Do no harm. Here is a drawback of virtual teaching- asynchronous communication.
I live in one state and my students live in another. Before I moved, I actually had met a few of my students. One even came over to my house. Since I moved, there is a huge disconnect between my students and me. It was never more glaringly obvious than yesterday.
Student Jonathan* (We share an affinity for Jonathan Coulton, so I will use this name to protect his identity) called me. He was aggravated because we had been playing phone tag but also for a more serious issue.
Several weeks ago, he submitted a resume assignment with “funny” entries including one mild allusion to abuse. My feedback included a comment that I did not take abuse lightly and that I would have to report the submission. In the state I teach, there is a "zero tolerance" abuse-reporting requirement. He implored me in an Email not to report and that a report would cause even more problems at home. Nevertheless, I forwarded the assignment, my response, and Jonathan’s Email to my virtual school’s guidance counselor with a request for advisement.
The virtual school counselor called it in to the abuse hotline and forwarded the student’s work and our Emails to the traditional school site counselor. I received a report of all the actions that had been taken after the fact. I left several messages at the student’s house to follow up but we did not communicate for over a week. According to the student, he was called in to speak to the traditional school counselor about the issue. Thus, when we finally spoke on the phone he was angry that I had betrayed his confidence. I told him it was a requirement of my job to report. I do not really know him- just his voice on the phone and his work submissions- so I have to take his virtual communication seriously.
In a traditional school setting, I would like to think that I would have built a relationship with students so “funny” assignments would not be submitted. If a student did reveal something dicey, I have eye contact, context, non-verbal communication, peer triangulation, and active listening/clarification/validation at my disposal to verify if I need to proceed. If I felt that a situation was out of my league (most “abuse” reports are!) then I would physically go to a guidance counselor, speak with him or her and ask for guidance. Then, back to the student I would go for the next round of intervention. I would be a participant in the process assuring the student’s physical and emotional safety.
Because I was left out of the loop, I feel the student was violated. In a way, so was I. My relationship with the student was discounted. And yet, I get it. The counselor processed the information of my Email and acted. Jonathan and his siblings, by his admission, could have been abused. I have reported abuse before when I felt, in my heart, it might be dubious. It is better to err on the safe side. Jonathan was heard (virtually) but was he listened to …
Can teachers establish and maintain relationships with students in a virtual environment in the same manner as the traditional classroom?
My virtual school has wrestled with the integrity problem lately. As students sign up for classes and input personal information, they read a pledge (like a EULA) that establishes they will not plagiarize in all its manifestations. Should this pledge include a section on harm- harming oneself, being harmed, the intent to harm others, cyber bullying, harming the course (hacking)?
When I resume traditional teaching, what should I establish in regards to these issues?
