The Honor Pledge is a statement undergraduate and graduate students should be asked
to write by hand and sign on examinations, papers, or other academic assignments.
The Pledge reads:
The pledge was adopted by the University Senate on April 9, 2001, and approved by
the President on May 10, 2001. Full implementation was effective throughout the
University on the first day of the Spring 2002 semester.
Each year during New Student Orientation, new students sign an Honor Scroll for
their graduating class. The signing of the scroll is each student's introduction
to the culture of academic integrity fostered by the University of Maryland. President
Mote signs the Honor Scroll to demonstrate this commitment to academic integrity.
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What is the University of Maryland Honor Pledge?
The Honor Pledge is a statement undergraduate and graduate students should be asked
to write by hand and sign on examinations, papers, or other academic
assignments. The Pledge reads:s
I pledge on my honor that I have not given or received any unauthorized assistance
on this assignment/examination.
The Pledge was adopted by the University Senate on April 9, 2001, and approved by
the President on May 10, 2001. Full implementation was effective throughout the
University on the first day of the Spring 2002 semester.
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What are the origins of the Pledge?
The University of Maryland Honor Pledge was initiated by students. Hundreds of students
signed a campus-wide version of the Pledge before it was officially adopted by the
University Senate. The Pledge language approved by the Senate was jointly sponsored
by the Student Honor Council and the President's Student Advisory Council. It was
also endorsed by majority vote of the Student Government Association.
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What other colleges and universities use honor pledges?
Students sign honor pledges on academic assignments at many leading universities,
including Princeton University, The University of Virginia, the University of North
Carolina, Wesleyan University, Vanderbilt University, Rice University, Oberlin College,
and the University of Michigan (College of Engineering), among others. Students
also sign matriculation honor pledges at institutions such as Duke University, Georgetown
University, and the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
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What is the Maryland Honor Pledge designed to accomplish?
The Honor Pledge is a community building ritual, designed to encourage faculty and
students to reflect upon the University's core institutional value of academic integrity.
Professors who invite students to sign the Honor Pledge signify that there is an
ethical component to teaching and learning. Students who write by hand and sign
the Pledge affirm a sense of pride in the integrity of their work.
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Do honor pledges suggest students cannot be trusted?
No. Student leaders at Maryland would not have developed the Pledge if it had that
connotation. People who enter a profession or assume public office often sign an
oath or affirmation. Likewise, Maryland students endorse the Honor Pledge because
they feel a growing sense of pride in the quality of the University. For them, the
Pledge reflects their public statement of support for academic excellence, including
the highest standards for academic integrity.
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Is there any evidence pledges or public affirmations make a difference in attitudes
or behavior?
National research shows that schools with traditional honor codes including pledge
requirements have significantly lower rates of academic dishonesty than schools
without honor codes. See
Some Good News About Academic Integrity in the September/October 2000
issue of Change Magazine.
In reviewing the honor pledge concept, the University Senate Committee on Student
Conduct also found that pledges generate strong support from graduates of honor
code schools.
Princeton graduate Don McCabe (Professor of Management at Rutgers University and
founder of the
National Center for Academic Integrity at Clemson University) wrote to the
Committee that:
I am very partial to pledges. I would suggest that a significant majority of honor
code school alumni. . . can still recite the honor pledge even though it's been
30- to-50 years or more since they last signed it. It was a very meaningful
part of the [honor] code tradition.
This perspective has been consistently echoed by University of Maryland faculty
members who are graduates of honor code schools.
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How can an honor pledge deter someone who has already decided to engage in academic
dishonesty?
Honor pledges are not likely to deter determined cheaters. Most students, however,
do not fall into that category. They cheat because they developed the habit of cheating
in high school or because they think ";everyone does it" in college.
One of the values of an honor pledge is regular reiteration of a campus-wide commitment
to academic integrity. Writing and signing an honor pledge and seeing other students
do the same sends the powerful message that academic dishonesty is not considered
acceptable behavior among students, and that promoting academic integrity is a responsibility
students share with faculty members.
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Why are students asked to write the Pledge by hand as well as to sign it?
The purpose of asking students to write the Pledge by hand is to promote a period
of serious reflection at the end of an academic exercise. The few moments required
to write the pledge by hand reminds students that the paper or examination they
are submitting is governed by the ethical rules of a scholarly community.
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Are honor pledges burdensome to administer?
Administration of honor pledges is not unduly burdensome, as evidenced by long-standing
faculty support for honor pledges at many institutions. The wording of the Pledge
(with appropriate space to write and sign) is printed on all University examination
booklets and electronic grading forms.
Faculty members simply need to explain the Pledge requirement on the first day of
class and remind students to write by hand and sign the Pledge when
submitting examinations and papers. Experience elsewhere and at Maryland indicates
that very few students will neglect to write or sign the Pledge. Those who do should
be given an opportunity to comply.
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What if a student refuses to write or sign the Pledge?
The Maryland Honor Pledge was reviewed by legal counsel and is carefully crafted
to respect the autonomy of individuals who might object to a pledge requirement
on religious or ideological grounds. The University Senate resolution on the Honor
Pledge states that "signing or non-signing of the Pledge will not be considered
in grading or judicial procedures."
If a handwritten Honor Pledge and Pledge signature do not appear on a paper or examination,
faculty members should ask the student for an explanation. Doing so has the added
value of encouraging teachers and students to discuss the importance of academic
integrity and the best ways to promote it. Students remain free to decline to write
or sign the Pledge and should not be penalized for exercising that right. Students
should be reminded, however, that they are subject to the requirements of the Code
of Academic Integrity, whether or not they write and sign the Honor Pledge.
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How can a pledge be effective if it isn't compulsory?
The highest forms of moral development require freedom to choose, influenced by
example and persuasion, not compulsion. The Honor Pledge is meant to reflect a personal
commitment. It should spark thought and debate. A principled decision not
to write and sign the Pledge discussed and explained in an atmosphere of mutual
respect would likely do more to promote the University's core value of academic
integrity than ritualistic compliance.
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What if a faculty member is opposed to administering the Pledge?
The University of Maryland Honor Pledge was initiated by students. Hundreds of students
signed a campus-wide version of the Pledge before it was officially adopted by the
University Senate. The Pledge language approved by the Senate was jointly sponsored
by the Student Honor Council and the President's Student Advisory Council. It was
also endorsed by majority vote of the Student Government Association.
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What kinds of academic exercises should include the Pledge statement?
The University Senate Committee on Student Conduct, with approval by the Senate
Executive Committee, has urged faculty members to include the Pledge on all assignments
worth 20% or more of the course grade. The Pledge may also be included on lesser
assignments.
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What should faculty members write about the Pledge in their syllabi?
The following language may be used as a model:
The University has a nationally recognized Honor Code, administered by the Student
Honor Council. The Student Honor Council proposed and the University Senate approved
an Honor Pledge. The University of Maryland Honor Pledge reads:
I pledge on my honor that I have not given or received any unauthorized assistance
on this assignment/examination.
Unless you are specifically advised to the contrary, the Pledge statement should
be handwritten and signed on the front cover of all papers, projects, or
other academic assignments submitted for evaluation in this course. Students who
fail to write and sign the Pledge will be asked to confer with the instructor.
The Student Honor Council also encourages faculty members to include a reference
to--and perhaps a web site address for--any professional ethical codes pertinent
to the course (e.g., the Fundamental Canons of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers).
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What should faculty members tell students about University academic integrity standards
and the Honor Pledge?
Substantial research shows that academic dishonesty is less likely to occur in classes
where students know their teachers care about academic integrity. Stern lectures
or threats of punishment are not required. The best approach is to identify and
affirm high community standards, endorsed by other students. For example, faculty
members might state on the first day of classes that:
The University has an active Student Honor Council. The Honor Council sets high standards
for academic integrity, and I support its efforts. Please note in this regard the
University Honor Pledge you will be asked to write and sign on papers and examinations,
as specified in my syllabus.
