Should teachers be punished for personal posts on social-networking sites?

This is such a loaded issue.I agree that as teachers we have a right to personal lives, but we are also professionals. Many companies are letting people go, because of inappropriate internet postings. They expect their employees to carry themselves respectably. Why should this be any different for teachers? We are role models for our students. It is one thing to "enjoy" yourself after school hours, but when you post pictures or text about un-professional behaviors they can easily become permanent. Even if you delete them they could've been copied and easily manipulated.
In college, I was in a sorority and we were required to sign a proper internet posting agreement. Violation of this agreement could result in disciplinary actions or even disaffiliation from the sorority. This was a social group, but since we were expected to up hold certain values and present ourselves as up standing college students, we were expected to do this outside of sorority activities. Why should this be any different with teachers? We're getting paid to be role models and educators. How can we expect respect from our students if we're not presenting ourselves as professionals?
Personally, I enjoy using Facebook and MySpace as a connection to my students. I think it is great for them to see a young adult, who is successful that they can relate too. They can learn about me and build that connection and I can't imagine them seeing me kick back drinking a beer with friends or wearing a bikini at the lake. They are too young to understand these acceptable adult behaviors.

In my opinion school systems cannot "police" teachers outside of their contract hours for any reason -unless administrators agree to a contract paying said teachers for 24 hours a day over 365 days. The constitution gave us a right of free speech and such policing would be on direct violation of those rights. Wouldn't it?
As long as teachers follow the legal parameters of the law their behavior outside of school hours should have no bearing on their employment status.

As an art and design media teacher I see many students over their four year
high school experience. I teach graphic design,animation, Flash, and Photoshop, as well as AP art studio. We work together on an online newspaper on the schools web page.Students are required to explore digital media and create their own pages of portfolio work for review and assessment. Colleges do appreciate their pursuits.I communicate on line about competition deadlines, portfolio, public presentations they are a part of. When my students graduate they may contact me to tell me of their college or work experiences, sound out decisions, or ask for protocols on financial aid. They are now sending pictures of their weddings, children, military careers, and letting me know of their successes.
Many of them come back to present their college work to the high school students.
Being online with kids allows me to support, facilitate, and continue that relationship as mentor. It is alarming that those who will abuse the privilege/calling of teaching, will shape the policies the rest of us must abide by. As a mother myself however, I do understand the need for guidelines.
Many sites, that are deemed instructional by our college tech workshop presenters are also blocked by the state or district network, making the technology instruction unusable. Coherent adoptions of protocol, agreed upon by State DOE,District Boards, and College trainers should be vertically aligned. Google and check out "Your Vision Your Voice" Vision 2015 winners. My kids worked on this piece about their views of educational improvements.

Lamar County is telling teachers that they are stupid and not professionals. Despite the good pay, Georgia can be real backwards. This is the same kind of thing as putting blocks on the teachers' computers and having Zero Tolerance regulations that do not allow professional judgement.

I was in a school system that tried to take away the teachers'desks to force them to do "stand up teaching", as though a teacher did not know when she needed to be walking around the room. (The superintendent who pulled this one also said that special educators could not be administrators because the did not get the kids out of special ed.---like we can cure the students but we are just not good enough to do so. He was incredibly conceited and his overpaid self lasted about a year.)

One really obnoxious and racist middle school principal in the same system tried to make her teachers wear uniforms as an "example" to the students. Uniforms could not be required in this particular state and most students, not being Catholic, were repulsed by them.

In a rural system in Georgia when the special education department asked for a telephone, they were told they might talk on it! However, the vocational teachers had them so the real reason must have been that the teachers who are usually the brightest are really super stupid---maybe because they think their students are not smart so they must not be either. This was before cell phones were common. A principal in Louisiana in a wealthy suburban system also had the same complaint just a year ago, but then abuse is almost expected in this backward state. Yet we had to go upstairs or to the office, a long walk, to even call a parent. In another system we had been ordered not to use our cell phones or even carry them. A child had a seizure and went into status (a potentially fatal condition where seizures occur back-to-back) and if the Department Chair had not used hers, he could have died. Then the teacher got jumped on by the secretary for calling 911 herself instead of letting the office do it which was protocol!!!!! That is why we let the Chair take the heat.

WHY IS IT THAT TEACHERS ARE THE ONLY PROFESSION WHERE THE EMPLOYEES DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO A PHONE? OFTEN THEY ARE EVEN FORBIDDEN TO HAVE CELL PHONES ON DURING SCHOOL TIME. AND WHEN WE DO HAVE TO MAKE OR RECEIVE A CALL WE ARE NOT GIVEN ANY PRIVACY TO USE IT.

A principal in Georgia used to start lectures with, "If y'all were Delta Airlines employees....". I got tired of it and told him we were professionals not skilled labor. He had been moved frequently in the system because he had a problem with sexual harrassment.

Just yesterday, a poorly regarded Louisiana school system had a "fashion show" that ostensibly was held to show new teachers what was appropriate to wear to work. This is something that should be handled individually and only when necessary and with consideration given to the job of the teacher.

For example at one school the principal, a dresser, wanted all men to wear ties, but the two severe disabilities teachers were in danger of being choked if they did so. A dangling tie is something many of these kids will grab and pull. They are also dangerous for many vocational teachers. This same principal had to apologize to the Adapted PE teacher for getting after her for wearing sweats. She was itinerant and he did not know her. She was doing her job and what she was wearing was appropriate for her work. She called her coordinator The coordinator told the Special Education Director who called him and laid him out.

Interfering with a teacher's personal life remains a problem in the schools.

Why do you think it is so hard to get and keep teachers? Who wants to be insulted and treated like a child on the job. Deal with important issues individually and assume that we will behave professionally instead of assuming that we are ignorant.

Treat us like doctors and engineers, not waitresses and laborers.

We are past the day when teachers could not marry, could not be in public with a man who was not her father or brother, and who had to bring coal to fire the heater every day.

As long as a teacher is not doing anything illegal, he or she should be able to do what is right in her eyes and the eyes of the God of her understanding. In terms of the Internet, however, if she is going to post something she does not want her students looking at, she had best make her page private. No teacher should be disrespected, but you don't need to set yourself up for disrespect either. If she is a party animal and not local, she might also want to go to a bar in another town.

One thing however, is that in conservative areas, a teachre might want to be careful with her freedom of speech until she has tenure. I heard of a teacher who was fired because she had a pro-choice bumper sticker in a "pro-life" state. So it might be best to keep extremely political things at home, or if on the web, anonymous until your job is safe. Administrators can be real petty.

If parents are going to trust you with their children, then your life needs to reflect the values and standards of the community in which you work. What you do in private is your business, however, the Internet is not a private place (no matter the precautions you may take)and teachers should be held accountable for information they post there.

As a teacher, I feel that anything I do that has an impact on the classroom is subject to scrutiny. Therefore, yes, my MySpace page (if I still had it) is open to being looked at by parents, staff and students.

What I would like more discussion on is the subject of teachers looking at their students' MySpace pages. Some people feel that teachers should NEVER look at their students' MySpace pages, even if they are not marked as private. I say that since MySpace is a social network, then any page that is open to public viewing can be seen by anyone, even if the viewer is a teacher and the page belongs to a student. If the student doesn't want his/her teachers looking at the page, the student should take some responsibility and mark it as private.

Be responsible. As a teacher of 12 and 13 year olds, I believe that teachers should not be acting the same way as their students. Kids post unbelievable pictures and content without thinking about the consequences. I do not have any social networking sites, just email. Really teachers, do you need to post your life online while you keep in touch with colleagues and friends? Just use your email. If you have a family and like to share your photos online with those you have chosen to allow access to your site, then fine no real problem there. To display party photos, topless photos, or any other suggestive content is just not acceptable. Grow up, you are teachers! Teachers provide the positive role models that many kids are lacking. When we give in and act as the kids do, try too hard to be their friends, or just are teaching for all the wrong reasons, then we lower the standard for the profession. Be smart. Keep your junk off the web. Not saying you can't still drink or party, just be smart. Don't share drinking stories with students, don't talk about your sex life with students, and don’t post pictures of your drinking or sex life on the internet! Our job is to show youth that we can follow the rules of a civilized society. That we can be active democratic citizens. I am only 30 years old, not some old humdrum who doesn't know how young people act or what they talk about in school or on the streets. I have had a few beers with my friends while in university, gone out and partied on many an occasion in the past, but never, ever would we have considered taking pictures of anything, and then posting our party online to share with our "friends". Bottom line, grow up, act responsible, and teach your kids how to accept responsibility by modeling responsible behavior yourself.

About five years before I became a teacher, I had a small part in a movie where I was in bed with a man and woman and my breasts were exposed there was no touching involved. I am worried that if someone finds this out I will be fired. Do you think I am making too much out of this? It was a B movie after all and no one may ever see it, some advice would be greatly appreciated.