Steve's+Page

Steven P Markey's social media policy as of 2-19-12.

I currently communicate with my students and parents through: face to face conversations, phone calls, letters, and emails. I also post book reviews regularly to my [|blog] and provide examples and directions on my class Moodle page. I do not communicate via Twitter or Facebook with my students or parents.

At this time, I have a Facebook account. This account is for personal reasons only. I have been friends with a few co-workers but I have deleted them as friends. A few former and current students have asked to friend me. I denied their requests. My Facebook account is for me to share information with my friends and family. Co-workers and students don't fit into that realm.

If I created a Facebook account to be used with students and their parents, it would contain school related information and I would not have my personal account affiliated with my school account. I wouldn't want any cross over. Students and their parents would be deleted after they graduated from my class. Account's settings would be kept as private as possible and only allow current students and their parents access. To be honest, I don't anticipate creating this account unless I am asked to do so by a supervisor.

I have not tried Twitter at this point in my life. After hearing two esteemed educators speak about its benefits I plan to explore it someday. If it becomes so ubiquitous that every student and every parent is using Twitter, I could see setting up an account to use with students and parents to send out quick reminders about homework and activities that need special preparation.

I won't say that I will or won't use a certain technology because I don't know what will happen in the future. My policy on social media is that I will wait and see if can be beneficial to my students and if it can, I will figure out a way to use it. I will make sure that whatever social media I am using with students and parents is only used for professional purposes even if that means creating two separate accounts: a personal and professional one.