Netiquette: Make it Part of Your Syllabus

Abstract

Just like in face-to-face classes, students engaged in online education communicate, participate and interact via computer-mediated discussions (CMDs). While online instructors presumably monitor the CMDs’ contents and undercurrents, it is recommended that specific rules are set to ensure that students comply with established online classroom etiquette or “netiquette.” Developing netiquette rules at the onset of the course and including these guidelines in the students’ course syllabus can help avoid future conflicts.