Helicopter Student?

                We have all heard of helicopter parents, but how many have had experiences with a helicopter student?  I guess the right term is the hyper-vigilant student.  I haven’t had too many, but I have certainly had a few.   And I’m afraid I am about to have one again this coming semester.

                What is a hyper-vigilant student?  You would think this student would be a teacher’s dream, but he/she’s not.  Let me explain.

                What set off my radar antennae off this time were the emails I began receiving last week.  I usually get a few students who have a few questions about my online classes, and I gladly answer them.  Around the 4^th email, I was getting concerned.  The questions just kept coming from this student. And this morning, my frustration level was high when I counted 10 emails from this student.  In the last email the student wanted to know what type of questions did each of my exams have.

                Now, I wonder what this student is going to be like during the entire semester.

                Don’t get me wrong.  I like when my students email me with questions about the course, but there is a difference between needing some clarification and asking question after question.

                Is this student going throw my own words into my face me if my course isn’t exactly like I said?  “You said that your course would have….”

                Is this student going to be angry if I don’t have each assignment graded within 24-hour period?  I did have one student who spent the entire semester being angry because I took too long to grade assignments and blasted me with my own words (out of context) once she knew her grade was safe.  It didn’t matter if it took me a week to grade a paper or 2-days to grade an assignment; she was angry.

                Is this student going to need exact clarification on each assignment I give out?

                Who knows, but all those emails has me on hyper-alert.  What am I in for?

                I once had a student who wanted to know how she could bring up her grade.  I went and checked her grade, and she had a 95%.  I told her to keep working hard, but that an A is an A, and when I turn in grades, the system would not ask me for a percent but simply a letter grade.  Fortunately, she was satisfied with that, but it made me nervous.

                Thing is; I want my students to care about their grades and to work hard in my classes.  There are many who could care less and simply fade away during the semester.  But I also hope I get students who have realistic expectations about the course, the assignments and the turn-around time for grading assignments.  I hope I get students who don’t send 10 emails in one week asking for more and more details – Frankly, this student has made me nervous, but I’m still hoping for a good semester.  I’ll let you know what happens.

                What are my tips for online students who care?

• Do contact your instructor ahead of time if you have particular question that can’t wait.  This semester, I have one student trying to fit in a family vacation between spring and summer semesters; she asked some questions about the end of the semester and timing of finals.  That’s fine.
• Don’t contact your instructor to find every particular detail about the course.  Those can wait until either the online course becomes available or the first day of an in-person class.
• Do check your grades and make sure what’s recorded matches what you have received back.  Yes, teachers can make mistake keying in scores.  It’s okay to check and ask when there’s a discrepancy.
• Don’t ask how you can make your grade higher if you have an A.  In college, an A is an A – keep up the good work, but leave the teacher out of trying to for personal best.
• Don’t ask for a grade within 48 hours after turning in an assignment, especially if it’s a paper.  Remember, if you were meeting in a traditional classroom, you would meet either once or twice a week, and in all likelihood, papers wouldn’t be returned until at least a week later. 
• Do sign all emails with your name.  Many email addresses do not have a student’s name in it, so the teacher may not know who is mailing her.  And don’t expect the instructor to keep a cheat sheet of all email addresses.  Be courteous – sign your name each and every time.
• Don’t share an email address with another person.  Instructors cannot share your information with anyone but you, so if your college doesn’t provide an email address for you, go to Yahoo or Google and sign up for your own email address and use it for the course.  Instructors must adhere to FERPA regulations.