Posts Tagged ‘facebook’

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Teachers Can Now Be Fired For Being Human!

February 10, 2011

Reality check: Teachers are REAL people!  They are not robots, and yes, they make mistakes.  Sure, teachers are role-models with a responsibility to act with dignity and professionalism at all times.  But that doesn’t mean that they can’t enjoy the same privileges and opportunities as other people.

To fire a teacher over an innocuous Facebook photo is absolutely disgraceful!

A US teacher was fired for posting a picture of herself holding a glass of wine and mug of beer on Facebook, a report has said.

The happy holiday snap cost Ashley Payne her job after a parent spotted it on Facebook – and complained, the Daily Mail reports.

The picture was reportedly taken while travelling around Europe in the summer of 2009.

According to the Daily Mail, Payne, 24, was shocked when she was summoned to the head teacher’s office at Apalachee High School, in Winder, Georgia, and offered an ultimatum.

She reportedly told CBS News: “He just asked me, ‘Do you have a Facebook page?’

“And you know, I’m confused as to why I am being asked this, but I said, ‘Yes’, and he said, ‘Do you have any pictures of yourself up there with alcohol?’”

He then offered her an option: resign or be suspended.

She chose to resign.

Readers of my blog would be aware that I have previously written about the challenges that Facebook and other forms of social media has on educators and education as a whole.  I have been critical of teachers who post inappropriate material, as well as advised teachers to ensure that their privacy settings are on.  What makes this case different is that this teacher wasn’t doing anything illegal or unprofessional, especially since her settings were switched to private:

The English teacher reportedly later found out it was one anonymous emailer who turned her into the school board after seeing the picture on the social networking site.

But she is baffled how a parent could gain access to her page when she has all her privacy settings on “high””, meaning only her closest friends have permission to see her pictures.

According to the Daily Mail, she admits putting the “offensive” photos on Facebook but says she now feels as if she had stashed them in a shoebox at home for them to be stolen and showed to the head teacher.

Let our teachers have a life!  Let’s not fire every teacher who has holiday photos!

Payne added: “I just want to be back in the classroom, if not that classroom, a classroom. I want to get back doing what I went to school for, my passion in life.”

All those resposible for this teacher’s resignation – shame on you!

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Posted in Teacher Welfare | 3 Comments »

Facebook: Changing the Face of Education

February 6, 2011

There is something quite brilliant about social media when it is used in the right way.  Australia has been afflicted by floods, cyclones and fire in the past few weeks, and social media was instrumental in relaying messages and accessing information.  But like all technology, there is always negatives that erode some of the positive aspects.

Social media such as Facebook were invented to connect people, to make them closer, to bring people together.  It is so unfortunate to see the very innovation purporting to connect us being used for quite the opposite.  In the past weeks I have covered Facebook misuse stories such as the unfortunate trend of parents using Facebook to publicly campaign against teachers, the case of the student that bullied his teacher on Facebook, and now unfortunately, comes this new story:

A teacher working at a special needs primary school said it was like ‘working at a zoo’ and that she wanted to throw pupils out of the window.

The teacher at the Oakley School, for special needs children aged between five and 11 in Tonbridge, Kent, also said the pupils shared a ‘particular brand of special germ which made her ill’ on her Facebook page.

The teacher was hauled before education chiefs after they had looked through her Facebook account – which also contained a ‘joke’ about throwing pupils out of the window.

She also criticised pupils, saying they ‘smelled her legs’ and that she was ‘working in hell’ in posts made in September last year.

Parents were furious that the teacher at the 50-pupil school was ‘mocking’ their children on the popular site and demanding she get the boot.

School chiefs have not said whether the teacher was sacked or whether she left after being confronted with the evidence – and say the matter remains ‘confidential’.

Teachers often get quite frustrated with a class or student and say things they later regret.  However, these words far and away exceeded what a typical frustrated teacher says.  What makes it so much worse is that the teacher had the foolishness and temerity to post her thoughts on Facebook.  Teaching is a privilege – especially disabled children who rely on their teacher for support and guidance more than most. No teacher should ever speak of their students in that way!

I have heard teachers talk up Facebook as an educational tool, claiming that it’s perfect for the classroom.  As a teacher myself, I remain unconvinced that it is a wise move to introduce Facebook to the classroom.  Even if half the class are on it anyway, teachers should think twice before endorsing the innovation.

After all, we are seeing far too many cases of Facebook abuse.

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Posted in Cyber Bullying | 4 Comments »

Bullying a Teacher is not Free Speech!

February 4, 2011

There is appropriate behaviour and then there is inappropriate behaviour.  Bullying a teacher is inappropriate – full stop!  It doesn’t matter if it is in the classroom, the schoolyard or on Facebook – it’s not on.  Students must refrain from slurring the reputation of their teachers.  Is that so difficult to live with?

When a student calls his teacher a “douche bag” and “fat ass” on Facebook, and then gets suspended from school as result, you would think that the matter has been dealt with and all can move on.  But that wasn’t the case when a grade 10 student in California referred to his teacher as a “fat ass who should stop eating fast food, and is a douche bag” in a Facebook post – apparently in reaction to getting a large pile of homework

Such a story should never have made the headlines or been discussed in the media.

Enter the ACLU – a U.S. charity that promotes free speech (and spends most of its time being a general nuisance).  The ACLU couldn’t let the school get away with protecting its teacher from being verbally insulted online.

After learning about the incident, ACLU attorney Linda Lye wrote a letter to the school, asking it to reverse its decision to suspend the student.

She argued that the student’s post did not constitute cyberbullying because it did not “materially or substantially [disrupt] the school environment.” Also, he posted the status update from home during non-school hours.

Didn’t disrupt the school environment?  Who do you think is responsible for establishing and maintaining the school environment? Teachers, Ms. Lye – teachers!  What kind of school environment do you have where it’s considered acceptable to say nasty things about a teacher on Facebook?

And so what if the offence took place out of school.  Does this mean a student can voice their displeasure about their teacher on talkback radio or graffiti insults at the local train station without any punishment?  Let’s just hope our students don’t know any skywriters!

But there’s more:

“Schools have an obligation to provide a safe school environment,” wrote Lye. But “petty comments, insults, ordinary personality conflicts … don’t rise to the level of harassment.”

You see that’s the problem.  Those insults were not petty, they were harmful.  I am sure if Ms. Lye was the subject of similar comments on Facebook she wouldn’t find them so petty.

Of course ACLU were successful with the suspension subsequently erased from the student’s record.

Freedom of speech is not supposed to allow students to insult their teachers on Facebook.  Teachers work every day to keep their credibility and authority intact.  If we allow students to undermine their teachers without consequences, we are sending a terrible message that will have potentially severe ramifications for our education system.

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Posted in Bullying, Cyber Bullying, Teacher Welfare | 3 Comments »

Time to Show Support for Teachers

January 12, 2011

Something tells me 2011 is not The Year of the Teacher.

After the disappointment of the New York Supreme Court ruling that teachers alleged to be underperforming can be named and shamed by the media, an unfortunate trend is becoming clear –  teacher blame.

Teachers I am told, are the most bullied of all professionals.  They are subjected to bullying from a variety of sources; their superiors, parents, colleagues, students and as we see from New York, the Government regulators.  For a profession desperately looking for fresh, talented and passionate recruits, teachers have never had it so bad.

Today I read of the rise in bullying from parents through the use of social media such as Facebook.

The NAHT (National Association of Headteachers) says it receives hundreds of calls every week from teachers who are being ‘cyberbullied’ – and the majority of complaints are about parents using the web to criticise teachers or heads.

In 2009, research by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) and the Teacher Support Network suggested 15% of teachers had experienced cyberbullying, and it is believed this figure is growing.

One English teacher in the West Midlands told the ATL: ‘I found teaching stressful already but when it got to the point where I was getting home and finding messages about me on social networking sites, or horrible photos on my computer I couldn’t cope.’

The ATL says that one teacher had a fake Facebook account set up in his name containing false sexual allegations.

Another teacher suffered stress after a video of her teaching appeared on YouTube.

The 2009 ATL research showed that 63% of teachers who had suffered cyberbullying personally said they had received unwelcome emails. Over a quarter had had offensive messages posted about them on social networking sites such as Facebook and 28% described being sent unwelcome text messages.

A 24-hour counselling helpline called Teacherline set up in October 1999 for stressed teachers in England and Wales now receives thousands of calls a month.

Teacherline reports that teachers are four times more likely to experience stress at work than employees in other professions.

It is true that not all teachers are good at what they do.  Many are way below standard.  But it’s not an easy profession and it usually isn’t the career path a person just falls into.  People usually take on teaching because they have an affinity with either child, subject or both.  Instead of bullying teachers, how about we call for greater support of teachers.  Help them improve with a positive framework rather than negative cajoling.
How about starting pro-teacher Facebook pages?  Facebook pages which call on Governments around the globe to stop using teachers as scapegoats and stop stirring mass hysteria about the quality of teachers through the media?  How about Facebook pages that seek to empower and revitalise the teacher rather than tear them down even lower, and inadvertently, tear down the fabric of this great profession with them.

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Posted in Bullying, Cyber Bullying, Teacher Welfare | Leave a Comment »

I Urge You To Show This To Your Kids

January 7, 2011

Teachers and Parents, I would like to share with you an extremely powerful and effective clip, teaching kids via a dramatised cautionary tale about the importance of staying safe when using their social media pages.  It advocates the use of privacy settings and warns against giving up private information on a page which is accessible to the public.

I think this is an essential clip to share with your children/students, particularly if they are aged between 8 and 16.  With so many kids on Facebook and My Space, I think it is absolutely vital to inform them about the importance of privacy and discretion.

I found this clip so effective.  What do you think?

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Posted in Cyber Safety | 7 Comments »

The Primary Students that Plotted to Kill Their Teacher

December 24, 2010

I don’t know what is more disappointing, the students actions or the feeble response from this poor teacher’s school.

A primary school where over 200 youngsters plotted the assassination of their math’s teacher over Facebook is considering disciplinary measures against the students.

Tatjana Landsman, principal of the school in the northern town of Bjelovar, said she would be meeting with parents and the class council to discuss the matter.

“I am not certain what sorts of measures should be imposed, but the most important thing is that this case is seen as a warning, and that parents finally realise that children must be controlled in their use of internet and social networks,” Landsman said.

Oh really?  Let’s blame the internet! It’s not the kids fault – it’s the internet!

Acknowledging the gravity of the situation, state secretary Zelimir Janjic visited the school and offered assistance

“We always react in such situations because we do not wish to leave the school alone to deal with these problems,” said Janjic.

That’s nice.  So how are you reacting to the problem?

He added that several concrete steps has already been arranged, including workshops for parents organised in cooperation with Zagreb’s Institute for Protection of Children.

Janjic said that he would also advocate that schools get a psychologist in addition to having a pedagogue and a special education teacher, in order to have a team that could deal with such problems.

So let’s get this straight.  Two hundred students ganged up on their teacher and plotted the teacher’s assassination, and what was the consequence?  A workshop on better internet usage and a chance to consider getting a psychologist.

Hmmm…..

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Posted in Bullying, Teacher Welfare | 1 Comment »

Cyber Culture and Our Kids

December 3, 2010

I recently attended a Professional Development session on cyber culture.  The survey conducted by AISV interviewed thousands of kids from Grade 4 to Year 8 and collected information about their internet habits.  Some of the interesting findings included:

  • 1 in 5 year 5/6’s don’t consult parents about their internet activity.
  • 15% of year 5’s and 20% of year 6’s have internet access in their bedrooms.
  • Half the respondents claim they don’t have parent imposed internet rules.
  • 30% of respondents know ways in which to circumvent parental controls such as bypassing net filters and minimising pages when parents approach.
  • 40% of respondents name their school or city on social media sites such as Facebook.
  • 84% use chat rooms on a daily basis.
  • Approx. 3/4 don’t use privacy function on their social media pages.

I found some of these stats quite confronting.  Internet safety along with cyber bullying are big issues that educators must take extremely seriously.

I’d love to hear from teachers who have addressed issues of cybersafety in class.  What resources did you use?  How did the class respond?

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