eLearning Student Website

HOW TO COMMUNICATE IN COLLEGE

How to Reach out to your Instructor

Your first point of contact and support is your instructor. You'll want to go directly to them for questions or help with the class when you're enrolled in their class. Contact them at least three times in a quarter, near the beginning, middle, and end. Even if these are simple emailed questions, dropping in on office hours, or scheduling an appointment. This allows you to build a relationship and lets the instructor know you're present and willing to do the work. It also helps you feel more comfortable reaching out if something should go wrong and you need an extension or assistance, not to mention the likelyhood of getting an extension.

Find them by one of the following methods:

• Look them up in the Campus Directory
• Look them up through Canvas Inbox
• Look in the Syllabus for their Contact Information

Then use the section below on Netiquette to send them an email.

How to Reach out to your Classmates

Just like in a face-to-face class, you may want to contact other students in your class to ask about what you missed, ask a clarifying question, or start a study group. In Canvas you can use the inbox tool, create your own group, and once you've met asynchronously you could use Conferences to meet up virtually.

How to Reach out to your Adivsor

For anything to do with your career path, registration, or goals for college you'll want to contact your advisor. They want to help you. Don't wait to reach out for help.

• Schedule an appointment on this website with your advisor
• Email them directly

Who to Reach Out to for Other Types of Help

• Counseling Services
• (Free) Tutoring Services
• Disability Support Services
• Class Complaints
• Benefits Hub
• Virtual Assistance Lobbies
• IT Student Helpdesk
  • Zoom Lobby
  • (253) 833-9111 ex. 2115

WHAT IS NETIQUETTE?

Simply stated, it's online etiquette (online social code of conduct).

Netiquette is a set of rules for behaving properly online. Classes with an online component require the use of good netiquette.

Email

Here's how to use good email netiquette:

• Check your Green River email daily.
• Use your Green River email to communicate with instructors, classmates, and others on campus.
• Include a concise subject line, even if it's just the item number and name of the course (example: ENGL&101 3311 - Question).
  • Never include your student ID in the subject line of an email.
• Greet the person you're emailing (example: Dear Professor, Hello Sam, Hi Ms Lee).
• Be brief and get to the point. Be specific if you need them to take an action.
  • Never share personal information (social security number, PIN, passwords, or embarrassing content).
• Sign the email with a salutation and your name (example: Sincerely, Lisa).
• If you feel emotional when reading an email sent to you, wait several hours to cool off and be calm when you write back. Be as professional as you can.

Discussion Forums

Here are some tips for good netiquette in an online discussion:

1. Address the person you're responding to by name, just as if you were speaking to them face-to-face.
2. Sign your posting. This will make your online discussion more personal, and remind you to be polite!
3. Use care when interactingonline, since you don't have the ability to gage a person's reaction or feelings as you do in a face-to-face conversation.
   • Humor and sarcasm should always be used very carefully and where needed, labeled.
4. When you disagree with others, disagree with their content respectfully and never attack someone personally. Remember that people are perfectly entitled to debate both sides of a course idea or topic, and that reasoned argument is an important part of a college education.
5. Do your own work. Do not copy from other sources or have other people do the work for you.
6. Identify your sources if you use quotes, references, or resources.

Contact your instructor if you feel bullied or unsafe on a discussion board.

General Online Netiquette

• Remember you're interacting with other human beings.
• Never use all capital letters, it's considered SHOUTING.
• Nothing online is truly private. Be careful about what you share and do not share personal information (social security number, passwords, etc.). Reread what you write and make sure you didn't include anything that would be embarrassing or illegal if forwarded to someone else.
• Use the same size of font throughout your writing.
• Do not use light colors of font. Stick to the same font color for most of your writing.
• Check for spelling and grammar errors.
• Respect other people's privacy.
• Be forgiving of other people's mistakes.