In the online environment, we encounter a variety of personalities and student behaviors. Myers-Wylie et al. (2009) stated,
Students are very forward these days, and with the anonymity provide by the nature of online instruction, students are more likely to question and challenge faculty members than they may otherwise be…as online instructors you will need to be prepared for the student who challenges a grade, acts up in the [virtual] classroom, the student with excuses, ones who plagiarize, or even those who disappear for a period of time and come back expecting you to grade all of the papers. (p. 105)
For example, not every student is motivated to submit his or her work on time. You may have a student who expects accommodations throughout the class, or who offers a variety of reasons from week to week as to why he does not submit work in a timely manner. By contrast, you may find that a student has an extreme circumstance for which you grant an exception to take late work or you may also encounter a military student with a special challenge. Our students are unique, with different situations and personalities. All of these factors can present a variety of challenges in our virtual classroom experience.
Myers-Wylie et al. (2009) stated, "It takes a skilled instructor to be able to stop problems that do arise either in the face-to-face classroom or online" (p. 106). An advantage of online teaching is that you have some time to reflect and provide a response to a situation. It is important not to take it personally and not to write a quick reply when you are angry – if that is the case, draft something – wait a bit to cool down and then revise. You want to keep your tone professional and model the expectations required of instructors. Myers-Wylie et al. (2009) noted, "Being empathetic does not mean we ignore the student's tone or inappropriate communication. However, we need to make sure that we do not aggravate the situation by using a confrontational tone with them" (p. 106). As the instructor, you need to maintain control of the classroom. Guidelines to help you handle challenging students in your classes include:
CSU Global values its faculty members and their efforts in the classroom. Below, you will find common situations that you may encounter regarding student engagement and behavior, as well as some suggestions, which provide useful professional guidelines for working with such students. When students are not meeting specific obligations, you should also refer them to the Student Rights and Responsibilities as well as the Student Code of Conduct which can be found in the Academic Catalog and on the CSU Global website.
As faculty, it is important to document your communication and feedback as this will assist in the resolution of issues and can become evidence in cases related to Student Code of Conduct violations. In addition, faculty are not obligated to continue a dialogue with students who are inappropriate, abusive, threatening, or harassing in emails or other communication. Student Affairs (Student.Affairs@csuglobal.edu) should be notified of any of these actions.
If a difficult situation, inappropriate dialogue, or unsuitable language occurs in the discussion forum, it is important for instructors to respond quickly before it becomes a larger issue. You will recognize a problem as you are monitoring and reading all student messages in the discussion boards. Bender (2012) noted that if online discussions become heated, the instructor may feel there is a need to edit or delete responses that are offensive or inappropriate, but if that occurs and students have read the message, it may seem as if you are falsifying the class discussion history. Myers-Wylie et al. (2009) recognized a need for the class to know that you are addressing the problem by posting a note in the classroom reminding students of proper netiquette. The offender may not have realized her tone and impact. You should contact the student privately, via email or phone, depending on her preferred method of communication. You can make this a teachable moment. There are also times we can agree to disagree, and a good debate can result in the discussion board.
Bender (2012) recommends ways to overcome a lack of participation that include the following: design high-level questions (promote the right conditions for constructive thinking), avoid questions that are too vague or would require a yes or no answer, encourage an informal conversational style, keep postings succinct, ask students to become discussion leaders, ask students to complete the sentence to stimulate discussion, and play devil's advocate. Your positive communications can make a difference and turn things around. Bender noted that the instructor also needs to be encouraging to any students who do not engage in the discussion.
At the other extreme is "the student who responds to everyone," and you may have to offer some suggestions to the student as to timing or sharing discussion board space (Myers-Wylie et al., 2009, p. 111). Sometimes you may not want to stifle such an individual's enthusiasm as they keep activity going in the discussion board - so weigh the factors in your particular classroom. Often, the overactive student settles down after the first week or two in the class.
For students who are too brief in their posts, consider asking expansion questions such as, “I would love for you to describe in two paragraphs how you have experienced this issue in your professional life.” By asking for more depth and breadth to posts, students will understand how to specifically add to their discussion contributions.
For discussion forum responses that are too brief, you will want to communicate to the student that you need to see more details in his work to meet the assignment requirements. Consult the grading rubric for response guidelines, as most require a minimum responses. If you are strict in grading and reducing points during the first week of class for those posts which do not meet requirements, you will most likely see improvement in future week's posts.
For students who are missing, it is vital that you initiate personalized communication via email or phone. You can encourage them and even provide a plan to get caught up. You may generate a student referral form and/or contact the student's advisor if you do not hear back from the student. "A little email checking on the student may help you to find out if the student is experiencing a problem with the class or life itself" (Myers-Wylie et al., 2009, p. 114). Your concern and caring attitude can make a positive difference in possibly salvaging a student who might otherwise not continue pursuing their higher education.
On occasion, you will encounter a student who is not paying attention to your feedback on making improvements. You can either send the student a private email and/or call the student if you think the student may not be checking his or her email account. You will want to document your communication and feedback. You can also notify the student advisor that you have concerns; he or she may have other methods to contact the student and offer them further advice to be successful in the online classroom. Of note: some students do not do well in this environment and may not be a good fit for online classes, but they are the exception. You will want to alert the student advisor if you find this to be the case.
If a student requests a grade change, review the grading based on the rubric. Adjust the grade if the student has addressed a valid point; otherwise adhere to your original grade decision. Students must earn their points. We may make a mistake ourselves on occasion, and in that instance thank the student for asking you to check their work again to find the error. It may also be useful to remind students demanding a specific grade that grades are earned based on their work submitted; grades are never given. Further, the reputation of CSU Global and the credibility of the student's degree insist that grades be assessed based on the rubric.
You may encounter a student who does not want to take responsibility for his or her work or late assignments. Adhere to CSU Global policies and remain professional in all of your communications.
On a rare occasion, you may find a student who "knows it all" and challenges your authority in the classroom. It is important that you contact administration regarding issues occurring in your classroom. You will need to maintain your composure and professional demeanor. Strive to defuse the situation to prevent further confrontation in the open forum. You want to avoid letting the behavior damage the learning environment for the other students. You can send the student a private email about the inappropriate behavior and may blind copy administration so they are aware of the issue. A phone call may also be appropriate if the student does not respond to the email. There may not be much more that you can do for the remainder of the course, but be watchful and keep administration advised of any further outbursts. If administration is in the loop, there will be no surprises if the student contacts them about his unhappiness with your class.
Together, faculty and staff are committed to the success of our students. In order to support student success and maximize educational benefit, CSU Global has established student rights and responsibilities. Students alleged to be in violation of the Code of Conduct should be reported to Student Affairs. Specifically, CSU Global Student Classroom Behavior and Expectations are as follows: Respect the diversity of opinions among the instructor and classmates and engage with them in a courteous, respectful, and professional manner. Maintain an environment free of abusive conduct such as harassment, stalking, threats, intimidation, bullying, abuse, insults, or humiliation toward the instructor and classmates. This includes, but is not limited to demeaning written or oral comments of an ethnic, religious, age, disability, sexist (or sexual orientation) or racist nature; and any unwanted sexual advances, comments or intimidations by email, on discussion boards or other postings within or connected to the online classroom. Respect the professional authority of the faculty to manage the classroom and comply with any faculty requests related to maintaining an environment free from bullying, threats, harassment, or coercion related to grading and the application of institutional policies and procedures. Abide by all university policies, rules, regulations and responsibilities including, but not limited to: Students Rights and Responsibilities; Student Conduct Code; Sexual Harassment; and Policies for Student with Disabilities. Agree to be subject to disciplinary actions as provided for in the Student Conduct Code or other university policy. How to Report Student Code of Conduct Violations: Send an email to Student Affairs (student.affairs@csuglobal.edu) documenting your concerns and issues. Include any attachments that would be of assistance in an investigation. Your Program Director can assist with the reporting process per CSU Global policy.
With regards to late work, Bender (2012) mentioned the importance of preventing this by covering expectations early in the class for discussion (p. 57). Take care to remind students how their participation contributes significantly to their grade and that the course is not self-paced (p. 105). Further, you should explain the CSU Global policy for late work in your Welcome Update. This policy can be found in every course under Modules >> Course Information >> Academic Student Policies.
Bender emphasized that students have a responsibility to attend class and have access to the Internet if they want to succeed (p. 107). Myers-Wylie et al. (2009) stated, "Students who fall behind the first week of class will tend to fall behind the entire class. It is the snowball effect. Be careful in accepting late excuses from the same person more than twice in a course. Let the student know that this is the second time that s/he has asked for an extension, and it will be the last time it is granted" (p. 113). You may wish to state in the class that a "…maximum of two extensions will be given per term" (p. 113). Some students may try to take advantage of your leniency, so you will want to stick to your standards and be consistent with all students in the class. As for students who ask for an extension the day the assignment is due, you may want to set a policy that an extension request needs to be asked for a day in advance or it will not be granted except for an extenuating circumstance (Myers-Wylie et al., p.113).
There will be occasions when student academic honesty issues arise and you discover a paper or submission has been plagiarized. Myers-Wylie et al. (2009) stated, "By far, the hardest problem to handle is plagiarism" (p. 114). Both students and instructors are encouraged to use Turnitin to assess similarity. If you suspect plagiarism, you need to communicate with the student and explain the issues. The first instance is a great opportunity for a teachable moment. You may find it helpful in the beginning of the course to review what cheating and plagiarism is, emphasize the information available in the Student Handbook, and perhaps use a brief tutorial to remind students of what academic honesty entails. The plagiarism policy is available to view in every course under Modules >> Course Information >> Academic Student Policies.
Please review and bookmark this page to use as a reference: Academic Expectations Policies.
With our population of nontraditional students, you will want to determine how flexible you can be without setting yourself up to be taken advantage of. Fundamentally, your objective is to create a valuable learning experience for your students and to adhere to CSU Global guidelines. Your decisions should be consistent with this objective.
Bender, T. (2012). Discussion-based online teaching to enhance student learning. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.
Myers-Wylie, D., Mangieri, J., & Hardy, D. (2009). The in's and out's of online instruction: Transitioning from brick and mortar to online teaching. Denver, CO: Outskirts Press.
