Last year, educational technology specialist Gina Hartman started looking at how school districts outside of St. Charles, Mo., addressed social media. She didn’t find many that had created guidelines on social media use, so she and several colleagues started a wiki on the topic.
They got some ideas from IBM’s employee policy and developed some of their own that they would like to implement in Francis Howell School District now that they have started unblocking more sites such as Twitter.
The explosion of social media has sparked discussions about how teachers can use blogs, wikis, Twitter and other tools while keeping students safe online.
“It’s come on so fast in our profession that no one’s had time to even think of ways to address it,” said Steven Anderson, the district instructional technologist at Stokes County Schools in Danbury, N.C.
Guidelines: general or specific?
After he started networking on Twitter last year, Anderson realized that his district needed to create a policy for how students and teachers would use social media.
But a social media policy doesn’t appeal to Lucas Gillispie, the instructional technology coordinator at Pender County Schools in Burgaw, N.C. He doesn’t see any point in having a Facebook or social networking policy because it could become antiquated.
A general guideline that covers online best practices for teachers is the best option, he said. If the activity that teachers are doing is safe for the students and has a curriculum connection to justify it, they can do it.
“I tend to be very open-minded about it as long as those two requirements are met,” Gillispie said. “I’m not a big fan of singling out a particular medium for discussion.”
Hartman, however, said that her Missouri district needs social media guidelines to help teachers collaborate globally and to cover the district legally.
Social media issues
Some of the guidelines listed on the policy wiki that Hartman helped create include the following:
- Employees who identify themselves with their school district online must make sure that the content associated with them is consistent with their work at the district.
- Personal blogs should include a disclaimer that says the employee’s views are their own and do not reflect the district.
- Personal information such as students’ last names, addresses, birth dates and pictures should not be shared.
- Everyone should respect copyright law and give credit where it’s due.
Teachers also need to make sure that their social bookmarking links are appropriate and that they, as well as students, sign a form saying that they agree to follow guidelines on the appropriate use of computers and the network, Anderson said. And they should remember that whatever they post online is searchable, which means they need to post responsibly.
Districts control online use
Many district filters prevent teachers and students from accessing social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. That doesn’t sit well with Tom Whitby, an adjunct professor of English education at St. Joseph’s College in New York. Instead of denying access to sites, districts need to show elementary-level kids how to behave online and inform them of the potential risks and benefits.
“If you’re teaching them at an early age, you don’t have to worry about blocking because they understand the do’s and dont’s,” Whitby said.
In North Carolina, Anderson’s district is starting to loosen restrictions on sites such as Twitter and Ning, some of which only teachers can access and some that students can also access.
“The only way you can teach students responsible Internet use is to demonstrate responsible Internet use,” Anderson said. “If it’s all blocked, they don’t ever learn anything.”
In fact, some of them get around the blocks by using proxy servers and following Facebook pages dedicated to bypassing the filters, Anderson said. A filter needs to be restrictive to protect students and teachers, but it also needs to be open enough so that they learn how to use social media tools.
In Missouri, Hartman’s district is also trying to strike a balance between blocking and opening everything. She convinced her district to unblock Twitter, and as a whole, teachers and students generally can use social media tools. For example, they can access several wiki and blogging platforms, but not all of them.
“We just can’t keep this technology away,” Hartman said. “You have to embrace it in education, and it seems like of course education is always the last one to kind of embrace it and let it in.”
Dealing with issues on a case-by-case basis has worked well for Gillispie in Pender County Schools. If a teacher comes to him with a good reason why they want to use an online tool, he may decide to unblock a site temporarily as long as the tool is directly related to the curriculum and doesn’t pose a safety issue.
Educators harness social media for learning
In New York, the administrators at Horseheads Central School District are open to trying new sites if they have educational value, but they’re cautious, said Jason Schrage, an eighth grade social studies teacher. He explores Web sites to make sure that they are safe and appropriate before he allows his students to access them.
Social media has allowed Schrage to collaborate with other educators and share ideas. He’s also been able to inspire his kids to learn. They enjoyed developing 1,000 multiple choice questions in a Google spreadsheet and form as well as conducting and streaming video interviews of people who lived during World War II on Ustream.
“It’s motivating for my students, and it empowers them,” Schrage said. “It puts the learning in their hands.”
Students can now learn all day online with many different people instead of just at school, Anderson said.
“You don’t have to learn with just the same 30 kids in your classroom anymore,” Anderson said. “You can learn with the entire school, the entire district, the entire country and the entire world.”
Building a personal learning network through social media taught Anderson more in six months than his whole graduate program taught him. He said that social networking will be the thing that changes education for the better.
Disclaimer: The views expressed by these sources are their own and do not represent those of their school districts.
This story originally appeared in Converge Online on July 17, 2009.
RT @JasonFlom: Reading "Social Media Sparks School Policy Debate" by @reportertanya on Eco of Ed. http://bit.ly/xnNLs #edreform #edtech
i found this informative and interesting blog so i think so its very useful and knowledge able.I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this article. I am hoping the same best work from you in the future as well. In fact your creative writing abilities has inspired me.Really the blogging is spreading its wings rapidly…
IT Support
I like when people are trying to challenge me, and I appreciate that you maintain a fairly active dialogue with your readers. Couldn't agree any more. Your advice is great.
Remote Infrastructure Management
i found this informative and interesting blog so i think so its very useful and knowledge able.I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this article. I am hoping the same best work from you in the future as well. In fact your creative writing abilities has inspired me.Really the blogging is spreading its wings rapidly…
IT Support
I like when people are trying to challenge me, and I appreciate that you maintain a fairly active dialogue with your readers. Couldn't agree any more. Your advice is great.
Remote Infrastructure Management
great!
Thanks a lot for enjoying this beauty article with me. I am enjoy it very much! Looking forward to another great article. Good luck to the author! all the best!
IT Support Riverside
Thank you
very much for the whole information.I agree with all the points mentioned
here and noticed all your important points. I think it will help many
people.I was little bit aware about it but your post gave me clear idea.
Car Wreck
Lawyer Tyler
good job
Howdy I am so delighted I found your site, I really found you by accident, while I was looking on Digg for something else, Regardless I am here now and would
just like to say thanks for a remarkable post and a all round interesting blog (I also
love the theme/design), I don’t have time to read it all
at the minute but I have bookmarked it and also added your RSS feeds, so when I have
time I will be back to read a lot more, Please do keep up the
great b.
Hello, constantly i used to check webpage posts here early in the break of day,
as i enjoy to gain knowledge of more and more.
Thank you a bunch for sharing this with all people you actually understand what you’re speaking about!
Bookmarked. Kindly also discuss with my website =).
We can have a link trade contract between us
my blog personal trainer austin
Hi friends, its wonderful article regarding educationand entirely defined,
keep it up all the time.
Definitely believe that which you said. Your favorite reason appeared to be on the net the easiest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I certainly get irked while people consider worries that they just don’t know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and also defined out the whole thing without having side effect , people can take a signal. Will probably be back to get more. Thanks
Great weblog here! Additionally your website loads up fast! What web host are you using? Can I get your associate link in your host? I want my website loaded up as fast as yours lol
I completely agree! I came over from google and am searching to subscribe. Where is your RSS feed?
Çok iyi bir paylaşım olmuş sağolun
Sayfanızı çok sevdim harika
This is really great information i will link this guide to my blog, keep posting!
Araştırdığım bir meseleydi teşekkür ederim
Çok uzun vakittir araştırdığım konuydu teşekkürlerimi sunarım
A dieta tambem exclui amidos refinados, acucares adicionados, que nem perante doces no entanto
bebidas acucaradas, bem como adicionou gorduras solidas, de que jeito oleos hidrogenados contudo badalacao.
Estas incolume fontes desde calorias vazias. http://fullmetaltribe.com/Abstinencia_desde_abastecimento_basica_a_alongado_dilacao_destinado_a_absorver-se_bases_evitando_extincao
Discover how to deal with your domain get in touch with details and registration. Understand domain namelocking and Exclusive domain name Registration.