Thoreau Middle School

Honor Code Policy

Thoreau Middle School prides itself on academic excellence and our RISE principles of Respect, Integrity, Service and Engagement.  In support of these principles, Thoreau supports student success through the implementation of an Honor Code Policy in line with the FCPS Honor Code.  Cheating and plagiarizing are behaviors that may result in disciplinary action as outlined in the FCPS  Student Rights and Responsibilities.  

To support student success in abiding by the FCPS Honor Code outlined above, Thoreau teachers and students have the following responsibilities:  

Teacher Responsibilities

• Provide direction regarding allowable sources and tools to complete assignments, including the appropriate use of digital resources and AI.  Click HERE for FCPS Student AI Guide. 
• Instruct students on how to properly cite written, visual, and audio sources in assignments
• Structure conditions during testing to alleviate the possibility of cheating
• Provide clear materials and directions for completing assignments 
• Provide clear guidelines for appropriate collaboration, when applicable

Student Responsibilities

• Complete work in the format and/or online application in which it was assigned
• Use and cite sources appropriately 
  • Seek help or clarification on assignment directions or citation rules
  • Follow teacher guidelines on the appropriate use of digital resources and AI 
  • Use only allowable sources and tools to complete assignments as directed by the teacher 
• Avoid situations that might contribute to cheating or plagiarizing including but not limited to sharing documents with classmates, allowing others to copy, turning in assignments not completed by the individual
• Avoid unauthorized assistance by peers, family members and/or other individuals 
• If you are unsure if something is considered plagiarism, ask your teacher! 
• Examples of plagiarism include:
  • using quotation marks for statements taken from others 
  • acknowledging information and ideas borrowed from any source
  • consulting faculty members about a questionable situation
  • not “cutting” and “pasting” from computer text without proper attribution

Consequences may include but are not limited to: 

• Teacher conference with student
• Parent Notification
• Referral to administrator 
• Documentation in SIS
• Expectation to re-do the assignment 
• Reduction of letter grade 
• Progressive discipline consequences as outlined in the SR&R, including a zero for the assignment after multiple offenses