Its old but new

I was working with a new online faculty member the other day discussing some of the things to consider when designing an online class when we wondered into the discussion board conversations. Discussion boards...I won't get into my theory on discussion boards in this posting other than suffice it to say I do consider them "so 20th Century" - but given we use Blackboard - its what we have and in an online course it is a crucial teaching and learning component so embrace it we do! No what I am pondering at the moment is netiquette...another old "20th Century" term that I'm thinking still is crucial - maybe even more so now - than when it was first coined in 1988. (yes that is '88 according to wikipedia!)

Why so crucial still? Is it me or are students more and more casual today? This can be a good thing and this can be a bad thing. Good casual is when it translate into students feeling they can approach me and engage in a real conversation with me - that would be my definition of a good casual. Bad casual would be...let me give you an example...a student email:

xosweetsugarxo@emailname.com wrote: [slightly changed for anonymity]
i can't get my username and password to work.

I'm sure you have received many, many emails of similar nature or let's be honest - far worse! So in my conversation I found myself recommending she consider establishing netiquette or Etiquette rules from the start. Then - like always - I started to reflect on this and think about other perspectives...is this a good idea? I've always held to the idea that it is our job, as educators, to teach students that they need to know how to address people appropriately given their situation - its a life skill. Technology- given its now transparent existance in our relationships is no different. Addressing a prospective employer demands certain context, a best friend another, a teacher another, and so on. When you get down to it - its not even a technology skill per se - its a communication skill its just that the technology is beginning to consume a great deal of our communication and yet there is a presumed casualness about it that needs to be considered. Also, in my defense of why its our job to teach our students these things - its in our mission statement - is one of our colleges core values.

We acknowledge that accurate, clear, concise, respectful and transparent communication is fundamental to enhancing relationships, developing shared understanding and assuring the long-term success of our college.

So then why do I wonder if its the right thing to do? In gathering resources for this faculty member I came across an article and a student asks...are we in fact hindering students from contacting us? Are we putting up barriers to communication? This is a good question. What do you think? Is there a happy medium? Can we have guidelines without barriers? What would that look like?