'I like, stalk them on facebook': Teachers' 'privacy' and the risks of social networking sites

Melissa De Zwart, Michael Henderson, Michael Phillips, David Lindsay

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Social networking sites (SNS), including MySpace and Facebook, and other media rich websites with social networking functions such as Bebo, Flickr and YouTube, offer new and varied ways to communicate for both students and teachers. This paper focuses on the complexities, particularly legal complexities, that may arise from teachers and students sharing social networks. For example, in October 2009, Queensland State School teachers were issued with a Code of Conduct prohibiting them from using SNS to contact or access students and mandating that any 'private use' of social networks by teachers must be kept 'appropriate and private'. However, this interdiction is deeply problematic, especially as SNS are designed to increase the number of users and their connections and by their very nature resist being private. Drawing upon Australian and overseas examples, this paper describes a SNS landscape in which traditional notions of privacy are much harder to maintain and can have risks, including legal risks, for teachers.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 2010 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society
Subtitle of host publicationSocial Implications of Emerging Technologies, ISTAS'10
Pages319-326
Number of pages8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 23 Jul 2010
Externally publishedYes
Event2010 IEEE Internationl Symposium on Technology and Society: Social Implications of Emerging Technologies, ISTAS'10 - Wollongong, NSW, Australia
Duration: 7 Jun 20109 Jun 2010

Publication series

NameInternational Symposium on Technology and Society, Proceedings

Conference

Conference2010 IEEE Internationl Symposium on Technology and Society: Social Implications of Emerging Technologies, ISTAS'10
Country/TerritoryAustralia
CityWollongong, NSW
Period7/06/109/06/10

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