How to Manage a Difficult Student in the Online Classroom
Setting the tone for your online classroom involves many components. As the instructor, you probably created a fabulous syllabus which clearly communicates the goals of your class and your expectations of the students. You started the class by giving the first session on standards of classroom conduct and academic honesty. But it does not matter how well you prepare or what expectations you convey to your class, you will still have at least one student who is difficult. Disruptive students can dominate online conversations; make rude and offensive remarks, challenge your authority, submit plagiarized work, fall behind in class or just not submit assignments.
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Instructions
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Maintain your professionalism and your cool. Rude behavior happens in face-to-face classrooms as well as distance education ones. If a student in an online discussion is being rude to other students or challenging your authority, intervene rapidly to counteract the behavior. Be sure you know how to block the student's access so you can remove the student if need be. Open a dialogue with the disruptive student out of the public forum about what is acceptable in class. You might need to talk to the student face-to-face or on the phone. Know your institution's policy on inappropriate behavior and have a plan in mind before you meet with the student. If you suspect substance abuse problems, refer the student to counseling services. Be sure to show support to the other students in class. If the difficult behavior created conflict within the class, seek discussions with the other affected student(s) to minimize the tension.
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Monitor student progress and be sure to remind students of their course requirements. If a student is non-responsive or becomes abusive because he is frustrated by his own lack of progress, again, contact the student individually, not in a public forum. Offer the student extra guidance and point him to where he can find the necessary resources if his work is not satisfactory. Know what the guidelines are for helping a student withdraw from a course if he is too far behind.
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Stop plagiarism by getting to know your students and their work. Give them clear information as to what constitutes cheating in your classroom and what they can expect to happen if they are caught stealing another's work. Your institution's policy on plagiarism will give you clearer guidelines. Often, you must make decisions on what you will personally accept after a student is caught cheating. Be clear in your syllabus and in your first meeting about the standards and conduct you expect of students.
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Modeling good behavior and professionalism for the students is part of teaching. Try to remember that students are often passionate about subjects, and debates online and in-class can get heated. Discuss with your students the rules of debate, and talk about how to treat each other in a disagreement. Students benefit from listing their own rules of acceptable behavior and will often police each other if there are agreed-upon rules of conduct which the class developed.
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