creating a communication charter

One of the things I’ve always implemented in my classrooms to promote both digital wellness and respectful communication is a communication charter. This is just as, maybe even more important, in an online classroom in order to establish clear expectations. My motto is: Start your semester the way you intend to finish it. It’s much more difficult to establish rules and boundaries when you’re weeks into a course than it is to establish these things from the onset.

A communication charter lays out agreed-upon guidelines for how students and professors interact and how they utilize their tech tools. It defines acceptable language, response times, practicing ethical and respectful online engagement, and balancing online and offline learning, so everyone knows what’s expected and misunderstandings can be minimized.

I will note here that getting students to sign off on the community agreement requires collaboration, regular reinforcement and reminders, and accountability. Here are some strategies I use to encourage all of the above:

Make it a collaborative effort and have students to contribute ideas to the agreement so they feel ownership over the guidelines. The term community charter or community agreement will reinforce that they are not operating in echo chambers; they are part of something. I also like to facilitate a discussion about why each point matters and how it benefits their learning experience.

I like to integrate digital wellness into weekly classroom lectures as activities. This can look like starting each class with a quick digital wellness check-in (“What’s one way you managed digital distractions today?” or having students do a quick time audit on their phones to reinforce where they are spending their time and energy). This can also be as simple as encouraging screen breaks during break times (I like to provide a reflection question or some sort of grounding activity like breath work or a guided meditation to encourage them to stay off their phones during the break and participate in self-care).

Demonstrate good digital practices yourself by turning off notifications and putting your phone away while lecturing.

Do you have a communication charter in your classroom or workplace?

~Kate

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