Digital Badge Courses
The Understanding Academic Integrity Digital Badges were developed by TUS and SETU as part of My Digital Backpack, which was created under the N-TUTORR programme and funded by the European Union under the NextGenerationEU initiative, as part of Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
Below is information on the student and staff courses available on Moodle.
Student Course: Understanding Academic Integrity
Available on Moodle, this short, practical course covers the essentials of academic integrity—the values, skills, and habits that set you up for success. In just a few sessions, you’ll learn how to:
- Credit sources correctly when using others’ work
- Stay on top of deadlines and manage time effectively
- Collaborate fairly while maintaining integrity
- Evaluate information for reliability
- Use AI tools responsibly
The course is broken into five bite-sized modules (20–25 minutes each), so you can complete them at your own pace:
- Why Academic Integrity Matters
- Strategies for Learning with Integrity
- Citing and Referencing Made Simple
- Information Literacy Essentials
- Generative AI: Use It the Right Way
Each module concludes with a brief 10-question quiz to assess your understanding. Score 80% or higher on all five, and you’ll earn a digital badge – perfect for showcasing on your profile or CV.
To access the course, please click on the link below for your campus.
Staff Course: Understanding Academic Integrity
Available on Moodle, this course, along with an interactive workbook, helps you explore key discussions, activities, and reflections to strengthen your role in supporting and upholding academic integrity.
The course comprises five sessions:
- Defining Academic Integrity
- Supporting Academic Integrity
- Dealing with Academic Integrity Breaches
- Generative AI and Academic Integrity
- University Policy
Complete all sessions and associated activities to earn a digital badge, showcasing your commitment to academic integrity.
To access the course, please click on the link below for your campus
Academic Integrity Week
Academic Integrity Week 2025 (October 13th – 16th)
Academic Integrity Week is a vital initiative that promotes ethical learning practices and fosters a culture of honesty and respect within educational institutions. The week focuses on raising awareness about academic integrity, addressing issues like plagiarism and cheating, and providing resources to help students and staff uphold ethical standards in their academic work. A variety of events were planned for our students and staff.
The highlight of this year’s Academic Integrity Week was a Panel Discussion, a hybrid event open to both staff and students, on the topic of “The Use of GenAI in the Knowledge Creation Process.” The panel was chaired by Dr Denise Mac Giolla Ri, AI Champion with CPID and consisted of a number of research active staff members across different disciplines (Dr Niall Murray (Engineering), Dr Des Cawley (Nursing), Dr Lisa Moran (Graduate School) and Dr Maura Clancy (Science and Health) who interrogated the theme from their perspective and through the lens of different disciplines.
Please click on the links below to view the staff and student programmes
Celebrating Academic Integrity Week 2025 at TUS!
During this year’s Academic Integrity Week (October 13-16), TUS students engaged with the Understanding Academic Integrity courses on Moodle. Student feedback highlighted the value of the course in understanding ethical practices, proper citation, awareness of plagiarism, and the consequences of academic misconduct.
We are delighted to announce the winners of the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9 Tablets for completing the Understanding Academic Integrity Digital Badge course.
Midwest Winners:
Mohammad Altaf – Structured PhD Mechanical Engineering
Akshay Jassal – Structured Masters Mechanical Engineering Research
Jack Lineen – Civil Engineering Management
Jaychandra Maurya – Structured PhD Mechanical Engineering
Midlands Winners:
Cara Gurlea – BSc Computer Engineering with Network Infrastructure
Amy O’Donoghue – BA (Hons) Social Care Practice
Ngoc Tran – BSc Software Design in AI for Cloud Computing
Ridhi Vyas – MSc Software Design with Artificial Intelligence
A special thank you to Frances O’Connell, Vice President for Student Education & Experience (VPSEE) at TUS, for presenting the prizes, and to the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation and Development (CPID) and SATLE funding for their sponsorship.
Resources for Students
- Academic Writing Centre
- Student Guide: Academic Integrity
- Library referencing guides – covers Harvard, APA and Vancouver
- Library – Write it Right – A guide to Harvard referencing style
- QQI Youtube video on essay mills #Myownwork
Resources for Staff
Podcast – The Use of GenAI in the Knowledge Creation Process
This podcast is part of a podcast series developed by CPID Staff involved in teaching on the taught programmes, supporting the PASS initiative, and engaging in educational research. This podcast is a recording of a Panel Discussion held at the Technological University of the Shannon during Academic Integrity Week 2025 on the topic of “The Use of GenAI in the Knowledge Creation Process”. The discussion is chaired by Dr Denise Mac Giolla Ri, Artificial Intelligence Champion with CPID. Denise is joined by
- Dr. Des Cawley, Head of the Department of Nursing and Healthcare, Faculty of Science and Health in the Technological University of the Shannon
- Dr. Maura Clancy, Dean of Faculty, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology in the Technological University of the Shannon
- Dr. Niall Murray, Senior Lecturer in Dept. of Computer & Software Engineering, Faculty of Engineering & Technology in the Technological University of the Shannon
- Ms. Frances O’Connell, Vice President for Education and Student Experience in the Technological University of the Shannon
This podcast was recorded in October 2025 and was funded by the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, the Higher Education Authority, and the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation and Development Department within the Technological University of the Shannon.
Listen HereQQI Academic Integrity PDF Resources:
- Academic Integrity National Principles and Lexicon of Common Terms
- Academic Integrity Guidelines
- Generative Artificial Intelligence: Guidelines for Educators
- Framework for Academic Misconduct Investigation and Case Management
NAIN Webinars:
2023
- Stephanas Lim: UK universities’ policy responses to Artificial Intelligence related academic misconduct
- National Academic Integrity Week 2023: Opening Student Panel
- What more could HEIs do to help students avoid engaging in academic misconduct?
- Academic integrity from the second-language user’s perspective
- First impressions – first year student concerns around academic integrity and how to alleviate them
2022
2021
- Associate Professor Cath Ellis: Detecting and Investigating Contract Cheating Cases and Supporting Students through the Process
- Professor Phillip Dawson: The Remote Proctored Exams Dilemma
2020
- Dr Teddi Fishman: Academic Integrity and what we can learn from the pandemic
- Professor Michael Draper: Developments in Higher Education in relation to academic integrity
NAIN have number of podcasts offering Continuous Professional Development in academic integrity. The individual links are listed below, or you can subscribe to the series here at QQI (Quality and Qualifications Ireland)
- Lorna Dodd (UCD): The role of academic libraries and librarians in supporting academic integrity
- Richard Kjellgren (University of Stirling): Scoping study, Criminal Grades? Contract cheating and student exploitation in Higher Education
- Professor Michael Draper (Swansea University): Global threats to academic integrity
- Associate professor Sarah Eaton (University of Calgary): The importance of identifying and tackling ‘the wicked questions’ in a collaborative way
- Megan O’Connor (University Students of Ireland): How NAIN Communications Working Group explored new ways of thinking about, and promoted student awareness of academic integrity
- Kane Murdoch (University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia): Academic integrity, contract cheating and the detection of academic misconduct.
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs
Academic integrity is acting in an honest, moral and fair way to complete any academic tasks in an academic setting (QQI, 2020). It is at the heart of all activity in the institute, and depends on individuals approaching any academic task or research in an honest and moral way. This is guided by the TUS Academic Integrity and Plagiarism policy which applies to all learners at all levels in the institute who are undertaking any academic work contributing to an award, or credits.
Academic misconduct is any attempt to seek unfair advantage in relation to any academic activity.
Examples of this include:
- Copying parts of your assignment without acknowledging the source of the information, including copying work from another student.
- Not acknowledging direct quotes in your work, even if you have cited them.
- Paraphrasing without citing the source of the information.
- Incomplete or inaccurate citations in your work.
- Collusion – getting assistance from someone to complete work that should be your own.
- Collaborating – working with others to complete an assignment that is an individual assignment.
- Self-plagiarism – reusing your own work that you have previously submitted for an assessment.
- Buying assignments – this is also called contract cheating. This is dishonest and does not reflect your learning in any way. It can also have a serious impact on your future.
- Using AI to complete part or all of an assignment unless specifically permitted as part of the assessment. Any use of AI must be acknowledged correctly.
Contact Us
For more information, please contact Dr Mike Russell at Michael.Russell@tus.ie