An active introduction to academic misconduct and the measured demographics of misconduct

An activity designed to actively introduce first year students to issues related to academic misconduct is described. The activity involves computing students writing a short essay on a topic related to the history of computing. The essays are subsequently automatically checked for non‐originality and the outcomes made available to the students. The results of approximately 350 students from two different sessions are analysed for any demographic influences. The only significant findings were that non‐originality was a predictor of non‐completion of first year studies and of a lower percentage outcome.