Webinar Today: Coping with Student Incivilities in the Online Learning Environment

March 13, 2012

Please join your colleagues for the following webinar sponsored by the Center for Instructional Design and Academic Technologies. The webinar will be held in P266 (seating is limited, so come early if you can). Following this one hour presentation, we will have a 30 minute discussion regarding the content and implications of the presentation.

Coping with Student Incivilities in the Online Learning Environment

Tuesday, March 13, 2 p.m.

Presenter: Laura Duvall, Psychology Faculty, Saddleback College

Respectful conduct is vital to academic endeavors, especially in the online learning environment where written communication is permanent and missing non-verbal information. Incivilities affect the instructor's capacity and desire to teach, the students' ability to learn, and create emotional distress for all involved. Whether passive or overt, these disruptions are difficult to cope with, in part, because of their wide variety and often ambiguous nature. However, if not addressed, disrespectful behaviors rarely diminish, and will often escalate. Although this program explores student behavior, the emphasis is not on the student, but on how we as online educators can best approach these difficult situations.

• What proactive strategies will reduce the occurrence of incivilities in the first place?
• When publicly posted incivilities occur what tactics will minimize their negative impact on the class?
• How should we respond to an angry and accusatory email from a student?

As educators we must try to balance the needs of the discourteous student, the needs of the other students in the class, as well as our own needs – concrete and practical plans will be shared on how this might be accomplished