Facebook, No I'm Not Kidding

I'm about to say something dramatic--and for many, counter-intuitive--that may shock and amaze some of you. "Facebook has a place in the classroom." Yes, seriously. Well, to be more specific, due to the  imposition of firewall restrictions upon the average education professional, saying, "Facebook has a place as an extension of the classroom onto the internet, but has to be managed from outside the classroom" would be a far fairer claim.

Now, I am not the first to advocate the use of the Facebook as a supplementary tool to instruction (check out this article as well as this one or even what they're saying in the UK). I am, however, one of the few educators at my place of employment who actively (and appropriately) utilize this stunning social media outlet. I started my educator Facebook profile about a month ago and very quickly became "Friends" with over a hundred students. This decision came after laborious hours studying my school district's Electronics Usage Policy and scouring the internet for testimonies (and a few horror stories) from my colleagues both domestic and foreign. I had many doubts and fears to overcome, so I'd like to share some of them--as well as my logical denunciations of them--with you.

Fear #1- Other People's Updates
After seeing on many separate occasions the filth and hate being spread around Facebook, I was very reluctant to throw myself into the political and religious frays which seem to be popping up more and more often as the election draws near. This is not to say that these topics are not important and cannot be of value in an educational setting. This is to say, however, that these topics should be broached in an organic, controllable manner. Needless to say, I was afraid of pictures and comments made by my students showing up all over my "Wall."

Solution #1- "Unsubscribing"
Upon adding a "Friend" on Facebook (which requires the user's approval, by the way), Facebook will automatically start tracking the updates and activities of that person. There is a way to stop this, however. Along the top right-hand corner of each "status update" is a small, inverted arrow. When clicking upon this, a drop-down menu appears. One of the options towards the bottom of this list is to "Unsubscribe from (student's name)." This option will stop automatically putting the posts and activities of your "Friends" on your "Wall." Currently, I only allow posts by myself and my teaching partner (another long story) to be displayed. The students are, unfortunately, still allowed to comment on your updates, but an "X" in the same spot as the arrow allows for those to be deleted quickly. This leads me to my next fear...

Fear #2- My "Wall"
The "Wall" in Facebook is the place where my own status updates appear and where my "Friends" are able to leave comments and links. For the most part, these links are referential to the course or discussions I have had with the students, but there is a potential for this to go awry. I have heard of countless teachers who have been harassed on Facebook, or who have had students leave inappropriate messages or links. This reflects negatively on the teacher and can land them in hot water with their administration or school district. It's an easy problem to fix, however...

Solution #2- "Wall" Post Approval
Fortunately for me, my school district's policy is that though I bear responsibility for anything found on my Facebook page, I have 24 hours from its posting to remove it. This covers those teachers who have never encouraged the behavior and who might not have checked their Facebook as soon as the inappropriate message was posted. But there is a method for preventing it from ever getting that far. In the "Security" settings of Facebook, they provide for an option to approve of any posts, tags or links put onto your Wall before anyone gets to see them. I used this post today to ward off a link to a "parcore" video, that was very cool to watch, but contained foul language. It wasn't that the student was trying to be edgy or push the limits; he just wanted to show me his video and the language was a non-issue for him (as it is with nearly EVERY student in secondary school today).

Solution #3- Professionalism in Social Media
This solution is not a technical one, to be achieved through the navigation of certain menus or the selection of certain options. Nor is it in response to any particular fear about the implementation of Facebook as an element of my instructional method. This solution applies to social media as a whole. The pervasive nature of social media needs to dispel us of the notion of security. Yes, we change our Facebook pages to be "Friends Only" and limit what is posted on our Walls. These are mere tripping points for any inexperienced or half-hearted researcher. Anyone with enough motivation and technical acumen can find anything anyone has posted. Whether it is on a Twitter, Facebook or MySpace page, if it is on the internet, it can't be taken back. The solution, therefore, is to change our attitudes and to engage more actively in professionalism.

I'm not going to get up on my pulpit and denounce a "fun" lifestyle. If you want to "hang wit ur boyz" and engage in the same activities most educators publicly denounce to their students, that's fine. We're all adults here. I would strongly caution, however, that your life not make its way onto your Facebook. If you feel compelled to share pictures of your Bachelor Party with those who couldn't make it (as I personally did), create a personal Facebook account and set the privacy settings to their most stringent levels. Still, take care to still screen your photos. Want to post the shots of the fish you caught on the deep-sea charter you took during the day? Great! Do it! Want to post the shots of alcohol-fueled adventures the night beheld? DON'T DO IT! Invite your friends over and show them the photo slideshow while your wife is at Zumba.

Moderation, modesty and good judgment are the best tools one can employ in the creation of a social media outlet. Keep the posts and updates focused on the learning environment you have fostered at school and the influence of your personal life to a minimum. But that's enough preaching for now. Let's discuss "Facebook Chat"

Fear #4- Chatting
A major element of the Facebook experience is "chatting." One may instant message any of his Facebook friends, provided that the other user is currently online. Again, horror stories abound related to the inappropriate conversations held between teachers and students which later came to light and cause a heap of trouble for all involved. For the most part, these troubles arise from a lack of understanding on the part of the participants. When the chat window is closed, the conversation might be over in your mind, but hasn't gone anywhere digitally. At any time, a Facebook user (or police investigator) may delve into the history of any chat. I have often been afraid that a student would message me inappropriately and such troubles would befall me. That was, until, I realized a simple solution...

Solution #4- Know You're "On the Record"
Before you engage in creating a Facebook account as a teacher, be sure to speak to your students about the concept of being "on the record." Let your students know that the Facebook forum is going to be treated as an extension of the classroom. If they don't believe you, call their parents if they misbehave on your Wall. Have them face punitive measures in your classroom the next day. If even one student receives such a reaction, the word will quickly spread that you are to be taken seriously.

You yourself should keep this in mind as well. Just as you would never run your mouth to a newspaper or TV reporter, you should never run it to a student. If you've had a bad day, pour yourself a Scotch and call your mother. Don't complain about another student or coworker to a student via chat. That not only crosses a professional line, but a moral one as well. Students need to remember that they are not adults, they are not your friends.

Just this weekend, I have had some wonderful results (and a certain "brow-raising" experience) from Facebook chatting. During a scholastic sojourn to my local Barnes & Nobles with the Mrs., I brought up my teacher Facebook. I was instantly messaged by two different students. One student (who shall remain nameless until I hold him after class on Monday) asked if I would like to come to a party he was throwing Saturday evening. I politely disinclined his invitation and there will be a record of such. The other student, however, was too busy working on bringing up his grade to attend any sort of party this weekend.

The second student engaged me in a Facebook chat in order to advocate for himself. During my time at Barnes & Noble, this student asked if he could make up several assignments and how he could access them prior to returning to school on Monday. Needless to say, my jaw remained dropped for quite some time. I was then able to check the student's grade via eSembler (an internet-based grading program employed by my school district) and let him know which assignments he was missing. He was then able to go to our class' website and find not only the assignments he was missing in Word documents, but also able to print out the PowerPoints during which he had not been paying attention.

But the best part wasn't that interaction. The best part came the next day, when he messaged me again. This time, I was at home, snacking on some ravioli in the comfort of my own kitchen, when I saw the message. The student had been working on his take-home test (which he found on the website and printed out) using the PowerPoint notes he had printed the night before. He was having difficulty understanding a certain problem and asked me for help. I was able to rephrase the question for him in a way he could understand and point him in the right direction as per the PowerPoints.

This help actually went two ways. During our conversation, the student pointed out that I had only put one of the three Industrial Revolution slides on the website. I was then able to put them up fairly quickly and we could proceed from there. If the student had raised this observation during class, there would have been nothing I could do about it at that moment, and I would have invariably have forgotten to do it later (my memory is often lacking when it comes to things "To Do").

Conclusion
While the potential for disaster is always present in a poorly secured and monitored Facebook page, the potential for great success is also hanging around. Before undertaking the adoption of a page for yourself, be sure to contemplate the level of interaction required by the teacher to make the page worthwhile. For me, the experience above made it worth it already. Even if I never have an experience like it again, being able to help one student one time was worth the efforts.

P.S. While I was writing this blog, two additional students pestered me via Facebook for help on a group project. One left comments on a "status update" and the other messaged me directly. They convinced me to post links to the grading rubric and the supplementary sources I had provided them on the class website. Their grades should reflect the extra help! The student I mentioned earlier was able to bring his 9% F up to a 66% D in one weekend. His grade went up to a C by the end of the next week.