Good Morning Class, I'm Mr. Friend

As so many things do, this post started because of a question from my wife.

"So, have you unfriended your students on Facebook yet?"

I simply replied with, "Nope," and proceeded to quietly let her tell me why I needed to do so. A parent could see something on their child's Facebook page that they received through my page that was in fact posted by someone else, and I'm caught in the middle. Someone could post an inappropriate picture, tagging me, a colleague, or even a student. A student could begin an inappropriate conversation, and it's there for all the world to see. Perhaps we don't want all of our personal photos and information available to students and friends of students.

I don't completely disagree with her - all of her points are completely valid. Certainly, in this more litigious world than the one I grew up in, there's a potential lawsuit lurking in the most innocent of places. And yet, I still don't agree it's necessary to do. And, honestly, I'm trying to get a handle on why.

Several teachers at my school are on Facebook, and are not only friends with me, but with students as well - both former students and current. I myself friended several students who are part of the improvisational performance troupe for which I'm a sponsor. Initially I had to do it because emails I sent to them went unanswered - they were on Facebook regularly, but rarely checked email.

Social media has raised the question of teachers' professional lives vs. private lives to a whole new level of debate - for example, this article from the Washington Post discusses teachers' personal activities (such as drinking or their dating habits) being seen by the students they serve. Does this differ in principle to a student seeing a teacher out in public, at a bar or on a date? And Wired featured an article earlier this year discussing the creation of fake teacher or faculty profiles by disgruntled students - certainly an easy, wide-spread way to raise doubts about a teacher's or administrator's character. How much say should a school system have over the content of its staff's social media pages? One Georgia teacher was encouraged to resign over her Facebook profiles.

Certainly there are cases where Facebook was detrimental to a teacher's career. It seems to me that instances like these are not necessarily the norm - but the question is, is the risk of negative consequences outweighed by the benefits?

Facebook has a post on their blog from September 2009 with tips for teachers creating profiles on Facebook. And the National Middle School Association has a Facebook discussion board with a topic of whether teachers should friend students on Facebook. There are ways that educators can use Facebook safely - even having interaction with students. Over the next month or so, I'm delving into the topic more.

If you're reading this post, I'd like to get your feedback - what is the proper etiquette for students and teachers on Facebook and other social networking sites? I'll be presenting this same topic at the Georgia Educational Technology Conference in November, so if you share some good information, I'll be sure to credit you! Share it in a comment below, or visit my newly-created techieteacher Facebook page (it seemed only fitting) and leave a post on the Wall or in the Discussion Boards.

Posted in: communication, social software, students, teachers, web 2.0