High school students are going to be held accountable for what they post on blogs and on social-networking Web sites such as MySpace.com.
The board of Community High School District 128 voted unanimously on Monday to require that all students participating in extracurricular activities sign a pledge agreeing that evidence of "illegal or inappropriate" behavior posted on the Internet could be grounds for disciplinary action.
The rule will take effect at the start of the next school year, officials said.
District officials won't regularly search students' sites, but will monitor them if they get a worrisome tip from another student, a parent or a community member.
Mary Greenberg of Lake Bluff, who has a son at Libertyville High School, argued the district is overstepping its bounds.
"I don't think they need to police what students are doing online," she said. "That's my job."
Associate Superintendent Prentiss Lea rebuffed that criticism.
"The concept that searching a blog site is an invasion of privacy is almost an oxymoron," he said. "It is called the World Wide Web."
When I was in high school I did fairly decent in my classes. I was hardly ever absent, and I was a good student. I also hung out with a bunch of kids who were not quite "up to that standard". If blogs were around then, I probably would have blogged about the crap we did on Friday nights. I am sure some school administrators would find our actions "inappropriate". Does that mean I should have been disciplined in school for what I did on Friday nights?
Schools have no right to hold students accountable for their actions away from school, and they really shouldn't be seeking out such information in the first place.
Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that information found on a blog, which reveals the commission or planned commission of a crime, cannot be used to help authorities prevent or solve those crimes. But should school administrators really be the ones "seeking" out what children are doing away from the school?
Mary Greenberg nailed it when she said the school did not need to police what students, like her son, are doing online. She was right when she said it was her job. It is her job. It's the job of every parent to monitor what their children are doing, whether it's online, in their backyard, or across town. Parents should always stay informed on their child's activities, and take appropriate action when necessary.
Associate Superintendent Prentiss Lea responds with a totally idiotic statement. "The concept that searching a blog site is an invasion of privacy is almost an oxymoron". Who claimed it was a violation of privacy? Mary Greenberg simply said the school was overstepping it's bounds and that it was not the school's job to police the web. She said nothing of privacy. We all know surfing the web is not an invasion of privacy.
If Prentiss Lea wants to talk about oxymorons, let's talk about all the ways most school systems fail their students. Let's talk about children who are "promoted" so the school will not suffer the wrath of district officials looking for the "right" numbers. Let's talk about the children with special needs, who are classified as "different" solely so their test scores are not factored in for those same numbers. Let's talk about drugging children to solve "mental issues" and the school administrations that force the issue. I could go on all day.
Needless to say, most school districts are forgetting what they are there for. Education of the children. Period.
I find it ironic that this school district wants to take on this responsibility when it probably cannot even handle the responsibilities it already has. I also find it moronic that they are only requiring students who participate in "extra curricular" activities to sign the pledge. Like it's never the geeky, solitary, silent types that cause any trouble. Yeah, uh huh.
Parents need to step up and monitor what their children are doing online. Schools need to step away from the police batons, and step up and start teaching those same kids to use their brains. Wow. What a concept.
[Hat Tip : Bridget]
Sphere: Related ContentChip Flowers
See, that's where I have a pr See, that's where I have a problem with it.
If Agatha incites non-illegal trouble against Bobby on her blog, why would the parents sue the school?
I don't see why the school would be involved with it at all. If her trouble involved doing something to Bobby at the school, then it is her parent's responsibility to warn Bobby, his parents, and then the school.
That's the only way the school should ever get involved.
Comment by Slobokan on Dec 3rd, 2006 @ 02:07
if the kids are blogging via if the kids are blogging via school computers during school hours, I can see the reason to monitor. Heck, Cyndi comes home at the beginning of the school year with a permission paper for her to use the online resources in the computer lab – ONLY for only resources and may not be browsing the web, instant messaging, and posting. It specifically says that. In this case, the school is right. But, if the kids are blogging at home, the schools need to but out of it. Period. End of Story.
Comment by Bridget on Dec 3rd, 2006 @ 02:07
My thoughts on the topic are My thoughts on the topic are here. I agree with you in two respects:
First, there is no right of privacy on the Internet. While Mary Greenberg did not argue this, there are bloggers who are claiming that this is a right to privacy issue. You're right – it isn't.
Second, I think that the school district needs to clarify what they mean by "inappropriate." Perhaps they did, but their clarification didn't make it into the news media article.
One other point – schools have liability here. You can bet that if Agatha incites non-illegal trouble against Bobby on her blog, Bobby's parents are going to grab a lawyer and sue the school as quickly as possible. In a sense, the school district is protecting itself against such things. I still have to research to see whether the Columbine parents blamed the school for not knowing (despite publicly available evidence) what was going to happen.
Comment by Ontario Emperor on Dec 3rd, 2006 @ 02:07
It is getting rediculous. Luc It is getting rediculous. Lucky for me, my oldest is only getting ready to go into the 2nd grade so I so far have had very little to worry about with the school here. Actually, just the opposite, this school, and the teachers she has had, are amazing.
I agree it is totally the parents job to monitor what their kids are doing online. My daughter has her computer, but does not go online right now. She is 7, what use does she have for being online. She used to get online once in a blue moon to play games at the Neopets website, but was installing pop ups on her computer and messing it up. Now she just sticks to her barbie, hello kitty, and learning games.
Comment by Dustin on Dec 3rd, 2006 @ 02:07
[...] H is for homeschooling [...] H is for homeschooling reason #1,045,243. [...]
Comment by Electric Venom » Blog Archive » Letter of the Da on Dec 3rd, 2006 @ 02:07
I'm actually home schooling C I'm actually home schooling Cyndi this next school year. She graduated 7th grade today, then in three weeks we are traveling to DC to see my mom and get all the curriculum, then home school will start on the first day of public school. I'm only doing my oldest right now. Destiny needs to be in a public school because I don't have the patience for the way she learns. However, she scored off the charts and has the highest MAP score of the second grade of three elementary schools here! yay Destiny! She is being placed in gifted classes next year as well. So she'll have her regular classes and then twice a week go to the gifted classes. If she does well with this (which we know she will excel beyond all expectations), they will allow her to skip a grade. The elementary schools out here are wonderful. Unfortunately in the middle schools here it is horrible. The principals and teachers focus more on what these kids are wearing, their hair, their makeup (for the girls) than their education. They are too wrapped up on getting these children to conform to one standard and it's not a standard I want for my daughters. When Destiny hits middle school, she will be home schooled as well.
When I read this article I was just floored… but I was not shocked. Not much the schools try to do shock me anymore.
Comment by Bridget on Dec 3rd, 2006 @ 02:07