Academic Integrity Workshop: An Essential Element to Academic Success for Postgraduates, Academics and Researchers

The Department of Library Services in collaboration with the Department of Education Innovation and Department of Research Innovation hosted a workshop on academic integrity targeted at postgraduate students, academics, and researchers at the University of Pretoria. The workshop took place on the 31st of October 2023 and it was a full-day programme with speakers from the Department of Library Services and Department of Computer Science at UP, University of North West, and Turnitin.

The workshop was online and had over 60 attendees. Ms Anna Siwela, Deputy Director of Academic Support in the library opened the workshop and welcomed the participants. Mr. Isak van der Walt gave two talks, on Generative AI, and Fake news and Deepfakes. He underscored the growing prevalence of tools and techniques in generating images, audio, video, music, art, and other creative content, emphasizing their increasing mainstream adoption.
One of the examples given was how the South African SDG Hub uses AI.

Professor Vukosi Marivate from the Department of Computer Science discussed Large Language Models and their level of intelligence. He provided examples and shared insights on employing the models to generate outputs, showcasing some remarkably interesting results. As an integral part of his presentation, Prof. Marivate presented a well-rounded perspective on the advantages and drawbacks of utilizing these models.

Ms. Lesego Makhafola from the Department of Library Services delivered a presentation on predatory publications, along with insights into hijacked/cloned journals. She offered valuable tips on identifying warning signs and provided guidance on what to do when uncertain about the authenticity of a publication.

Prof Verhoef, Director of Philosophy at the University of the North West gave a practical demonstration on how to use a Community of Practice to develop a model based on the Institution, engagement, and empowerment of both lecturers and students for developing academic integrity. The model follows an integrated bottom-up approach, with the involvement of multiple stakeholders, to foster a culture of academic integrity within the university community.

Developing a policy is a struggle for academic institutions, therefore they provide guidelines instead of a policy. An Academic Integrity Information Technology System Application (AIITSA) was developed.

Regrettably, two scheduled speakers were unable to participate due to unforeseen circumstances. Nevertheless, the workshop proved to be a success, eliciting requests for additional sessions of a similar nature. The originating department is now gearing up for a series of workshops in the upcoming year, featuring an expanded program that covers topics such as copyright, research data analysis, and diverse perspectives from various universities on the use of generative AI in academia. Anticipating broader participation, we look forward to engaging more postgraduate students, academics, and researchers in discussions surrounding academic integrity and AI.