Social media best practices for staff august 2011

Social Media - Best Practices for School Employees

What should school employees be doing about using social media?

Created by Andy Mann, Kristin Tank, Stacey Tipler, and Randy Lindquist

Did You Know 2010 – a 2 minute YouTube video about the growth of social media

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4gt62uAasE

Benefits of Social Media …

Parents and students are already using it Quick and easy way to share information Encourages 2 way dialogue/engagement Parents want to be heard, not just told Variety of Options:

District approved Facebook fan pageEdmodo, a Ning, or Moodle site

Spanish Class – FB Fan Page

Open to all Events/Calendar Customizable Insights data Sends updates Must commit to

monitor

Friend vs. Group vs. Fan Page

Dangers of Social Media…

Blurs the lines between professional and personal relationships

Do you want students or parents involved in your personal life, seeing what you post publicly to Facebook?Details about your family lifeWhat you did for vacationPersonal photos

How Can Social Media Impact Your Job?

Chicago Tribune Video

The lines between public and private, personal and professional are blurred in the digital world. Where does one world stop and another begin? The truth is there is not a beginning and end. Social media has removed the barriers and thrown both worlds into one. What we do online is how others see us:good or bad.

Things to Consider…

Posts are usually date/time stamped. What will parents say

about you posting to a site during the instructional day

Portland, Oregon Public Schools blocks Facebook

Why? “It can be a huge time waster”

Things to Consider…

Should you “friend” a student?

Should a coach textmessages to players?

Should an employee be disciplined if they post a negative comment about a colleague or student?

Is it okay for your FB site to include photos of you in a skimpy swim suit?

A parent?

Have you searched for your name in Google?

Learn what others would find out about you.

If you’ve searched Google before try searching http://pipl.com

Just a few bits of information

www.google.com and enter your phone number (616) 555-1212. Find map to house

www.whitepages.com and enter name and find phone number or reverse lookup; enter phone number and find address. Easily find neighbors

www.anywho.com and enter name and zip code. Find phone number & map to address

http://pipl.com and enter a user name

Michigan Teacher Lost Job

First year Bangor, Michigan teacher fired over her comments about a student on Facebook

“It wasn't a criminal matter due to her right to express free speech." "However, it is inappropriate for a person in a position of authority to make remarks such as that about students.”

http://www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2009/01/14/local_news/182477.txt

…“wants to kill the ninth grade flute player who stole the school's $900 dollar piccolo and is denying it.” Reported by WOOD-TV8 in Grand Rapids

Bangor Police Chief Gary Baker

What You Say Online Matters

My principal is so stupid.

Anthony’s parents needs to get him to take a bath. He has BO.

My teaching partner is so lazy.

There is no way I’m voting yes for the next bond proposal.

I really got drunk last night.

Now that I’m single again, I’m ready to get back into “action.”

“As an educator, your social network site must represent you in a professional manner.”

Becky Rocho, Assistant Superintendent, Calhoun ISD

Cohasset, MAAdministrator asked to resign over comments made on Facebook regarding the district, parents, and the students.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly-xf9O_E0Y

“Your Google results are your new resume” Once something is online, you can never get it back. 70% of surveyed HR Staff admit to rejecting a

candidate based on his/her online behavior. Does your online

presence represent you the way you want others to see you?

Microsoft Survey as reported in Switched, “70% of Employers Have Rejected Applicants Over Online Info”, January 2010

http://www.switched.com/2010/01/28/happy-data-privacy-day-70-of-job-applicants-rejected-over-onli/

Facebook Privacy Settings

Default Settings Google search displays

your profile Friends of friends can

see your relationship status and tagged photos

Are your friends as careful as you are about who they friend?

Info accessible through your friends

…your information is available to applications, games and websites when your friends use them. The more info you share, the more social the experience

Public Search

… people who enter your name in a search engine will see a preview of your Facebook profile

Privacy Settings - Tagged Photos

If unchecked – photo’s privacy will not be expanded. However, the person who is tagged will be still able to see the photo.

Are photos being share without permission?

If a friend tags me in a photo – now all my friends can see

the photo.

A Shared Photo can Change Your Image

Michael PhelpsMiley Cyrus

Brownsville Area Schools, Fayette County, PATeacher suspended over picture posted on someone else’s Facebook profile

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOu1ieL_seI

Disrupting Educational Process

The courts have ruled that a school district can discipline employees if their speech, including online postings, distracts from or disrupts the educational process.

What is the measuring stick?

Deleted does not mean gone

No matter where you are or what you’re doing.

You are always representing your district 24 hours a day – 7 days a week.

This includes what you do or say online.

Assume EveryoneWill See Everything

Nothing on the Internet is privateAn alias provides only minimal protection“Confidential” items may be saved/forwardedA photo may be altered and forwarded

Once online, you can never get it back Posts are time/date stamped

A teacher posted to FB during school day Nothing in school is private

Cell Phones Record Teachers

Teachers have been recorded without their knowledge and the movies immediately uploaded to YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1ZJ6TUrNHQ

Electronic Messages Live Forever

Messages live forever…consider the textmessages from former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick

Keep all communications professional It may be argued, your personal cell phone

records could be FOIA’ed if used to communicate with students

Communications - email

All work-related email should be done using school email. Do not use personal email

Your email can be reviewed at anytime

All communications through school networks are subject to FOIA

FOIA

Dangers of Miscommunications

Review text messages to be certain auto correct hasn’t changed the meaning of a message

text groups rather individuals

You can send text messages from your school email

Just got off work lets bangunder the stars

umm I’llhave porn

Yep, I nailed theteacher, nothing

back yet

Ontario Takes a Stand Ontario College of Teachers advises not to

accept Facebook friend requests from students Don’t communicate with students through any

personal means: IM, Facebook profiles Decline student-initiated friend requests Never initiate a friend request with a student

http://www.allfacebook.com/ontario-teachers-must-decline-students-facebook-adds-2011-04

When a teacher and a student become friends in an online environment, the dynamic between them is forever changed. An invisible line between professional and personal is crossed…

Declining a Friend Request

Thank you for your friend request. I have a routine practice of only sharing information with students or parents through my professional email and web resources. If you feel your request is directly related to my professional responsibilities, feel free to use my school email or professional web resources to contact me.

http://www.district196.org/cewww/employment/Social%20Media%20GUIDELINES-POLICY.pdf

The Moose on the Table

Should a teacher accept an invite to “friend” a student on their personal Facebook account?

Employees are prohibited from establishing relationships with students that are unprofessional…unprofessional relationships include, but are not limited to: employees fraternizing or communicating with students as if employees and students were peers…

The Front Page “Test”

Communications should be able to withstand the “Front Page” test

Would it be appropriate to have on the front page of the Muskegon Chronicle?

In summary - concerns

You are who you are onlineNothing you do or say online will stay private

Review your Facebook privacy settings Do not “friend” current students/parents

using your personal Facebook account Communicate with students only through

school email and always keep it professional – apply the “front page” test

When used appropriately social media can be a powerful tool for building community and communicating and connecting with students and parentsApproved by districtMonitored dailyRegular updates

In summary - positives

Thank you for your attention

Questions…