“Why Can’t We Be Friends?”:
Protecting Students and Staff
when using Social Media
Regional Principals
Meetings 2015
TYPES OF SOCIAL MEDIA
http://bit.ly/1sRe2nI
• Social Networking
 Facebook, Google+
• Micro-Blogging
 Twitter, Tumblr
• Publishing Tools
 WordPress Blogger
• Collaboration Tools
 Wikipedia, WikiBooks
• Rating Review Sites
 Amazon, Angie's List
• Photo Sharing
 Flickr, Instagram, Pinterest
MORE SOCIAL MEDIA
• Video Sharing
 YouTube, Vimeo
• Personal Broadcasting
 uStream, LiveStream
• Virtual/Interactive Worlds
 Second Life, World of
Warcraft, Farmville
• Location Based Services
 Foursquare, Yelp
• News Aggregation
 Digg, Delicious, Scoop It
• Group Buying
 Living Social, Groupon
The Pew Research Center's Teens
Relationship Survey 2015
Social Media as defined in
DPS policy EGB:
“Social Media is defined as media based
on the use of web and mobile technologies
that allow for user-generated exchanges of
information. With proper administration,
social media can foster collaboration and
communication as an interactive dialogue,
enhancing the value of conversations
across a global audience.”
DPS Definitions
1. Professional Social Media is a work-related social
media activity that can be either school based (e.g., a
district principal establishing a social networking page
for his/her school, or a teacher establishing a social
media site for his/her class), or non-school-based
(e.g., a district office establishing a social networking
page to communicate with the larger district
community).
2. Personal Social Media use is a non-work-related
social media activity (e.g. a district employee
establishing a social networking page for his/her
personal use).
Staff Expectations
“Staff members are
expected to serve as
positive role models at all
times and must represent
their school and district
professionally at all times.”
(D20 Policy GBEE E 1)
Trusting Educators
Legal Considerations
Many legal issues
have not yet been
settled by the court
system, so it is very
important for school
districts to have clear
guidelines in place.
Legal Considerations
Speech on or off-duty, made pursuant
to school district employees’ official
duties, is not protected speech under
the First Amendment and may form the
basis for discipline if detrimental to the
school district.
Would you call your administrator
a “smug know it-all creep?”
• Tara Richardson (no relation) was a mentor for beginning
teachers who sued the Central Kitsap (Washington) School
District claiming that she was demoted because of comments
she posted on a personal blog. She described one
administrator as “a smug know-it-all creep” who has “a
reputation of crapping on secretaries….”
A federal appeals court rejected her First Amendment
argument, finding that her nasty, personal comments
interfered with her job because they “fatally undermined her
ability to enter into confidential and trusting mentor
relationships” with beginning teachers.
Academy D20
Social Media Guidelines
“When using social media, such as Facebook ,
Academy District 20 employees should always
consider whether what is posted will in any way
impair their professional effectiveness or reputation.
Staff should not use Facebook or other social media
to cultivate a non-professional relationship with
students.
Staff should adhere to the following guidelines* when
using any type of social media for educational
reasons:
New York City
Department of Education
E. Personal Social Media Use
1. Communication with DOE Students
In order to maintain a professional and appropriate relationship with
students, DOE employees should not communicate with students who are
currently enrolled in DOE schools on personal social media sites. DOE
employees’ communication with DOE students via personal social media
is subject to the following exceptions: (a) communication with relatives
and (b) if an emergency situation requires such communication, in which
case the DOE employee should notify his/her supervisor of the contact as
soon as possible.”
Social Media and Student Benefits
Social Media in the Classroom
• 21st C Learning
• BYOD
• Blended Learning
• Flipped Classroom
• Clubs/Committees
• Edmodo, Schoology,
Facebook, etc.
12 Ways Teachers are Using Social Media
•
Tweet or post status updates as a class..
•
Write blog posts about what students are learning.
•
Let your students write for the world.
•
Connect to other classrooms through social media.
•
Use Facebook to get feedback for your students' online science fair projects.
•
Use YouTube for your students to host a show or a podcast.
•
Create Twitter accounts for a special interest projects
•
Ask questions to engage your students in authentic learning.
•
Communicate with other classrooms.
•
Create projects with other teachers
•
Share your learning with the world
•
Further a cause that you care about.
A Guidebook for Social Media, Vicki Davis
Social Media in the Classroom
• Connections
– Interaction/Communal
– Sharing
• Web Engagement
– Online presence
– Interact with peers and
teachers
• Knowledge
– Information Literacy
– Analyze, Evaluate
– DIY
• Social Media Marketing
– Work Force Readiness