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- High schools and universities are beginning to pay close attention to what students post online, which can have serious consequences for students. Harvard University recently revoked the acceptance of 10 incoming freshman who posted violent, racist and sexually explicit content in a private Facebook group.
- Some of the techniques that schools have been using include hiring outside firms to monitor social media, encouraging students to report what they see online, "friending" students to see content that might not be publicly available and monitoring any mentions of the school district or university online.
- Wendy Klarkowski, the school resource officer at Dysart High School in Arizona, has uncovered criminal activity by monitoring students' social media accounts, including a student who brought drugs onto campus.
- Chad Marlow of the American Civil Liberties Union said that schools need to address cyberbullying and other inappropriate online behaviors without damaging students' privacy and rights to free speech. He cautioned against schools engaging in "fishing expeditions" into students' social media accounts.
- "It is very important to draw the line between punishing an action that occurs on social media vs. punishing thoughts that are expressed on social media," Marlow said. "Once you start punishing and policing thoughts, you are into very, very dangerous territory."
- Essential question: How can social media activity affect students' lives offline?
- Do you believe that schools monitoring student social media accounts is a violation of free speech, or is it justified? How far can schools go in watching what students do online?
- How would you feel if your school monitored your social media activity? Would your online behavior change? If so, how?
