The ability to use social networks in schools. Yes or no?

1. In your estimation, does Social Networking offer teachers greater advantages through possible connections with students, or does it present greater issues for teachers? 
I do believe that, if implemented properly, social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and myriad other sites at our immediate disposal via the internet can be used to the advantage of teachers in almost every level of schooling.  I say almost because I believe that up until fifth or sixth grade (in some cases 9th and 10th even) children have not matured enough to engage in proper internet etiquette which involves self censoring and the ability to not just say what is on the tip of one's tongue (fingertips).  It also calls for teachers to do the same amount of self-censoring as we are under a continuous microscope due to the fact that we are as Jerry McGuire so elegantly put it: "messing with people's lives".  Even if a teacher believes their past life is over with (it may include things such as rampant partying, drug use, no inhibition, and many other potentially fun {at the time} activities) they can quite easily come back to haunt us.  
I believe that parents want to believe the people teaching their kids have never made mistakes, and if any sign of a mistake (drunken photos, etc.) surface via a social networking site, it can irreparably harm a teacher's reputation.  As Renee Ramig lays out in her article "Social Media in the Classroom", there are plenty of steps that can be taken to ensure social networking sites are used effectively and efficiently to help students learn.  Despite what some teachers believe (that students are coming to school to unplug) we as teachers need to use whatever methods possible that we can to help our students learn to the best of their abilities, and if that means involving Facebook and Twitter, I do not see a problem with it as long as it is done in a responsible manner.


ii.            Were you to utilize Social Networking with students, what precautions to you think are necessary in today’s digital world in order to safeguard your professional standing?  Do you think it’s fair to teachers to hold them to a different standard than other professionals (do you even think that that is what is happening – you can reference your take on the Natalie Munroe scenario).  
 I believe that in order to use social networking effectively with students, a teacher must be willing to keep many things about their lives private from their students.  If this involves keeping two or three Facebook accounts (with different names and an inability for students to search for them) so as to keep what the students see 'safe', so be it.  As teachers, we have to look out for the best interest of our students and we must do everything in our power to keep the learning environment as clean for them as possible.  However, I do believe that we should be allowed to live our own lives separate from our students, and with the comes the ability and right to practice free speech via whatever means we choose, including social networking sites of our own.
In terms of teachers being held to a different standard, I believe it is acceptable to some extent.  There are certain careers (teachers, fire fighters, police officers, POTUS, military personnel) who should be held to higher standards due to the types of roles they play in the community.  For teachers, we are as Jerry McGuire said (once again :) ) "messing with people's lives", and as such we have the ability to either greatly help or greatly hurt the future of our students.  Because of this, it is fair to hold teachers to a higher standard (as long as what they are being judged on has a way to effect their students.  I do believe, however, that it can be taken to the extreme in some cases.  The first thing that comes to the top of my head is that there are double standards that I cannot make sense of.  If a person has a DUI on their record from multiple years ago and have completely resolved it, they are still allowed to teach (of course, why wouldn't they be?).  However, if a teacher has a Facebook or Myspace that they may have forgotten to completely make private that has some pictures of a party from college where they may have happened to imbibe one too many 'social beverages', they could potentially get fired or suspended from teacher for that.  I do not agree with that: as long as they are not drunk around their students or impacting their students due to their drinking, it should not matter.


iii.           How serious of a threat is cyber-bullying to what you intend to do in your classroom?  In your estimation, is it something that as a middle school/high school teacher, you will be on the lookout for?  Should you have to be on the lookout for it? 
I believe that due to the immaturity level of the majority of middle school students (in almost every case it is not their fault, though, as we have been talking about in Paul Pick's class about the late development of the pre-frontal cortex that control judgement) cyber-bullying is a fairly serious threat.  Because of this, I believe each teacher has the right to decide with each class they teach if they are capable of using Social Networking or if it would spiral out of control due to some students' proclivity to bully other students via these 'learning tools'.  If I do implement social networking in my classes, I will certainly be on the lookout for cyber-bullying in the facets in which I have implemented in my class.  I would not, however, peruse all of my students' personal facebook or other social networking accounts to look for cyber-bullying as it is not my job to watch what they do on all of their free time.  I mean, come on: parents need SOMETHING to do still.  As the New York Times article from the 27th of June, 2010 mentions, "According to the Anti-Defamation League, although 44 states have bullying statutes, fewer than half offer guidance about whether schools may intervene in bullying involving “electronic communication,” which almost always occurs outside of school and most severely on weekends, when children have more free time to socialize online."  What this tells me is that it is not my legal responsibility to be on the lookout for cyber-bullying with all of my time.  If one of my students brings to me a situation where they have been cyber-bullied, of course I am going to intervene on behalf of my student, but it is not really my legal responsibility to moderate all online communication my students have with each other (unless it is in the context of my class of course).

Here end my thoughts on these very thought-provoking questions.  I am most certainly open to any alternate perspectives on these questions :)  
P.S.  Here's a fish.  ><)))">