses during mini-lecture to gain attention
• teacher asks a question

The student who modifies his/her behavior is encouraged and supported.
If the student does not modify his/her behavior, proceed to Formal Step 1.

Formal Process - DTR Steps

Step 1: Reminder of the Respect Agreement

• The student is made aware of their disruptive behavior.
• The student is invited to remember their respect agreement and asked if they plan to keep the agreement.
• The student who modifies his/her behavior is encouraged and supported.
• If the student does not modify his/her behavior, the teacher will use an I-message reminder and/or active listening to again invite the student to cooperate. An I-message is when the teacher explains how the student’s behavior impacts the teacher.

If the student continues to refuse to cooperate proceed to Step 2.

Step 2: Teacher/Student Meeting

• The student is made aware of their disruptive behavior.
• The student is shown the “Four Options Chart” and asked if they would be willing to try to resolve the problem cooperatively (using Conflict Resolution Option #4).
• If the problem is a student/student conflict, then the teacher or another adult can help the students reach a resolution (Conflict Resolution Option #3).
• The student and teacher each describe the problem. They listen and summarize each other, and they make a written agreement to repair the damage and prevent the problem in the future.
• The teacher and student have follow-up meetings to be sure the agreements are being kept. Trust grows when agreements are made and kept.
• The student is encouraged and supported when the agreements are working.

If the agreements are not being kept, repeat Step 2 or proceed to Step 3.

Step 3: Focus Room

The student who just needs a timeout is sent to a space or another classroom where they can work on their assignments without disturbing the class. When they return, they will be invited to resolve the conflict/misbehavior using Conflict Resolution Option #4 (or #3 if they prefer including a mediator).

The student who refuses to resolve the problem cooperatively (using Conflict Resolution Option #4 or #3) is sent to the Focus Room.

The student is asked to think about what happened by writing or talking about what happened. The adult in the Focus Room listens to and summarizes the student’s concerns. If a rule has been violated, the rule is identified and its purpose is explained. The student is invited to summarize.

The student is invited to reconsider working cooperatively with the teacher. If the student is cooperative, they return to class and inform their teacher that they are willing to participate in a #4 or #3 meeting. (See the Four Options chart.) The student may write a plan to present to the teacher in a Step 2 meeting.

If the student is uncooperative, proceed to Step 4.

Step 4: Family Conference

If the misbehavior is a serious concern but not an immediate safety concern or if the student refuses to resolve the problem cooperatively, parents are contacted. Parents are also contacted if a student has been involved in something that is a serious safety concern outside of the classroom. Parents are invited to help their child consider resolving the problem cooperatively with them present. The meeting is led by the teacher or if they prefer, a Conflict Resolution Specialist using a mediation process.

The group writes and signs the agreements made to resolve the problem.

Follow-up meetings are held to assess if the agreements are working.

If agreements are not being kept or if the problem is a more serious one, another Family Conference is convened and may include parents, possibly extended family and additional school personnel (usually Superintendent/Principal).

The group reviews the behavior, the respect violation, and the rule violation.

The reason behind the rule is explained. The group seeks to arrive at a cooperatively written agreement to remedy the situation. If an agreement is developed, follow-up meeting(s) are scheduled and convened until the problem is resolved.

If a cooperative agreement is not developed, proceed to Step 5.

Step 5: School Authority Structure

If a cooperative agreement has not been developed and/or signed, or if our school policy requires a specific action, the administration informs what consequences must be imposed. The imposed consequences are reasonable, respectful, and intended to be restorative. If the consequences to be imposed are a suspension, the student will serve their suspension and before they return to school and class they will be invited into a teacher/student meeting or a family conference to arrive at a cooperative agreement that will assure the safety of the whole school community.

Four Options for Handling Conflict

This model provides a visual to help understand our Discipline that Restores structure at Raisin City School. The model describes the four basic response options to conflict/misbehavior. Our structure, as written above, describes how in most conflict/misbehavior situations we want to use options #4 and #3 as much as possible with options #2 and #1 as back-up options. Options #2 and #1 become the primary options when safety is the main concern with a return to options #4 and #3 as soon as the safety concerns are satisfied.

Option #1
This option shows that one party has the power to force the other to go along even if s/he would prefer not to. An example would be a child running into the street with their parent going after them, picking them up, and returning them to safety.

Option #2
This option shows a person, a rule, or other resources outside the conflict being consulted and making a decision for the parties in the conflict. An example would be a teacher making a decision for two students who are having a conflict. The teacher listens to both students, then the teacher decides what the students should do.

Option #3 and #4
These options show that the parties who are in conflict come to their own agreement about how to solve their conflict. In Option #3 they come to their own agreement with the help of a trained third party who leads them through a process that enables them to talk and come to their own decision. An example would be two children disrupting the class with their teacher inviting them into a meeting to help them figure out what needs to be done to resolve their problem. In Option #4 they follow the same problem-solving process on their own without the involvement of a mediator. In both #3 and #4 there is no agreement unless the disputants agree on a resolution.

Each option is appropriate depending on the circumstances and the people surrounding each conflict situation. Options #3 and #4 encourage cooperation and that is what we want to encourage within our community. 

The above policy is based on the one developed by Roxanne Claassen for the Raisin City Elementary School in 2008. For more information, see the website www.disciplinethatrestores.org or the Raisin City School Handbook on Discipline.

Click here to read An Introduction to "Discipline That Restores" by Ron Claassen.