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Why can’t we be FRIENDS? Facebook has blurred the lines between teachers and students, forcing districts to grapple with what’s appropriate online.(NEWS)

Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN) May 14, 2010 Byline: ALLIE SHAH; STAFF WRITER In the classrooms and halls, they are teachers and students.

But in the communal online world, many teachers and students are Facebook “friends.” Other teachers shy away.

Who’s right?

As the popular social networking site continues to grow, school districts in Minnesota and elsewhere are increasingly tackling the question. Some are drafting guidelines to help teachers navigate a pervasively open world where being “friends” means sharing access to personal information that can go far beyond the student-teacher relationship in a classroom.

“Teachers in society are held to a higher standard than whoever runs the beauty shop or the meat shop,” said Aimee Bissonette, a lawyer who speaks to school groups about Internet safety issues. “They just need to be careful. Sometimes it’s as simple as setting your privacy setting.” Minnetonka school leaders recently adopted a policy on social media use — perhaps the first of its kind in the state — that advises teachers who friend a student to do so wearing their teacher hat.

“It holds teachers to a higher standard so if they see something that may be harmful to kids, they may need to report that,” said Janet Swiecichowski, a spokeswoman for the Minnetonka Public Schools. “Our purpose with the policy was to raise awareness.” Teachers have always had to walk a fine line between being friendly with students and being a friend, and not an authority figure.

But the friending issue on Facebook has caused some to wonder if the lines between teachers and students are becoming blurred online, opening the door to potential problems. website chanhassen high school

“Schools are in a bind,” Bissonette said. “We know we have teachers and students engaging in social networking.” A recent series of student-teacher sexual relationships in Missouri led to a crackdown on social-networking friendships between teachers and students. Last fall, Louisiana legislators passed a law requiring districts to monitor all employee-student electronic communication.

In Minnesota, the Mankato area school district last summer came up with staff guidelines about appropriate conduct on social networking sites.

Mounds View Public Schools, one of many school districts that have launched Facebook pages, has no formal policy per se. In establishing rules for posting something on the page, the district’s social media task force advises: “Don’t be surprised or offended if your attempt to friend an employee is ignored.” “We felt we needed to put that in there because we were seeing parents or students who would want to friend us personally,” said Colin Sokolowski, a Mounds View schools spokesman. “That’s awkward.” Discussions are also underway in the Stillwater school district about the friending issue. “People are looking for clarity,” said Carissa Keister, a spokeswoman for the Stillwater Area Public Schools. “We have in-depth policies on technology use, which are more about the tools that are in place. People are looking for something on social media.” Walk the line In the absence of clear policies, most teachers set their own rules on friending students. Teachers who do it say it’s because Facebook is an invaluable way to connect with their students.

Travis Rother, an English teacher at Chanhassen High School and the speech coach, is one. He also heads the school’s freshman orientation group, called Link Crew.

He said his personal Facebook page allows students to see photos only related to school activities and messages that people post on his wall. In general, Rother accepts friend requests only from speech team members or those involved in Link Crew. He uses Facebook regularly to alert the team about upcoming events such as team banquets.

“I can just pop up a quick message that says: we have this and see you then,” he said.

Rother didn’t always accept friend invitations from students. “Back when I first started teaching I was unsure about walking that balance,” he said. “I always told kids who asked to be my friend: After you graduate, then you can be my Facebook friend.” His views changed as he grew more comfortable with social networking. Not only is it an effective way to communicate with students, but also he believes it presents good teaching opportunities.

“It’s important that we teach kids about what’s appropriate for social media,” Rother said. “With so many employers going on Facebook to check for things, I think it’s a good thing for them to know I’m on there. If they’re on my speech team, and they post a picture of themselves drinking, they’re going to get in trouble.” Teacher Trey Wodele uses both Facebook and Twitter. But he said he only friends former students. When he receives a friend request from a current student, he issues this standard reply: “When you’ve graduated, ask me again.” Wodele teaches video arts and screenwriting at the Minnesota Transitions School, a charter high school in Minneapolis. He uses separate Facebook and Twitter accounts to contact students for school reasons. But tweets and postings don’t come from “Trey Wodele.” They come from “MTS video arts department.” Count Symone Randle among those students who see no harm in having teachers as Facebook friends. She said she finds it helpful to talk with her teachers on Facebook about assignments, because she can ask them questions whenever she gets stuck, even on the weekends. site chanhassen high school

“We don’t talk every day and they don’t tell us their personal business,” said Randle, who attends Minnesota Transitions high school. “It’s school-related. It’s always appropriate, of course.” Allie Shah – 612-673-4488