Social Media Policy Development
Name of Student
Institution
Social Media Policy
Social media is a rewarding platform that teachers and students can use to share educational information. However, the use of social platforms often presents an array of risks that requires the participants to make responsible decisions about their interactions. In order to improve the interactions between the teachers and the students, all conversations must adhere to the TAPE guideline where transparency, accessibility, professionalism, and ethics, are adhered to.
This policy has been developed to foster positive and professional relations between students and their teachers at Lamar University.
Acceptable Purpose of Contact
Contact between teachers and students should be restricted to educational purposes only such as updating students on schoolwork or informing them of the areas to study. As Rodesiler (2017) explains, although social media interaction often provides students and teachers with an easy and engaging platform to communicate, the participants should limit the communication to professional and educative purposes only. Alternatively, teachers should make use of apps such as “Remind” to keep students updated on school work and remind them of any upcoming tasks.
Plans for Monitoring and Regulating Communication Behaviors
The conversations should be about educational material. Teachers should display a professional character as they do in the classroom. Students who report emotional issues should be advised to contact their parents or experts such as counselors.
The exchange between the student and the teacher should be limited to no more than 4 messages. The messages should not be personal or emotional, and should instead be direct to the point (Bon, Bathon, & Balzano, 2013). For instance, a message from a student about class assignments should be responded with a direct answer without additional personal or emotional details.
The conversations between the student and the teacher on social media should be restricted to school hours only. Considering that most students are learning from their homes, interactions should be restricted to the periods that teachers relate with the students in the class. Conversations beyond the normal class period and particularly during late-night hours will be considered a violation of school policy.
Expectations and Guidelines for Teachers’ Use of Personal Social Media Accounts
Teachers should use caution when connecting with students and should avoid posting inappropriate social behaviors. For instance, teachers should avoid posting their social lives on a platform that the students can access. Tweets on alcohol use and personal life should be restricted.
In the same manner, the teacher’s private life and escapades should not be accessible to the students to avoid a possible change of perception. As such, the teacher should restrict the viewers of particular posts depending on the level of appropriateness.
Alternatively, the teachers can create Twitter or Facebook pages where they communicate with the students only. Those who use their personal profiles should be on private to avoid the development of familiarity with the students which would lead to a lack of respect or damaged attitude that would affect results.
Teachers should not search for students online, instead, teachers should only wait until the students seek their attention or assistance. The accounts should be made private without any provision for personal details. It is essential to customize the people who view the pictures to ensure personal posts are kept private. Additionally, teachers should remove geotagged information, location, or school affiliation from their profile.
Software to Use
For ease of access, teachers should have a professional Facebook account where students can access them when need be. The account should not include the teacher’s images or personal information.
References
Bon, S. C., Bathon, J., & Balzano, A. M. (2013). Social media use—and misuse—by teachers: Looking to the courts for human resource policy guidance. Journal of School Public Relations, 34(2), 193-217. https://doi.org/10.3138/jspr.34.2.193
Rodesiler, L. (2017). Local social media policies governing teachers’ professionally oriented participation online: A content analysis. TechTrends, 61(3), 293-300. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-016-0139-z