Applying Strategies and Best Practices

·       Joyce has accommodations for an Emotional/Behavioral Disorder. Her mother informed you that Joyce's specific diagnosis is Anxiety and Depression, and she sometimes does not respond well to correction. She plagiarized a large section of her essay for your class this week.
How will you handle this situation?

Emotional and behavioral disorders involve a complex group of disorders that, without the adequate support, can have a very negative impact on the student’s ability to be successful in school and later in life.  Joyce’s diagnosis of anxiety and depression is the most common emotional/behavioral disorder.  The difficulties she may be experiencing in her online class can be derived from the nature of the online learning setting, in which personal interaction is limited to written/visual communication, with only occasional opportunities to speak directly with the instructor (phone calls and weekly synchronous session).  In many occasions, this implies that there is not immediate feedback, which can increase Joyce’s anxiety level.

If Joyce were one of my students, my main focus would be to praise all her efforts, even if the outcome is less than optimal, and provide as much positive feedback as possible any time she shows improvement in academics, time management, interactions with peers, etc.  My ultimate goal with this strategy is to help Joyce build up her self-esteem and become a strong self-advocate.  Ideally, this will gradually allow her to face online academic challenges in a more positive and productive way.  It will also help her to be more open to corrections, since they come from the same instructor that has been providing positive feedback regularly.

One of the online learning challenges that Joyce seems to be experiencing is to become overwhelmed by the amount of weekly assignments and then resort to turning in plagiarized assignments.  My response to a situation like this would to clearly articulate expectations and the school policy regarding plagiarism.  I would do this objectively and consistently any time it happens, addressing the issue as briefly as possible and without being judgmental.  If time permits it, I would also offer Joyce the opportunity to resubmit her work, making myself available to provide her with extra support and encouragement.   

·        Kali has recently been diagnosed with Lupus. The last few weeks, she has an inconsistent login history for your class due to her medical challenges. Kali is also behind on assignments, and she emailed about making up the work she missed while she was absent. Her medical diagnosis and absences have been verified and her absences have been medically excused.
How would you support her?

Students with significant health issues often times find themselves struggling to stay on pace with their online courses.  Because medical conditions such as lupus can vary in intensity and degree, it is important to understand that a student like Kali will show certain inconsistency throughout her course work.  Her medical condition could also have a negative impact on her ability to be proactive and communicate with the instructor in a timely manner.

For all these reasons, Kali should have in place a 504 plan that provides all the supports she needs to be academically successful in the online learning setting.  One of those supports should be that extensions to make up work must be granted when needed.  Another accommodation that I would like to offer Kali is the reduction of course work whenever she has a severe flare-up and making up all late work would be physically impossible for her.

In order to offer my support and encourage Kali throughout the duration of the course, I would reinforce frequent communication with her and her family, always in a positive way, focusing on her progress and prioritizing her physical wellbeing over her academic success in the course.  I would keep reminders of failing grades to a minimum, since those could be counter-productive and discouraging for Kali.