by Sherry Horton Blake

Created on: January 19, 2009

Our mothers have been telling us since we were quite young that nothing can replace good manners. However, our mothers never foresaw the emergence of a whole system of etiquette to cover interactions on the internet. Netiquette, short for internet etiquette, is a set of social conventions designed to help people remember to be mannerly even while traveling through the unseen world of the internet.

Nowhere is netiquette more important than when you are a student in a distance learning school. In order to maximize your learning experience and to be able to communicate well with your instructor and fellow students, it is important to have a knowledge of the netiquette codes of conduct.

Remember the saying, "Words spoken like eggs broken are hard to repair." This is even more true of "words written." Therefore, when participating in a distance learning program, you should ALWAYS think before you write.

One of the first rules of netiquette is to remember that you are interacting with another human being and not just a computer screen. Your interactions with your instructor on the internet should be on the same scope as your interactions with your instructor would be in the classroom. In other words, be respectful, write clearly and concisely and ask your questions in a timely manner.

When communicating with your fellow students, help ensure that everyone has the opportunity to be heard; in other words, do not take more of the classroom time than you should. Be brief. Remember that just as you are not the center of the world, you are not the center of cyberspace either, and everyone deserves a fair amount of time.

It is important to be respectful of your fellow students' opinions and to be tolerant of their mistakes. Keep in mind that your fellow students cannot see your expressions or your body language; therefore, you will need to be careful to write what you mean and mean what you write. Although you may be quite proficient at using internet shorthand, shorthand has no place in the internet classroom.

When communicating with your instructor or other students, do not type in all caps. This is the equivalent of raising your voice or shouting. You would not shout in the classroom, and it is not appropriate while communicating over the computer either.

"Flaming" (sending someone an extremely insulting message) does not have a place within the classroom. Although you may think your insult is exceptionally witty and worthy to be heard, it violates all aspects of the respect that should exist between students in a classroom setting.

In summary, manners are as important when communicating on the internet as they are when communicating face-to-face, and manners in the classroom are imperative in creating a favorable learning environment. Make your mother proud, and remember your Netiquette!

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