Should teachers "friend" their students on FACEBOOK?

[Tantor]

At My daughters school the teacher's told them that they wouldn't be friends with them till after they left the school

 

[RachelNinja]

I would consider creating two Facebook pages. Make one a personal page that is just for family and friends, and make the other for school/students. Then when a student tries to friend you on your personal account, you can reject them, but then invite them on your teacher account.

That is what my brother does- he has 2 accounts- one for family and friends and the other for students and past students- he has over 1000 past and current students on his facebook page. This summer alone he has been to 6 past students weddings!

I agree with them! I have two separate Facebook accounts. For the longest time, students were asking if they could be my friend. I told them it would be okay after they graduate. However, that could still raise issues since the former students could share the info on my personal page with current students. That's why I created a separate account just for students, former and current (a few parents as well).

I don't update that one as often; it's more for them than it is for me. I do teach in a small school so I'm not the only teacher who is friends with them (even the pastors in the church are their friends), but I believe I'm the only one who created a separate account. Former students tell me what they have to read for summer assignments. I update my status with books that I have finished reading (haha, hopefully they can see that reading can be done for fun too~). I joke around especially with former students because we have close relationships, so close that I will be inviting them to my wedding a few years down the road.

The separate account also protects them. If I post pictures of my classes or students from field trips, only they can see it. I made them all "Friends Only," which means their friends can't see those pictures on their page. When a parent liked the picture, she reposted it on her wall.

I never friend a student. I only accept if they friend me. Just like I don't want students knowing my personal business, if they don't want me to know theirs, that's fine.

I am a younger teacher so maybe that's why I think it's okay. I have a separate email account for parents and students as well. Students have sent me messages via Facebook asking me about help for summer assignments and I'm okay with that. Instead of Googling an answer or leaving it blank, why not go straight to the source if it's available?

My students have told me that they like that I can talk to them as a friend when we're outside for dismissal or on a field trip. They know that I'm their teacher and that we cannot be buddy-buddy in the classroom. But if we're on the bus going on a trip, I don't mind playing games with them or chatting about silly things. They trust me to tell me about things going on in their homes that they don't necessarily tell their friends. I think it's okay to have a separate account to be friends with students as long as you know where to draw the line.

 

[ozarkmom]

No I do not. I know a few teachers that do and I think it's a bad idea. I live in a small community and alot of my teaching friends personal lives overlap with some of their students. One friend of mine teaches 7th grade English and during a local festival she was in a pub/restaurant and with her meal was enjoying a beer. A student came in and spoke to her. Then in class he announces how he saw Mrs. so and so getting drunk last weekend. I know it's not the same thing but why have your students know anything about your personal life and do you really want to see the pictures of the party Sally or Tom went to last Saturday night?

 

[MM27]

I wouldn't friend students or their parents.

 

[LukenDC]

I'm a human resources director and it is my personal policy not to accept friend requests from current employees. I never want my professional decisions tainted by accusations of favoritism and I also do not want my employees knowing my personal business.

I would have the same policy for the same reasons if I were a teacher receiving friend requests from students.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Hoping teachers would never even consider it.

 

[MushyMushy]

I just sub and I think it's a bad idea. Though I do have to say I'm surprised that a bunch of the kids I'd student taught have now graduated and have been friending me. That was almost 3 years ago and we still love to run into one another!

I wouldn't friend students or their parents.

Just curious how big of an area you work in. I live in such a small town and went to school with a lot of the students' parents around here. I'm friends with a lot of parents. It's just a different attitude towards it in this town. I know my teacher friends have friended lots of parents because they ARE friends.

 

[laurie31]

That cannot be legal. A teacher could contact students in a variety of ways - are they going to forbid a teacher from using any form of communication?

Teachers shouldn't friend their students on Facebook. I teach. I have a private Facebook profile. My private life and my professional life are as distinct as I can make them.

Teachers should have a clause in their contract forbidding them from contacting students online using anything other than school-based email accounts. It's that simple. There's no need to dictate the online facilities a teacher can use for their own personal use.

Would you ban a doctor from Facebook?
A nurse?
A pastor?

This has actually come up at the hospital where I work. Friending patients, I mean. Someone at work found out that a lot of patients (teens) friend the nurses and was horrified. I think this is a bit different than teachers friending students (which I agree is a bad idea). I actually have friended (or rather, accepted their friend requests) 3 former patients. However, since they are no longer my patients, nor are they still minors, I don't see a problem. (in other words, they are former patients who are now adults. I put this in the same catagory as teachers friending former students who have grown up.) I have NOT friended any current patients, and I'm not sure how I feel about whether it's a good idea or not.

 

[Kath2003]

This has actually come up at the hospital where I work. Friending patients, I mean. Someone at work found out that a lot of patients (teens) friend the nurses. I think this is a bit different than teachers friending students (which I agree is a bad idea). I actually have friended (or rather, accepted their friend requests) 3 former patients. However, since they are no longer my patients, nor are they still minors, I don't see a problem. (in other words, they are former patients who are now adults. I put this in the same catagory as teachers friending former students who have grown up.) I have NOT friended any current patients, and I'm not sure how I feel about whether it's a good idea or not.

So should you be banned from Facebook because you COULD friend current patients?

Or should be treated like an educated professional who knows better?

I hate it when teachers are treated like children, like we don't know how to behave..

 

[jbcheerchick93]

As many of you know, school is back in. In the last week I've gotten several "friend" request from my students on FACEBOOK. Am I mean to decline their "friendship"? Now, I don't have much on my page (some family photos - which are on my desk too), nothing I wouldn't (at some point share) but its my personal world, so I don't think I want to share with them at home on their PC's my thoughts. What do you think?

BTW, I teach high school students.

teachers do it in my school, but only after the student has gone onto another building or onto college

 

[2binak]

You are not mean. I think teachers need a dividing point between their professional & personal lives. My BFF is a 7th & 8th grade teacher and IMO, she crosses the divide far too often. Her students know far too much about her personal life and I've told her I feel that way, but she doesn't seem to have a problem with the info she shares with them.

Personally - I keep my FB page for very close friends and family only.

 

[KandD]

I am still friends with one of my college professors and we got together a few months ago. I asked him why he didn't have Facebook anymore and he said that a lot of his students were his friends and although HE didn't have much personal info up on his page, he couldn't BELIEVE the things he saw on his students' pages. He said that some of the pictures were so inappropriate that he felt uncomfortable after seeing them.
So it isn't just what you don't want the students to see about you but also what maybe you don't want to know about your students.

 

[mlynn]

I'm another saying don't open yourself up to that. Just tell them school doesn't allow it.

My daughter teacher(she had her for 1st and now 2nd "looping" has a face book and some of the mothers in class have her as friends.I love this teacher but I don't have her as a friend.Just some stuff needs to be kept private.

 

[lillygator]

I wouldn't.

 

[patsfan101]

At first I saw that so many people responded with "No, don't do it" that I wasn't going to respond, but I changed my mind - my response is - "NO, DON'T DO IT"

It's a bad bad bad idea to friend students on facebook or have students' cell phone numbers, or any electornic contact other than through the regular school email account where you might answer questions about grades or homework or other school-related topics.

The fact that the students are high-school age makes it even more important to avoid that kind of familiar contact. Please, stick with friends your own age and let students be students.

I teach high school and don't even have a facebook account - mostly to avoid the whole topic of friending students or anything being misconstrued. It's just not that important to me to use facebook. I work with some people who have friended former students, but I wouldn't even do that - you need ot separate yourself. Of course we care about our students, and want them to succeed; but I have my own family and friends separate and apart from school. I feel strongly that the two should stay separate. I am a grown-up, not a teenager.

I will also say that when I was younger, I was even more conscience of keeping students at a distance. I wouldn't even stay after for extra help if only one student was going to be there. Never be alone in a room with a student - you just never know!

 

[horseshowmom]

My son-in-law asked me the same question about students a couple of years ago (when he started teaching), and I told him the same thing everybody else is saying - definitely do not. He was relieved to hear me say that because he didn't think it was a good idea either but didn't want to hurt their feelings. He actually wound up closing his account (he wasn't particularly into it anyway and didn't like havning to deal with the student issue).

 

[BeachGirlFLA]

I went to a very small private High School and I would say don't do it. I would think in a larger High School, it could present even more of a problem but it just doesn't seem appropriate to me until - if they're close enough to you - the student graduates.

 

[SharpMomOfTwo]

I know someone who is a HS music teacher and has studens as friends on his facebook page. I don't think its smart, but its his life. Personally, I would never do it, just not appropriate.

 

[::Snow_White::]

I know one of my more strict teachers friend students on facebook, and I'm pretty sure a few others do as well. We've never had a problem with it as of now that I know of.

As a student if you told me you didn't feel comfortable accepting students as friends on facebook for any reason I would be fine with that.

 

[djm99]

Thanks guys. I appreciate all the responses. I shared a page of this thread (during lunch) with another teacher and it started a buzz and this subject will placed on our next staffing meeting.