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Code of Good Practice: Student Behaviour

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DATE OF APPROVAL: 22 June 2007

AMENDMENTS:

REFERENCE AUTHORITY: Deputy Vice Chancellor and Vice President: Academic

CROSS REFERENCES:

CONTENTS:

Preamble

The University has a duty of care to staff and students and is responsible for providing a safe teaching and learning environment for the University community.

This code outlines the responsibilities of both the University and all enrolled students at the University of South Australia.

This code:

Principles

Three principles underpin student behaviour at the University of South Australia. These are:

 

Respect Rights Responsibilities
1. Respect between staff and students

Expectations of academic staff behaviour are covered in a number of other Codes of Good Practice:

All students have the right to:

An equal opportunity to learn.

Have issues dealt with in a timely and fair manner.

Appropriate complaints procedures that are clearly defined and easily accessible.

Privacy and confidentiality.

All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Treat students and staff courteously regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, social background, disability, sexual preference, or religious beliefs and customs.

Attempt to resolve issues through informal discussion before taking formal action.

Make themselves aware of the University's procedures for complaints and grievances and use these procedures appropriately.

[See policy C-17 Student Grievances Resolution]
2. Respect for the University environment.

 

 All students have the right to:

A safe environment.

 

All students therefore have a responsibility to: 

Treat University facilities and equipment appropriately and follow safety guidelines.

Observe guidelines such as University by-laws 4 and 12 that have been established to ensure behaviour conforms to sound occupational health, safety and welfare principles.

This includes:

  • not placing themself or others at risk of injury
  • reporting hazards associated with their class or other activities to the relevant academic or professional staff member
  • reporting every incident and injury, irrespective of its seriousness, to the relevant academic or professional staff member.
3. Respect for the views of others. All students have the right to:

Communicate various perspectives and views in an environment where freedom of expression is respected.

All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Respect the rights of others to hold and express a range of viewpoints.

Express views with due consideration for the feelings of others and understanding of relevant ethical and cultural implications.

[See policy C-2: Equal opportunity,  and Discrimination and Harassment Grievance Procedures (Students)]
4. Respect for the rights of others to University resources. All students have the right to:

Reasonable access to resources.

 All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Use resources such as library books and computers with consideration for the fair access of others.

[See policy C-22: Acceptable use of Information Technology (IT) facilities, and Guidelines for students* on use of IT facilities, including email and the internet]
5. Respect for the wellbeing of others. All students have the right to:

Study in a harmonious learning environment.

All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Communicate with courtesy and respect in all mediums including online.

[See: Guidelines on Electronic Communications with Students]

Learn and use each other's names

Not disrupt the learning of others.

[See:
6. Respect for the academic requirements of programs.

All students have the right to:

Accurate and up-to-date information on assessment and other aspects of a course or program.

Assessment that provides an opportunity to demonstrate their learning.

Fair, constructive and impartial feedback on assessment within a reasonable timeframe.

Opportunities to provide feedback on teaching staff, course content or any other aspect of their experiences without fear of retribution.

For Higher Degree by Research students, provision of effective research management and supervision.

All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Pay attention to the information provided about courses, programs and assessment.

Attend information sessions, lectures, tutorials, workshops and practical sessions as required and access all relevant electronic information.

Be well prepared for classes by completing required readings and preparatory tasks.

Regularly check and use the UniSA student portal and email account (it is recommended that students check their email at least weekly).

Constructively use the feedback that is provided.

For Higher Degree by Research students, play an informed part in the planning and execution of a research project, maintaining progress according to agreed milestones.
7. respect for the roles and responsibilities of academic staff. All students have the right to:

Reasonable access to staff for individual consultation outside of class times (either in person, via phone or email).

Information about when staff will be available for individual consultation outside of class time.

All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Respect the rights of others to manage their time and balance competing responsibilities.

 

 
8. Respect for students with individual needs. All students have the right to:

Treatment in a non-discriminatory manner that takes into account individual circumstances such as disability or cultural background.

 

 All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Make themselves aware of the services that are available.

Talk to the Learning and Teaching Unit and/or academic staff about any special circumstances that may affect academic performance, including disability and English language needs.
9. Respect for intellectual property and academic integrity. All students have the right to:

Information about intellectual property and academic misconduct, and the consequences of non-compliance.

Have intellectual property rights recognised and respected.

 

All students therefore have a responsibility to:

Comply with academic integrity policy and procedures 

[See Assessment Policies and Procedures Manual Section 9: Academic Integrity] and intellectual property guidelines.

Appropriately acknowledge the contribution of others in all academic work.

[See Learning and Teaching Unit Referencing resource.]

 

Consequences of inappropriate behaviour

The University has a duty of care to all members of the University community and is obliged to take immediate action to address any incidents where a student's behaviour is deemed to be inappropriate or interfere with the freedom of any other member of the University community to pursue their studies, research, academic or professional duties, or to take part in the life of the University.

Senior staff in positions of authority can arrange for the immediate removal of students causing disturbances. In transnational settings, these arrangements will be negotiated with the relevant partner organisation.

[See statutes and by-laws]

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