I strongly encourage districts to enact policies prohibiting school staff
from friending students on the social networking sites like Facebook and
MySpace, twitter, or instant messaging. My reasons for this are:
Flirting. These sites/technologies are places where young people flirt
(adults do also). We know that students get crushes on teachers. And the
younger teachers are the ones more likely to have students get crushes on
them - and to find online flirting to be part of their young adult social
norm. So often without even realizing what is going on, they get into
inappropriate relations with students.
There was a young teacher here in my community who was recently convicted of
sexual abuse of a minor. The relationship was fostered through MySpace. My
perspective based on some of what I was told is that the high school student
was as much involved in the flirting and relationship development as the
teacher - but he is the one now getting banged by other prisoners and facing
life as a registered sex offender.
When a student starts to flirt with a teacher online, that teacher faces
great risks - regardless of how he or she responds. If the response is warm
and friendly and someone else sees - arrest for sexual solicitation. If the
response turns the student down, the student is then hurt, the student's
work will suffer, and the student could exact revenge.
Friends. The normal activities of friending involves sending friendship
requests to friends of friends. So if a teacher friends a student, that
student is going to investigate and send friendship requests to all of the
teacher's adult friends. So, in essence, the teacher becomes the guarantor
of all of his or her friends - the material they have posted and their
social interactions with students.
I know of a school resource officer who was under criminal investigation
because he was friending students on MySpace and some of his other friends
had material inappropriate for minors on their profiles. Fortunately wiser
heads prevailed.
I think it is easier if you have a district policy prohibiting this -
because then you can turn down a friendship request without alienating
students who send requests.
I do think that email communications are alright - but only for school or
school activity purposes, not social. Teens only use email to communicate
with adults anyway.
Teachers should not think it is appropriate for them to help students engage
in responsible social networking by friending them on social networking
sites. This is not a teacher's job. This is a parent responsibility.
However, it is absolutely imperative that we shift how schools are using the
Internet so that we are taking full advantage of the incredible
instructional opportunities provided by these technologies. We can't prepare
students for their future in classrooms designed to serve our past!!! But
the "atmosphere" in these educational interactive communications or
educational web 2.0 environments must be very different. These sites are for
educational purposes - NOT social. When students go onto a job, they need to
know the difference between social online activities and professional.
Through these instructional activities, many lessons about taking care in
the material you post can be imparted.
We should not think that trying to enter the teen's online communities is
the way to protect them from harm. The instruction we provide on Internet
safety must be highly focused on empowering and encouraging positive peer
leadership. A few weeks ago my daughter showed me a Facebook group that had
been set up to denigrate a student - We hate J." I passed this on to the
principal and got it taken down. Before she showed this to me she had joined
the group to publicly post a protest, another student was also protesting.
If we can get a small minority of young people to not only understand the
risks and solutions - but to speak out and help their friends - we will be
moving in the right direction.
I will soon be releasing instructional materials for teachers, students, and
parents that address these issues more fully.
And, to prevent the need for the inevitable "can I forward" email ;-) yes,
feel free to forward this message.
All the best,
Nancy
--
Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D.
Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use
http://csriu.org
http://cyberbully.org
http://cyber-safe-kids.com
http://csriu.wordpress.com
nwillard@csriu.org
Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social
Aggression, Threats, and Distress (Research Press)
Cyber-Safe Kids, Cyber-Savvy Teens: Helping Young People Learn to Use the
Internet Safely and Responsibly (Jossey-Bass)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law.
You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings
by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book.
To change your LM_NET status, e-mail to: listserv@listserv.syr.edu
In the message write EITHER: 1) SIGNOFF LM_NET 2) SET LM_NET NOMAIL
3) SET LM_NET MAIL 4) SET LM_NET DIGEST * Allow for confirmation.
* LM_NET Help & Information: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/
* LM_NET Archive: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/archive/
* EL-Announce with LM_NET Select: http://lm-net.info/
* LM_NET Supporters: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/ven.html
* LM_NET Wiki: http://lmnet.wikispaces.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------
LM_NET
Mailing List Home