GOV.PH
Dan Fereth B. Fajardo, Ph.D., Program Chair of the AB English Language Studies program at the Camarines Sur Polytechnic Colleges (CSPC) College of Arts and Sciences, has published a research paper in The Journal of Education Culture and Society (No. 2, 2026), a Scopus-indexed publication.
The paper, titled “Unpacking Students’ Perceptions of Academic Integrity: Narratives of Plagiarism and Honesty in Higher Education,” explores how college students understand plagiarism and honesty, and how they experience upholding or struggling with integrity in their academic work.
About the study
Using a qualitative narrative inquiry design, Dr. Fajardo interviewed 15 purposively selected CSPC students from different programs and year levels. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, validated through member checking, and analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s six-phase thematic analysis.
Key findings
Students’ perceptions of academic integrity centered on four themes: integrity as honesty and truthfulness; plagiarism as deliberate cheating; plagiarism as confusion and error; and integrity as compliance with institutional rules.
Four further themes emerged on the challenges and practices of maintaining integrity: time pressure and workload, digital temptations and shortcuts, cultural habits and peer influence, and resilience strategies and peer accountability.
The study found that integrity is a contextual, negotiated practice shaped by personal values, cultural orientations, technology, and institutional structures.
Conclusions and recommendation
The study concludes that academic dishonesty is often driven by systemic and developmental factors rather than moral weakness, and that students also show resilience and creativity in staying honest. Dr. Fajardo recommends developing an Academic Integrity Resource Kit for Students and Faculty, which would turn the findings into practical tools for promoting a culture of integrity across the college.