This is a poorly worded law for sure. It has vague ambiguities. For instance, the law states no contact with former students. That is absurd. For how many years? Does that mean you can’t befriend someone you taught 10 years ago who is now a fellow teacher? Why must lawmakers always demonstrate how little they understand about the arenas their bills impact?
A bad law doesn’t fix that which it is supposed to heal. Is social networking a problem between some teachers and students? You betcha! It establishes a casualness between teachers and students that just doesn’t lend itself to good practice. Rather than states making laws to prevent this interaction, local school systems should adopt policy that establishes standards of conduct for their staff and students.
The real buck stops with the teacher, not the student. School systems need to be very clear and direct in what they deem unacceptable behavior. Unfortunately, a few bad apples ruin it for everyone. A wise teacher should keep those kinds of casual relationships with students off limits. That same wise teacher should be very circumspect about what he or she posts on networks like Facebook regardless of student access. Inappropriate Internet material can be a real career deal breaker for many a hapless potential employee.
Laws like the Missouri law are really not going to do what they are intended to do. Those teachers who choose to make poor choices won’t not make poor choices because of that law. The best monitor of this situation remains the parent. Parents should be suspicious of any school personnel who pays just a little too much attention to their child. Parents shouldn’t be flattered. They should start seeing red flags and monitor the situation just a little closer whether the camaraderie is in the real or cyber world. As usual, the parent is the best line of defense.
