Netiquette

"Digital, Social and Civic Competences Development for Adult Educators Working with Migrants and
Refugees - DiSoCi"

Digital competence



Competence area Communication and collaboration


Skill title Netiquette



Description of the skill


To have the knowledge and know-how of behavioural norms in online/virtual interactions,
to develop active strategies to discover inappropriate behaviour.



Having this skill means that an adult educator, working with migrants and refugees:

● Has knowledge how to behave in online/virtual interactions.
● Can share his/her experience and teach others to behave correctly.

● Can develop active strategies to discover inappropriate behaviour.



Content application of the skill:
Netiquette is a set of guidelines that indicate appropriate behaviour in an online space. Without it,

communication could be harmful and full of bad experiences. Netiquette covers not only rules of
behaviour during discussions, but also guidelines that reflect the unique electronic nature of the

medium. Netiquette usually is enforced by fellow users who are quick to point out infractions of
netiquette rules.

The main netiquette rules by BBC:

1. Refrain from personal abuse. You may express robust disagreement with what someone
says, but don't call them names or threaten them with personal violence.

2. Do not spam. That is, do not repeatedly post the same advertisement for products or
services. Most sites have strict and specific rules about who is allowed to post

advertisement and what kind.

3. Write clearly and succinctly. On a site that has many non-native English speakers, avoid
using slang they may not understand.

4. Remember that your posts are public. They can be read by your partner, your children,
your parents, or your employer.

"Digital, Social and Civic Competences Development for Adult Educators Working with Migrants and
Refugees - DiSoCi"

5. Stay on-topic, especially when you're new. Don't post about football in a hair-care forum

or about hair care in a gardening forum!
6. Do not expect other people to do your homework for you. If you're looking for technical

help, for example, don't ask questions you could easily answer yourself by reading the

manual or online help provided with the product. When you do ask for help, include details
of what attempts you've made to solve the problem. It will save time and also show people

that you are making an effort to help yourself.

7. Do not post copyrighted material to which you do not own the rights. Sites vary in how
strict they are about this, but as well as facing the possibility of legal action by the rights

holder, you may also get the site sued.
8. The site's owner, perhaps assisted by one or more moderators, has the final say in enforcing

the rules.
Sometimes people obey the rules of netiquette and can still harm other people. If you see a person

in an online space behaving inappropriately, you should try to tone down the conversation by

trying to rephrase what that person is trying to say and report person, who is behaving
inappropriately to the community managers.

Adult educators can be in a situation, when their students are behaving badly. For example, student
can write an angry letter regarding something that happened in the class. Then educator should

wait and speak to that person face to face (if there is no face to face classes, educator should
contact student immediately via digital devices and teach him how to communicate correctly).



References/Links

1) https://tinyurl.com/hfxm9db
2) www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/guides/about-netiquette

3) http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/definition/advertising