Navigating Academic Integrity Issues: A Personal Experience with Plagiarism Accusations

Recently, I found myself in a daunting situation during my online course at university, and I felt compelled to share my experience in hopes of shedding light on navigating complications regarding academic integrity.

The Plagiarism Accusation
A few days ago, I received an unsettling email from my professor claiming that I had committed plagiarism. She threatened to escalate the issue to the dean of academics at my institution. Her assertion focused on the allegation that I had submitted another student’s work under her name. While there was some truth to her claim—one that had originated from a simple misunderstanding—I was left grappling with the implications of her accusations.

In our course, students were instructed to upload their assignments to a forum. The guidelines stated, “Post your assignment here so everyone can view your ideas.” The task was quite convoluted, and to clarify some of the requirements, I downloaded a PDF of a classmate’s submission. I intended to use it as a reference to help shape my ideas. However, in a moment of confusion, I accidentally uploaded her document instead of my own final version when it came time to submit my work.

Trying to Clarify the Situation
Upon receiving the professor’s email, I quickly crafted a response, expressing my sincere apologies and explaining that my actions were not intentional. I also attached the correct PDF I had meant to submit, along with a screenshot of the file’s metadata showing that I had created it before the assignment deadline. Furthermore, I encouraged her to verify the metadata herself, should she doubt my claim.

Unfortunately, my efforts were met with a response that left me frustrated. The professor informed me that I would still receive a zero for the assignment, claiming that I had “crossed a line” by downloading another student’s work. In disbelief, I replied, courteously pointing out that the submission instructions had essentially encouraged this practice. I quoted the original guideline verbatim to support my case.

The Disappearing Act
Moments after sending my email, I returned to the submission page only to discover that the crucial sentence I had referenced had been removed entirely. This deletion occurred less than ten minutes after my message, leading me to speculate that it was an attempt to obscure the very guidance that had contributed to my misunderstanding.

In an effort to substantiate my position, I pondered whether there was a way to roll back the site to an earlier version