A Teacher's Guide to Using

Facebook
Written by:
Bernadette Rego, B.Com, B.Ed.
This guide is under a Creative Commons license with some rights reserved. lease note that this guide must be
attributed to !ernadette "ego# that no modi$ications o$ this co%y is %ermitted# and that it is to be used strictly $or
non&commercial %ur%oses.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 111
1
Table o$ Contents
3 Introduction
4 Profile Choices on Facebook
5 I. ot !isting "our Profile
# ii. Creating a Profile $trictl% for Classroom&Professional 'se
() iii. Creating a *eneral Profile +ith Filtering
(, Filtering -.tions
(4 i/. Creating a Public Profile
(5 0o 1dd or ot to 1dd2 1 Cautionar% ote about Facebook 1..lications
(3 4oining *rou.s on Facebook
(5 Establishing a Personal !earning et+ork 6P!7 on Facebook
(8 Establishing Professional Boundaries +ith $tudents
,) 0he Im.lications of 9a/ing 1ccess to $tudent Information on Facebook
,( :ealing +ith Colleagues on Facebook
,, 1uthor;s Final ote
Bernadette Rego (2009) 221
2
'ntroduction
<elcome to the 0eacher;s *uide to using Facebook= 1s educators, social net+orking can
carr% tremendous .otential benefits in one;s .rofessional de/elo.ment as +ell as sta%ing in
touch +ith friends, famil%, and colleagues. Facebook is one of man% social net+orking tools
a/ailable +hich is considered .o.ular due to its /ersatilit% in +hat can be shared>e/er%thing
from installing and creating fun a..lications 6e.g. mo/ie ?ui@@es7 to .osting .hotos of %our
recent famil% reunion.
9o+e/er, as educators +e also ha/e a .rofessional image to u.hold and ho+ +e conduct
oursel/es online holds no eAce.tions. 1s %ou ma% ha/e alread% heard, there ha/e been
instances re.orted b% media in the .ast of teachers demonstrating .rofessional misconduct
+hile engaging in ina..ro.riate dialogue about their schools and their students, .osting
.ictures and /ideos of themsel/es engaged in ina..ro.riate acti/it%, and the likes. $ome feel
that being online shields them from ha/ing their .ersonal li/es eA.osed. -n the contrar%, ho+
+e establish our online identit% can carr% far greater re.ercussions than +e could e/er ha/e
imagined.
It is, nonetheless, reassuring to kno+ that there are +a%s of .rotecting oursel/es from being
eA.osed +hile online. 0his guide is intended to hel. %ou set u. a .rofile using Facebook
+hich best suits %our .ersonal and .rofessional li/es. 0his guide +as +ritten to educate %ou
on +a%s of establishing %our .rofiles +hich u.hold %our .rofessional image.
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3
ro$ile Choices on Facebook
<hen setting u. %our .rofile on Facebook, %ou ha/e the follo+ing o.tions to choose from2
(7 not listing %our .rofile
,7 creating a .rofile strictl% for classroom&.rofessional use
37 creating a general .rofile +ith filtering 6for famil%, friends, colleagues, and students7
47 creating a .ublic .rofile 6accessible to e/er%one7
I +ill go into further detail about each .rofile o.tion shortl%. I +ould highl% recommend %ou
take into account that if %ou are going to use %our Facebook to interact +ith students, that %ou
be familiar +ith Facebook;s .olicies around the minimum legal age +hich one must be to ha/e
a Facebook account. At the time of writing this publication, one has to be at least 13 years or
older to establish a Facebook profile.
1
Facebook also states the follo+ing at the time of
.ublication about its .olic% around users of age (3 to (#2
We recommend that minors 13 years of age or older ask their parents for permission before
sending any information about themselves to anyone over the nternet.!
"
0hus, if %ou are teaching children in this age range, I +ould strongl% ad/ise %ou ask for signed
.arental consent .rior to dealing +ith %our students on Facebook.
For further information about Facebook .olicies .lease /isit
htt%:((www.$acebook.com(%olicy.%h%
1 Facebook Policy terms: http:!!!"#acebook"compolicy"php
2 Facebook Policy terms: http:!!!"#acebook"compolicy"php
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$
'. )ot *isting +our ro$ile
For maAimum control %ou could set u. %our .rofile so that it is not listed. In this case, if
someone +ere to search for %our .rofile b% %our name, the% +ould not see it there, a..earing
as if %ou +ere not on Facebook. 0his is sometimes a desirable o.tion for teachers +ho do
not +ish to deal +ith the un.leasantness of declining a student;s BfriendC re?uest.
E/en if %ou alread% ha/e created a .rofile on Facebook +hich is listed, %ou can still change it
to be unlisted b% taking the follo+ing ste.s2
(. select BsettingsC near the to. right hand corner of %our Facebook .age 6neAt to the
BsearchC bar7
,. select B.ri/ac% settingsC +hich %ou +ill find in the BsettingsC dro.>do+n menu.
3. $elect BsearchC under the B.ri/ac% settingsCD this +ill take %ou to the follo+ing .age2
1s %ou can see, I;/e selected Bonl% friendsC to /ie+ me in their search under B$earch
Eisibilit%C. otice that under the descri.tion for B$earch :isco/er%C Facebook states2
#our friends will always be able to find you.!
3
Facebook is referring to friends %ou ha/e added to be able to /ie+ %our .rofile.
3 so%rc!!!"#acebook"com
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4. Remember to Bsa/e changesC b% selecting this o.tion near the bottom of the .age as
sho+n belo+2
5. $elect BPri/ac%C near the to. left>hand side of this .age 6the +ord is highlighted in blue7
and it +ill take %ou back to the Pri/ac% Fenu. $elect BProfileC under the Pri/ac%
o.tions2
3. 'nder the BProfileC setting, select Bonl% friendsC to be able to /ie+ all the o.tions on this
menu as sho+n belo+2
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Remember to sa/e %our changes b% selecting the B$a/e changesC button at the bottom of the
.age.
"ou ha/e no+ successfull% unlisted %our .rofile from search results .eo.le obtain.
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ii. Creating a ro$ile ,trictly $or Classroom(ro$essional Use
If %ou +ould like to kee. %our .ersonal .rofile reser/ed onl% for famil% and friends but still +ish
to use Facebook +ith %our students and&or colleagues6.ro/ided the% are at least (3 and %ou
ha/e .arental consent7, %ou can set u. a se.arate .rofile for this .ur.ose.
(. "ou need to ensure %ou are first signed out from FacebookD once %ou are signed out,
go to +++.facebook.com and sign u. under the name %ou +ish to use for %our
.rofessional .rofile2
Please note that %ou +ill need to use a different e>mail from that +hich %ou signed u.
an% other Facebook .rofile +ith. 0hus %ou +ould need to create another e>mail
account if this is the case.
,. -nce %ou ha/e filled out all the re?uired information, %ou can go into %our BsettingsC to
adGust %our .rofile and account information to %our s.ecifications. If %ou +ant %our
students to be able to add %ou as a BfriendC, %ou +ill need to ha/e %our .rofile listed on
search results. 0hus %ou +ill need the search /isibilit% settings enabled for e/er%one to
/ie+ %ou. If %ou +ish to ha/e %our .rofile unlisted from search results, %ou +ill need to
add %our students as friends instead.
3. For %our .rofile .icture, .lease ensure that it u.holds %our .rofessional image. 0he
guideline to follo+ in selecting an image is to consider this ?uestion2
$oes my picture reflect how my students see me during school hours%
0hus, %our attire, demeanor, and the setting in +hich %our .hoto +as taken should
reflect +hat %our school district .olicies state.
Word o$ Caution:
1n% corres.ondence %ou engage in on %our .rofessional .rofile should reflect +hat is
acce.table +ithin %our school district .olicies. 1s a general guideline, .lease ensure that %ou
maintain a .rofessional tone in all comments .osted, all e>mails sent, and all material
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)
6including .hotogra.hs7 shared on %our .rofile. If %ou are .osting .hotos of students, .lease
ensure %ou ha/e .arental consent to a7 ha/e students .hotogra.hed and to b7 ha/e them
.osted on %our Facebook .rofile.
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'ii. Creating a General ro$ile with Filtering
If %ou +ish to kee. one .rofile for e/er%one from famil% members to students, %ou can filter
content on %our .age so that it is not necessaril% .ri/% to e/er%one;s /ie+ing. 0his is ideal if
%ou +ish to ensure, for instance, students onl% see school>related informationD this also
a..lies if %ou onl% +ant famil%&friends to see %our .ersonal information.
(. select BsettingsC near the to. right hand corner of %our Facebook .age 6neAt to the
BsearchC bar7
,. select B.ri/ac% settingsC +hich %ou +ill find in the BsettingsC dro.>do+n menu.
3. 0he follo+ing are the o.tions %ou can change or customi@e under %our B.ri/ac%
settingsC +ith some detailed eA.lanation of each.
a. Profile
>this control allo+s %ou to choose +ho can see %our .rofile .age.
b. Basic Info
>this control allo+s %ou to choose +ho can see %our basic information once on %our
.rofile .age 6i.e. *ender, Birthda%, 9ometo+n, Political and Religious Eie+s, and
Relationshi. $tatus7. 'nless %ou are comfortable +ith discussing %our .olitical or
religious /ie+s +ith students, I +ould suggest %ou kee. this information .ri/ate b%
customi@ing +ho sees it. I +ill discuss this in greater detail in the neAt section.
c. Personal Info
>this allo+s %ou to control +ho can /ie+ %our .ersonal information u.on arri/ing at %our
.rofile .age 6e.g. Interests, 1cti/ities, Fa/orites 6music, mo/ies, etc.7 and %our 1bout
Fe section7
d. $tatus and !inks
>this allo+s %ou to control +ho sees an% links %ou share or %our status u.dates.
e. Photos tagged of %ou
>this control allo+s %ou to determine +ho can /ie+ an% .hotos that ha/e %ou tagged or
identified in them. 0his also a..lies to .hotos %ou ha/e tagged of friends. 0his could
include .hotos from an%one;s Facebook .rofile.
Please kee. in mind that if %ou ha/e friends on Facebook +ho ha/e taken .hotos of
%ou that %ou do not +ish for students to see, %ou should adGust this control to not allo+
students to see an% .hotos tagged of %ou.
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f. Eideos tagged of %ou
>Gust as +ith the abo/e descri.tion, this control allo+s %ou to also determine +ho can
/ie+ an% /ideos that either %ou ha/e tagged of friends or that friends ha/e tagged of
%ou.
1gain, .lease kee. in mind that if there +ould be an% .ossibilit% of ha/ing been
recorded on /ideo doing or sa%ing an%thing that might not be a..ro.riate for %our
student audience, %ou should adGust this control so that the% cannot /ie+ /ideos
being tagged either b% %ou or of %ou.
g. Friends
>this allo+s %ou to control +ho can see %our list of friends. Please be mindful that some
of %our friends or famil% members ma% ha/e .ublic .rofiles +hich allo+ %our students
to ha/e a more detailed look at their online identities. If %ou ha..en to ha/e a BfriendC
or BfriendsC that .ost ina..ro.riate content on their Facebook .rofiles, or %ou sim.l%
don;t +ant %our students to ac?uire more information about the friends on %our list, I
+ould suggest %ou customi@e this control so that %our students are not able to /ie+
%our list of friends.
h. <all .osts
0his control allo+s %ou to determine +ho can /ie+ an% comments .osted on %our B+allC
on Facebook. If %ou ha/e friends that might use coarse language or .ost an% other
material deemed ina..ro.riate for %our student audience, I +ould highl% recommend
%ou either +arn friends not to .ost such content on %our +all or customi@e this control
so that %our students are unable to read these .osts.
I. Education Info
0his allo+s %ou to control +ho can /ie+ an% information .ertaining to %our educational
+ork on %our .rofile.
G. <ork Info
0his allo+s %ou to control +ho can /ie+ an% information .ertaining to %our .re/ious
+ork eA.eriences on %our .rofile.
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Filtering -%tions
0he follo+ing are the o.tions from +hich %ou can choose in controlling +ho can see .arts of
%our .rofile2
a7 E/er%one
>this includes Facebook members that are not %our BfriendsC.
b7 Friends of friends
>this onl% refers to Facebook members that are friends of %our BfriendsC.
c7 -nl% friends
>this refers to those +ho %ou ha/e added as %our BfriendsC
d7 Customi@e
>this o.tion allo+s more control o/er +ho, from those %ou ha/e added as BfriendsC, can /ie+
%our .rofile. 0he follo+ing are %our o.tions2
%ou can choose to ha/e one of the follo+ing +hen customi@ing %our control o.tions2
(7 E/er%one
,7 Friends of Friends
37 -nl% Friends
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47 EAce.t these Peo.le
>this o.tion allo+s %ou to t%.e in the names of friends or name of a friend list that %ou
are not allo+ing to /ie+ the contents of a certain .art of %our .rofile. For eAam.le, if
%ou +ant e/er%one eAce.t %our students to /ie+ %our basic information, %ou can add
the names of %our students under this o.tion or create a student list and t%.e in the
name of the list.
.ake sure to select /-kay0 a$ter you've made your customi1ation. lease also
remember to /,ave Changes0 a$ter you've ad2usted all your control o%tions.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 13131
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iv. Creating a ublic ro$ile
"ou also ha/e the o.tion of creating a .rofile on Facebook +here e/er%one can /ie+ its
contents. 9a/ing said that, %ou can still adGust the control o.tions to limit +hat e/er%one can
see. "ou ma% +ant to ha/e a .ublic .rofile for students from %our .ast to be able to re>
connect +ith %ou +ith greater certaint% that it is %ou and not someone else. "ou might feel
%ou ha/e nothing to hide from the general .ublic, thus +h% ha/e restricted access to %our
.rofile .ageH
1gain, I ha/e mentioned in .re/ious .arts of this guide the im.ortance of u.holding a
.rofessional image as a teacher, not onl% to %our students but to the general .ublic. <hat
%ou might deem as harmless actions on %our .art 6e.g. .osting a Goking remark on a teacher
friend;s +all calling him a loser7 ma% be blo+n out of .ro.ortion b% others. It is better to be
safe than sorr%.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 1$1$1
1$
To Add or )ot to Add: A Cautionary )ote About Facebook
A%%lications
If %ou are alread% using Facebook, %ou might be familiar +ith some of the a..lications offered
such as one that allo+s %ou to send /irtual gifts or manage and share %our .hotos. $ome of
the a..lications can be seemingl% harmless but to a student or .arent, it might be .ercei/ed
differentl%. For eAam.le, if %ou ha/e been in/ited b% a colleague to .la% a Bslot machineC
game on Facebook, %ou might acce.t the in/itationD this +ould re?uire %ou install the $lot
Fachine 1... on %our .rofile. If %ou ha/e not filtered this a..lication thinking Bit;s Gust a gameC
%ou might find a .arent calling and ?uestioning %ou about +h% %ou are modeling gambling
.ractices to %our students.
"ou are able to filter +hat a..lications 6if an%7 %our students can /ie+ on %our .rofile.
0o filter %our a..lications so that onl% colleagues, friends, and famil% can /ie+ them2
(. select BsettingsC near the to. right>hand corner of the .age 6neAt to the B$earchC bar7
,. select B1..lication settingsC from the dro.>do+n menu
3. for each a..lication %ou +ish to filter, select BEdit $ettingsC
4. under the BProfileC tab in the menu that a..ears, select BPri/ac%C and Bcustomi@eCD
there %ou +ill be able to select BEAce.t these Peo.leC +here %ou can add %our student
names indi/iduall% or add the student list 6assuming %ou ha/e alread% created one7
instead.
5. Remember to select B-ka%C to sa/e %our changes.
I +ould discourage an% a..lication installations that do not u.hold %our .rofessional image.
Please consult +ith %our school district or 0eacher College standards for further guidance. 1s
a general rule of thumb, I +ould suggest %ou a/oid being associated +ith an% acti/it% that
%our students, their .arents, or administration ma% deem ?uestionable. For eAam.le, if %ou
are discouraged from gi/ing gifts to %our students in the classroom, %ou +ould certainl% not be
sending them /irtual gifts on Facebook. 1lthough %ou might ha/e the best intentions, such an
act could be misconstrued b% others. Remember to al+a%s u.hold %our .rofessional image,
es.eciall% +hen %ou are online.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 1&1&1
1&
3oining Grou%s on Facebook
0here are se/eral grou.s on Facebook +orth% of GoiningD this can be a +a% of net+orking +ith
other education .rofessionals or to meet others that share %our interests on non>education
based to.ics. 4ust as I;/e said before, though, .lease kee. in mind that %ou ha/e a
.rofessional image to u.hold.
1s a teacher, %ou +ant to .resent %ourself as someone +ho is res.ectful and acts as a
res.onsible adult role model. "ou are also .resenting this image to %our students; .arents,
%our colleagues, .re>ser/ice teachers, administrators, and the general .ublic. Please kee.
these grou.s of indi/iduals in mind before %ou click the B4oinC button on an% *rou. .age.
If %ou are Goining grou.s using a Classroom&Professional Facebook .age, .lease Goin grou.s
that reflect the 0eaching .rofession +ithin that .rofile. For %our .ersonal .rofile, feel free to
Goin non>education based grou.s. If %ou feel uncomfortable +ith ha/ing students, .arents, or
other members of %our school communit% /ie+ing %our affiliations, %ou can filter them as +ell=
(. select BsettingsC near the to. right>hand corner of the .age 6neAt to the B$earchC
bar7
,. select B1..lication settingsC from the dro.>do+n menu
3. under the B*rou.sC tab in the menu that a..ears, select BPri/ac%C and Bcustomi@eCD
there %ou +ill be able to select BEAce.t these Peo.leC +here %ou can add names of
indi/iduals %ou don;t intend to share %our grou. affiliations +ith or add a list name
6assuming %ou ha/e alread% created one7 instead.
4. Remember to select B-ka%C to sa/e %our changes.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 1'1'1
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4stablishing a ersonal *earning )etwork 5*)6 on Facebook
Facebook can also ser/e as a .o+erful tool in building %our online Personal !earning et+ork
6P!7. 1 P! is com.rised of a grou. of indi/iduals +ith +hom %ou share similar learning
interests 6in %our case, an interest in education7. Indi/iduals contribute useful resources,
?uestions, and reflect u.on issues that .ertain to their .rofessional de/elo.ment needs.
0he follo+ing are some suggestions I;d like to offer in hel.ing %ou Bgro+C a P!2
(. Goin .rofessional grou.s com.rised of other teachers to kee. u.dated on ne+s and
issues relating to the education field.
,. add indi/idual educators +ho are on Facebook as BfriendsC so that %ou ma% sta% in
closer contact. Please kee. in mind that some educators ma% be using their .rofiles
for famil% and friends onl%. It might be best %ou first ask this indi/idual +hether the%
ha/e a Facebook .rofile for collaborating +ith other .rofessionals.
3. Perha.s %our 0eachers 1ssociation is alread% on Facebook. If so, %ou might +ant to
Goin the grou. and find o..ortunities to collaborate +ith other colleagues and discuss
issues relating to %our subGect area or grade.
4. Create a grou. for teachers in %our school +here %ou can sta% connected outside of
+ork hours and share stories or suggestions +ith one another. Please kee. in mind
that %ou +ant to kee. all interactions .rofessional= :iscussing a student on a
Facebook grou. should be +ith the most res.ectful language .ossible and +ithout
naming the student6s7. If %ou do create a grou., I +ould suggest %ou create a list +ith
some ground rules around good eti?uette +hile engaging in discussions. "ou can
ha/e the list dis.la%ed on the .rofile .age for all members to see.
5. If %ou read good education>related blogs, +atch for an% Facebook links on their sites.
"ou ma% +ant to add them as BfriendsC to gain more insight on their education>based
/ie+s.
3. <atch for feeds from other teachers on %our Facebook for grou.s the%;/e Goined. "ou
ma% +ant to take a closer look at them if the% are related to the teaching .rofession.
5. "ou ma% +ant to look at +hich grou.s %our colleagues on %our Facebook ha/e Goined.
"ou can do so b% selecting the BInfoC tab on their .rofile. 0here %ou should find the
names of *rou.s the%;/e Goined 6.ro/ided the% ha/en;t filtered them7. If the% sound
education>related, %ou can click on their links to take %ou to the grou.s in ?uestion.
#. 4oin a s.ecialt% grou. if %ou are a teacher s.eciali@ing in a certain subGect area 6e.g.
French7. "ou might +ant to Goin a grou. relating to %our s.ecialt% e/en if it is not
com.rised of teachers. For eAam.le, if %ou are teaching French, %ou might +ant to
Bernadette Rego (2009) 1(1(1
1(
Goin a grou. of indi/iduals +ho +ant to .ractice their French>s.eaking skills +hile
learning more about French>s.eaking cultures around the +orld.
8. 1l+a%s remember to contribute something as often as %ou can to an% Personal
!earning et+ork& grou. %ou Goin. It is im.ortant to reci.rocate others; assistance to
kee. the learning communit% strong and gro+ing in its kno+ledge.
(). If %ou are using a Professional Facebook .rofile, %ou can share useful links and
messages relating to education directl% from %our .age. 'se the BstatusC bar as a
.lace to .ost information about articles %ou are reading, conferences %ou are attending
6es.eciall% online ones7, share links to +ebsites and an% other useful resources that
can aid other colleagues .rofessionall%.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 1)1)1
1)
4stablishing ro$essional !oundaries with ,tudents
$tudents should understand that it is im.ortant the% kee. a res.ectful tone in their
interactions +ith %ou on Facebook. 4ust as %ou +ould eA.ect the% res.ect %our boundaries
+ithin the classroom, the% need to honor the boundaries %ou establish online.
(. If %ou are allo+ing students to e>mail %ou /ia Facebook, ensure that %ou eA.ress +hat
times %ou +ill be returning messages online. 0hus if %ou do not +ish to res.ond to e>
mails on the +eekend, %ou should inform %our students of this.
,. 1ddress students directl% about an% ina..ro.riate language or material .osted on %our
Facebook .age. Remo/e such .ostings from %our Facebook immediatel%.
3. If %ou intend to use an% of the Facebook a..lications +ith students, .lease ensure that
it relates to %our role as their teacher. 1/oid in/itations to install a..lications that +ould
not reflect a teacher>student relationshi..
4. If %ou are uncomfortable +ith sharing an% of %our .ersonal information +ith students
6e.g. .hotos7, do not succumb to doing so if students ask.
5. If %ou are going to BchatC +ith students online, ensure %ou set u. Boffice hoursC so that
%ou are at +ill to end the con/ersation +hen the time is u.. "ou ma% also +ant to set
time limits on ho+ long %ou s.eak +ith each student.
1s a general rule, kee. in mind that the manner in +hich %ou interact +ith students must
reflect that of %our role as a teacher.
Bernadette Rego (2009) 19191
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The 'm%lications o$ 7aving Access to ,tudent 'n$ormation on
Facebook
If %ou do interact +ith %our students on Facebook, %ou are going to be .ri/% to information
that the% ha/e used to construct their online identities. "ou no+ +ill likel% ha/e significantl%
more kno+ledge of %our student than +ould other+ise be a/ailable to %ou strictl% in the school
setting. 0he follo+ing are some im.lications that %ou should be a+are of2
(. "ou +ill be able to see %our student;s .rofile .icture and an% other .ictures the% ha/e
.osted on their .rofile .age.
,. "ou +ill see +ho their BfriendsC are online if the% ha/e not filtered it to .re/ent %ou from
seeing their friend list.
3. "ou +ill see comments .osted on their +all
4. "ou +ill see comments the% .ost on others; +alls
5. "ou +ill see their status u.dates
3. "ou +ill see their information +hich could tell %ou e/er%thing from their date of birth to
their hobbies and interests.
5. "ou +ill see +hat a..lications the% install
0he abo/e im.lications I;/e outlined should ser/e as a reminder that %ou +ill need to be
a+are of an% information that students make .ublic kno+ledge +hich could be cause for
alarm. 4ust as %ou +ould ha/e the dut% to re.ort kno+ledge of a student at school that is
concerning, %ou also must com.l% +ith that dut% if interacting +ith students on Facebook. For
eAam.le, if %our (3 %ear old student is .osting threatening comments on someone;s +all or is
.osting obscene .hotos, it is %our dut% to inform the school of this.
Please inform %our students that the% need to be a+are of information the% .ost. In doing so,
%ou are educating %our students on ho+ to de/elo. a better understanding of good neti?uette
and ho+ to establish a res.ectable online identit%.
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8ealing with Colleagues on Facebook
Interacting +ith colleagues online can be a great +a% to sta% connected and get to kno+ them
better. -ften, I ha/e found colleagues being so occu.ied b% their teaching duties that the%
are unable to make time to meet +ith other colleagues in the staff room. 9a/ing time to
engage +ith them outside of school hours can be a great source of stress>release. 9o+e/er,
1s I;/e mentioned earlier in this guide, +e must maintain .rofessional conduct +hen
interacting +ith colleagues online. -ur con/ersations must be reflecti/e of those +hich +e
+ould ha/e in the school hall+a% in the .resence of students, staff, and administration.
'nderstandabl%, there are times +hen +e feel the need to /ent our frustrations arising either
from our .rofessional or .ersonal li/es. Please be a+are, though, that if %ou are needing to
ha/e such con/ersations, the% should be done in .ri/ac% +ith colleagues. 0o .ost comments
on a colleague;s +all that could no+ .otentiall% become .ublic kno+ledge could ha/e dire
conse?uences. For eAam.le, if %ou are eA.ressing %our frustrations in relation to another
colleague or student;s .arent on a colleague;s .age, that information could easil% be rela%ed
to the unintended .art%. 0hus, it is best to kee. those con/ersations limited to face>to>face
contact.
E/en sending an e>mail to a colleague is not suggested as it could be .rinted or for+arded
and made .ublic kno+ledge. Remember that an%thing %ou eA.ress in +riting is no+ out
there. 'nless %ou feel /er% comfortable and trusting of a colleague, %ou should not send an%
corres.ondence that could im.act %our .rofessional image.
1long the same lines, .lease refrain from engaging in un.rofessional con/ersations initiated
b% colleagues online. If a colleague has .osted something on %our +all that is ina..ro.riate,
delete it from %our .age and eA.ress to him or her %our discomfort +ith such material on %our
.rofile. In doing so %ou are doing both %ourself and %our colleague a fa/or. If the% ha/e e>
mailed %ou about something that %ou feel is not a..ro.riate to discuss, address them b%
stating %ou are uncomfortable +ith engaging in this discussion.
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Author's Final )ote
I ho.e %ou ha/e found this guide to be com.rehensi/e in hel.ing %ou establish a res.ectable
Facebook .rofile. Please kee. in mind that as much as one needs to be a+are of ho+ one
establishes an online identit%, one should also enGo% the .rocess and the benefits of
interacting in this medium.
$ocial net+orking sites such as Facebook carr% great .otential in collaborating +ith students,
colleagues, and establishing a Personal !earning et+ork. 1s %ou +ould in face>to>face
settings, it is im.ortant to be .rofessional in one;s demeanor and +hile engaged in an%
interactions +ith others. <e are t%.icall% as teachers held to a higher standard than the
general .ublic.
Please be a+are that Facebook;s .olicies and settings ma% change o/er time. 0he contents
+ithin this guide best reflect the conditions and features of Facebook at the time of its
.ublication. Furthermore, this guide +as inde.endentl% +ritten b% me thus +as not endorsed
b% Facebook.
This guide is under a Creative Commons license with some rights reserved. lease
note that this guide must be attributed to !ernadette "ego# that no derivative o$ this
co%y is %ermitted# and that it is to be used strictly $or non&commercial %ur%oses.
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