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Retour Lectures on academic integrity at the University of Pristina “Hasan Prishtina” and University of Prizren “Ukshin Hoti”

Lectures on academic integrity at the University of Pristina “Hasan Prishtina” and University of Prizren “Ukshin Hoti”

On 22 and 23 November, two lectures on academic integrity with a special focus on plagiarism were held at the University of Pristina “Hasan Prishtina” and the University of Prizren “Ukshin Hoti”, respectively.

The lectures were delivered by Professor Thomas Lancaster from the University of Staffordshire, whose research interest focuses on plagiarism detection and contract cheating. Professor Lancaster defined the concept of plagiarism and presented various forms of it. He also argued that students might not be aware that they are involved in any forms of plagiarism, if the latter is not explained to them. Moreover, he presented the research conducted in 2016 within the framework of the South East European Project on Policies for Academic Integrity (SEEPPAI) about trends of plagiarism in South East Europe.

In Pristina, the audience was predominantly made up of academic staff who were very keen on understanding how plagiarism can be effectively avoided by students. It was concluded that the best way to avoid plagiarism is to follow students throughout their engagement in the class, and by also involving them in vivas and other forms of assignments.

The audience present at the University of Prizren, on the other hand, consisted largely of students. The students were interested to hear what is considered plagiarism what not, and they were also eager to find out more about trends of plagiarism across UK universities.

The lectures were organised as part of the of Horizontal Facility's Action “Strengthen integrity and combat corruption in higher education”, a joint programme funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe. These activities were also covered by local media.
 

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSC 1244 and the ICJ opinion on declaration of independence.

Kosovo* 27 November 2017
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“Strengthen Integrity and Combat Corruption in the Higher Education”


The Council of Europe assists relevant authorities in Kosovo* to improve the quality of education through applying preventive mechanisms based on Council of Europe standards and practices. The action is being implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology while involving a wider group of relevant stakeholders, including public universities, the Anti-Corruption Agency, the Accreditation Agency, education policy and research institutes, NGOs and academics.

The action is co-funded by the European Union and Council of Europe as part of the European Union – Council of Europe programmatic framework “Horizontal Facility for Western Balkans and Turkey” and is implemented by the Council of Europe Education Department in cooperation with the Council of Europe Office in Pristina.

The duration of the actions is set at 26 months and it is expected to be completed by 30 November 2018, with an overall budget of 350,000 euros.
 

Objectives and expected results

The overall objective is to strengthen integrity and combat corruption in the higher education system in Kosovo through applying preventive mechanisms based on Council of Europe standards and policies.

The first specific objective is to support relevant higher education institutions in developing ethical standards, combat corruption and promote best practices of quality and integrity in education. This specific objective shall be accomplished through the achievement of the following results:

  • Relevant public authorities adopt mechanisms to prevent corruption and to strengthen ethics, transparency and integrity in higher education;
  • Mechanisms in place take into account standards and good practices promoted by the Council of Europe’s Ethics in Education Platform (ETINED).

The second specific objective is to raise awareness and improve knowledge of the main education actors on ethical standards and how to address corruption. This objective shall be accomplished through the achievement of the following result:

  • Educational professionals and students in public higher education institutions have increased competencies to recognise and address issues challenging the integrity in higher education.
     

Background information

On 11 April 2016, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, and the European Union’s Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Johannes Hahn, announced a new co-operation initiative of the two organisations aimed at supporting South-East Europe and Turkey in their efforts to comply with European standards. The initiative is called the European Union/Council of Europe Horizontal Facility for Western Balkans and Turkey (Horizontal Facility). It is a three-year programme (May 2016 – May 2019), focusing on three themes: ensuring justice, fighting economic crime as well as combating discrimination and protecting the rights of vulnerable groups. It has a budget of €25 million, of which €20 million has been provided by the European Union and €5 million by the Council of Europe.  Through the Horizontal Facility, the European Union and the Council of Europe will assist beneficiaries in South-East Europe and Turkey to comply with Council of Europe standards and the European Union acquis, through a complementary two-fold approach of technical co-operation and the provision of expertise. The Horizontal Facility relies on the Council of Europe’s unique working methods, whereby tailor-made technical co-operation activities are based on conclusions and recommendations of the Council of Europe’s monitoring bodies, which highlight areas where improvements are needed in legislation and policies of the beneficiaries to comply with the Organisation’s standards.


* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.