I realize that as Web 2.0 gets more and more popular, there are way too many opportunities to associate with students, administrators and friends outside of school. The complication is when we try distinguish between our professional relationships and our personal ones. Our principal states in just about every faculty meeting that we should never allow a student to be our “friend” on facebook.
Yet, there are still teachers who do it.
Is it likely that something inappropriate will be posted and that teacher will face severe consequences? Not likely. However, there are those rare occasions when someone might slip up. Take the student teacher from Millersville, for instance. I realize this happened a few years ago, but sometimes we need to be reminded how easy it is to lose so much. She just had a picture of herself on MySpace, and it only implied that she may have been drinking alcohol. Unfortunately, while student teaching, she allowed students to access her page, and there was a negative reaction in the community.
Now she has no teaching certificate at all.
It is my understanding that there were a few other instances when she was unprofessional, but this was the spark that started the fire. According to this article, she ended up as a nanny with an English degree.
October 14, 2009 at 2:17 pm |
Currently on Facebook my policy is no student friends. My husband and I have had many conversations on the subject and feel it is inappropriate. I know some other teachers at my school have student friends. We do not want to have the extra worry.
October 22, 2009 at 7:49 am |
I will actually share a horrible personal experience here. At the end of last summer, I wrote an update on my facebook that said something about looking forward to having a nice long paid summer vacation and that is why I became a teacher. Well, imagine my surprise when I got a letter in the mail in July asking for a meeting with the administrators. I went with my union rep where I was given a lecture about how the tax payers could become outraged at a comment like that, etc.
Who would have thought a playful, innocent comment on my PRIVATE page would be cause for a meeting with admin? Just goes to show.