Though I have yet to deal with as much conflict in the online learning environment as I did with students at a physical campus, there are similar methods to deal with disruptive students. The worst thing I have seen so far from my online students has been plagiarism. Of the three I caught recently, and yes, I did mention three, all were dealt with to varying degrees since all were separate incidents. One student ended up being suspended until the pending meeting with the judicial review board because this student had committed plagiarism multiple times in the past in other classes. The other two who had not been caught cheating in the past were allowed to resubmit their assignments while also receiving a stern warning from me that this type of behavior will not be tolerated. Though I gave them this stern warning, I was also encouraging of these students to ask me for help in the future when they need it. Some of the other issues I have encountered in the online learning environment are similar to what I found with my students at a physical setting. There were work obligations and family issues that stood in the way of their pursuit for an education. This module has addressed how to handle situations like these, though I threw in the plagiarism incidents to make this a little more interesting. We will face many issues like these as online faculty members, and with the right techniques we can overcome them.
