Teacher Restrictions

The Missouri Senate attempted to pass a law that would restrict teachers from Facebooking or interacting with students on websites that provide "exclusive access." The Missouri State Teachers Association (MSTA) reacted to this law claiming that it's confusing and too vague for teachers to follow. The law restricted teachers from interacting with students over the internet but also encouraged each school district to enforce its own policies regarding teacher/student interaction on Facebook, twitter, or other social media. Now after much revision the bill is finally making its way into law. Two major changes went into the revision of the bill. One being that every school district is now required to have restrictions limiting interactions with students over the internet. The second major revision that was made was in the verbiage of bill which included "employee of staff" along with "teacher interaction."

I feel that limited interaction between teachers and students over the internet is a smart move for school districts. The teacher/student relationship needs to remain professional and having access to a teacher or students personal Facebook hinders that relationship. This law will help protect the student and the teacher from becoming involved in a inappropriate relationship that could cost the employee their job. After a student graduates I don't see a problem with connecting with previous teachers via Facebook or twitter but during their time as a student in high school or middle school I don't think it's appropriate to have personal conversations with teachers over the internet at such a young age. While I do think that this law is a good move for school districts I see it being very difficult to regulate.