Collaboration Guidelines

Last modified at 8:54 AM on 1/19/02.

Studying Together vs. Copying

Copying all or part of another student's assignment, with or without the student's knowledge, is prohibited. This includes copying work that another person left on the computer.
Allowing another student to copy any part of your assignment is prohibited. This includes leaving your work on a lab computer or not logging off your account when you leave the lab.
Copying old solutions is prohibited.
Copying any computer files, except those expressly intended for public use, is prohibited and may be illegal. Students will often ask another student for a copy of a program so he or she can study it later. This is copying, not working together.
Please read the SSU policy on Cheating and Plagiarism on page 18 (section II.C) of the Spring 2002 Schedule of Classes. In particular, note that
Students who engage in either cheating or plagiarism will be subject to academic sanctions, including a lowered or failing grade in a course, and the possibility of an additional administrative sanction (probation, suspension, or expulsion) as provided in Section 41301 through 41304 of Title 5, California Administrative Code.
All material turned in for credit must be your own work. Specifically,
- algorithms may be the same, but
- identifiers should be different, and
- comments should be different.

By exchanging your ideas with others, each of you will learn more about how to solve the problem. But make sure that you understand the ideas you use in your programs, other assignments, and tests, and that all your work is in your own words. Establish a "learning together" relationship, not a "sharing the work" one. Then both parties benefit from working together. If you're simply looking at someone else's work, they may conclude that you simply wish to take advantage of the work they have already done. Also, make sure that you respect another person's desire to work alone.