After years of avoiding social networks as an occupational
hazard, I finally joined one to see if a teacher could participate without
being thrust into the role of "The Educator". Could I be just "The Person"
instead, and maintain a measure of privacy? Facebook has proven to be an
interesting journey.
Students Descend on Fresh
Prey
Once I was confident that I had locked the doors on my Facebook
account and was displaying only the information I felt comfortable sharing, I
went "public" and added friends. Facebook has a feature that combs your e-mail address
book for people who are also associated with Facebook accounts.
I had decided long before I joined Facebook that if I ever did try social networking, that I would not add students or players (current or former) as
friends. This was difficult in a few cases regarding former students who I now interact with professionally. However, by maintaining
uniform standards, I hoped that people would respect my boundaries. And
I was put to the test early. Some 17 minutes after going "live" on Facebook, I received
my first message from a player who wanted to add me as a friend but wanted to
know why the "Add as Friend" button was missing.
Strength in Numbers
As any educator knows, enforcing a socially unpopular rule
(like removing hats or keeping cell phones out of sight) is enormously more
difficult when a few colleagues willfully ignore enforcement of that rule. So I
drew upon numbers in my response to the request. I stated that "we are
undertaking the policy that we are not friending students or players, past or current,
in order to keep boundaries professional. It is uniform and nothing personal." The pluralization wasn't totally untrue as the coaching staff I worked with decided last year to take that approach for those who had accounts. The
student responded that he understood and that after an incident that had cost a
teacher a job at his school (I coach his regional team), all of his teachers
were giving similar responses. I've had to respond in kind to two other former
students, but the add-friend requests ended once word got out.
Going the Way of the
Luddite – An Outmoded Ideology
In our digital age, communication and accountability are
buzzwords. People expect information to be available when they want it, and
hellfire will erupt should they have to wait. I admit that I prefer e-mail to
phone calls because I can respond when I have time. Plus, I don't need an empty
room to share confidential information (as I would with a phone call). Ten
years ago, the teacher who had a website was rare. Now, many post their own
podcasts and videos on sites like TeacherTube.
Slowly, technology moves into education on the backs, most often, of its
youngest teachers.
Social networking may not be for everyone, but it doesn't
appear to going away either. Few other professions frown so heavily on social
networks, but if common sense prevails and adults establish boundaries early
and uniformly, why can't educators enjoy a technology that keeps people
connected?
In the first few weeks, Facebook has allowed me to reconnect
with both friends and family from all over the country. These are folks I haven't
talked to in ages. It's been a fun experience. While I still staunchly avoid
Twitter, it's been fun to wake up in the morning and catch up on what some of
my friends are up to that day. This isn't like e-mail where each post demands a
response. I can just take a peak and comment where and when I want. As long
as educators are sensible, Facebook can be a communication tool that
doesn't have to impact their career.
Related Readings
(please note that hyperlinks will not work until future blogs
are posted):
Part 1 – Are
Social Networking Sites a Carreer Ender for Educators?
Part 2 – Is
Social Networking for Educators a Bad Idea? (Part 2)
Part 3 – The
Ostrich Approach Is Not the Wisest (Teachers & Social Networking - Part 3)
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