Code of Conduct: Teachers, Students, and Social Networking

Code of Conduct Outside the Classroom

With the implementation of technology growing both in society and in schools, it has become increasingly important for the code of conduct for educators to be revised. While technology and social networks can be educational and assist in learning, they have also given teachers a new medium for interacting with their students. While this can be a good thing, it is important that teachers remain conscious of the information and media they are putting out for their students to see. It is imperative that teachers make sure all of their interactions with students online remain as professional as they would be on school grounds.

                                                                                                                                                                        

What is Considered Unprofessional?

• Sharing any personal information with students (via one's personal Facebook)
• Inquiring about or discussing the personal lives of students
• Posting inappropriate content (pictures, comments, videos)
• Talking to students peer-to-peer rather than professionally

                                                                                                                                                                   

 

       Risks of Misconduct Online

• Immediate suspension or termination of a licensed teacher
• Refusal of teacher certification or license to a student teacher

                                                                                                                                                                   

 Misconduct Making News

 

This video is a very recent example that shows the type of conduct that teachers should refrain from engaging in with their students. While this video pushes the limits, it should be noted the way in which the teacher communicated with her students online, as well as the subjects she talked about are totally unprofessional. As such, the consequences of her unprofessionalism result in her dismissal from the school, and in this case, her arrest.
                                                                                                                                                                   

 Annotated Bibliography

Russo, Charles J., Joan Squelch, and Sally Varnham. "Teachers and Social Networking Sites: Think Before You Post." Public Space: The Journal of Law & Social Justice 5 (2010): 1+. Academic Search Complete. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://ehis.ebscohost.com.proxy.ohiolink.edu:9099/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=db1494d7-0c25-452c-b1c0-5a68573e84b1%40sessionmgr111&vid=3&hid=102>.

The article focused on the changes in the code of conduct for teachers in relation to their students that have come about with the advent of social networks. The article discusses the types of interactions with students online that are considered professional and acceptable, as well as those which cross the line of professionalism, which are unacceptable. The article also gives two case studies as reference to the reader to demonstrate what kinds of actions are inappropriate as well as the consequences. One case was of a non-tenured teacher who joked openly with his students about sex and other topics on his Facebook, while the other was about a student teacher who befriended some of her students and openly discussed her cooperating teachers and school on her private Myspace account. In the case of the non-tenured teacher, he was suspended with pay before ultimately being terminated and the student teacher was ultimately denied her teaching certification due to her conduct online. The article itself was written in order to educate teachers and teaching candidates of the precautions and behaviors a teacher must exhibit when interacting with their students online. I think it can be deduced that the authors of the article have expertise in the area. The source itself is a scholarly journal from Public Space: The Journal of Law and Social Justice, which is most definitely credible. The source is accurate as it bases more of its content on real life court cases that can be looked up online and further explored. The article is fairly new as it is from the 2010 issue of the journal. I would say that publication date, as well as the information included is pretty up-to-date for the topic. Seeing as how social networking sites have been around for the last decade and not many changes have taken place in the last three years, the source seems to have up-to-date, relevant information. Overall, I found the article both informative and interesting. I enjoyed its use of real court cases to exercise its points of the repercussions of a teacher acting inappropriately online with their students. It was also interesting how it included information from other countries and their laws regarding educators’ online relationships with their students. I agreed with much of what was expressed in the article regarding what is considered a professional relationship with students. I personally do not think that teachers should befriend their students on social networking sites such as Facebook on their private accounts. Furthermore, they should conduct themselves as if they were in the classroom, even if they are online. If it is not okay to talk about or share something at school, it probably is not okay to do online either!

 "Teacher Solicit Sex on FaceBook From Multiple Students." YouTube. YouTube, 24 Aug. 2013. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.

The video shows a good example of a teacher who overstepped the lines of professionalism with her students online. The teacher, a 30 year old woman, initiated many inappropriate conversations with her students, covering such subjects as drugs and sex. Not only did the teacher discuss such topics openly with students, she also offered the students drugs and realistically talked about engaging in sexual activity with some of them. This type of behavior very clearly goes past professionalism and even teeters on the edge of the teacher being a sexual predator. The source is accurate as it shows an interview of one of the students who was approached by the teacher online, as well as the mugshot of the teacher after she was arrested. The information in the video is actually very new as it refers to a case that took place within the last year. The information in the video is also pretty up-to-date, although there may have been some developments within the trial of the teacher itself. When watching the video, I was shocked at how blatantly the educator was soliciting her students from sex, as well as offering them drugs. At least with the two cases that I had read about in my first source, the teachers were not as direct and in general just seemed to be a little too friendly with the students, treating them like peers. The teacher discussed in the video definitely took online misconduct to a whole new level. I agree with the dismissal of the teacher from her job, as well as her subsequent arrest. What she was doing online could never be considered appropriate or professional in any capacity.