Russell, I have seen this behavior as well. I try to address this with VERY clear and detailed course expectations which address what students should expect out of the course and I am very upfront about the workload for the course. I also make sure I give them a detailed schedule at the beginning so that they students can see the amount of work required, the assignments, and I try to help them organize their work and submissions. I set clear deadlines and expect the students to meet them. After the first couple of assignments they get a feel for how the course will proceed. Herbert Brown III