Have You Googled Your Teacher Lately? Teachers' Use of Social Networking Sites

YEARS AGO, when e-mail rapidly became the norm for communication in schools, blasting nasty-grams was soon discovered to be a no-no. As grew more familiar with digital communication tools, they figured out quickly what was appropriate use of e-mail--and more important, what was not. You have probably seen a variation of this story in your own workplace. One day, an e-mail sent from a superintendent to a principal was forwarded to all the on campus. The superintendent was horrified that her communication with the principal had been broadcast to people in a way that she felt was inappropriate and even unprofessional. But there are no take backs in electronic communication. And when someone forwards an e-mail to two friends, and each of them forwards it to two more friends, digital communication can easily go viral. A more recent version of this story happened last year in a teacher preparation course. The get to know your classmates assignment was simple: post a photo of yourself and three of your favorite websites that you envision using as a future teacher. Many of the students in this class posted their MySpace.com pages. One student's site, though, was particularly shocking. It showed a bloody hand with a 10-inch machete stuck in it, blood dripping down the page, and a quote stating, Force the hand that writes. The shock did not stop there. The personal icon for this future teacher was a wrist with a dotted and the words cut here. This student chose to submit his website as part of this assignment, and the images were unforgettable. The instructor wondered how parents would respond if this person were their child's teacher. The instructor realized that a conversation with the entire class might be in order. She made a general announcement about the assignment, describing how students transitioning into teaching should consider managing their online lives with an eye to their future careers. The next day, the student with the blood-soaked profile page had set it to private (meaning only users that he deemed his friends could view the link). However, from that point forward, even his successes in class could not erase the lasting effects of the bloody My-Space page. Changing or omitting the get to know your classmates assignment would avoid this possibility in future semesters. But doing so would deny the instructor an opportunity to have an important conversation with her students, and it would deny the students an opportunity to learn some essential lessons about self-restraint and the importance of reputation to their future roles. This story is just one example of the information we have seen future post online. It is common to see content related to alcohol, drugs, and sex posted on future teachers social networking profiles. Both preservice and many inservice do not seem to understand that the between their lives and professional lives is not black and white in today's world. Colleges of education and district professional developers need to have in-depth conversations across the country on the topic of using social networking sites. WHAT ARE SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES? Social networking sites are interactive websites designed to build online communities for individuals who have something in common--an interest in a hobby, a topic, or an organization--and a simple desire to communicate across physical boundaries with other interested people. These sites are not unlike the old-fashioned party line telephones, but they leave a more permanent record of the conversations. Most social networking sites include the ability to conduct live chats, send e-mails, upload videos, maintain a blog or discussion group, and share files. Users can also post links to pictures, music, and video, all of which have the potential to create a virtual identity. …