Editorial, Issue 5 – Volume CVI

Monitoring Social Media in School, and Leaving Students Be Outside

In the weeks after presidential candidate Donald Trump was elected president, social media has become an outlet for the expression of feelings. Every time Facebook we open Facebook, it seems there are dozens of new posts, shared articles, and reactions to the results and now aftermath of the 2016 election.

Whether people want to recognize it or not, sitting behind a computer screen and typing out a rant is much easier than facing a person or a crowd and verbally debating it. Whether or not you identify as a Democrat, Republican, or anything else or in between, Donald Trump is becoming our President-elect was a bit of a shock. Naturally, social media has become a place where anyone, no matter their political affiliation, can express how they feel.

With this easy ability to share beliefs and opinions on social media, there emerges a fine line between something that comes across as offensive and something that feels thoughtful. Of course, this line depends the reader reading the post.

Outside the school, students have the ability to post their beliefs and opinions on any matter without limits. No matter how hard one tries, there’s always the possibility of offending or harming someone reading a post or looking at a photo. What takes place in the world of social media, whether inside or outside of Parker, affects students in the school.

Some argue that whatever students at Parker decide to do with their social media accounts, somehow it all trickles back to the reputation of the school. And while that may be true to an extent, we believe that students have the right to post what they wish outside of school. It’s up to other students viewing posts and photos to keep their friends and peers aware of their social media presence– whether positive or negative.

What the school absolutely has the right to control are the reactions and photos posted through the school’s servers. No matter if it’s simply using the Wifi, sending something on school email accounts, or even a text that is sent during a break, the school has the right to monitor what students are doing.

In school, the administration, staff, and every faculty member in the building is there to make sure that every student is receiving an education in a safe and respectful matter. If social media is interfering with that goal, then the school can, and should, become involved in the situation.

Everything that occurs outside of school is in the domain of the students’ and their parents’ decisions. In regards to social media, students have the right to say and post whatever they want.

While of course the school should be notified if students are being harmful or dangerous in any ways, the administration should not have the right to punish students for their choices on social media made outside of school. The school can meet with students to discuss their choices, but should not have the ability to punish for what did not actually take place in the school.

While the school is responsible for a student in school, the should should not have the power to control or punish students once they leave the building each afternoon.

Instead, the school should take the approach of meeting with students and planning more appropriate behavior in the future. In such a scenario students will trust the school is not encroaching on their lives outside of the building. But they will also understand that their behavior and decisions affect their lives– and that the school cares.

If a student repeatedly posts something that uses offensive or derogatory language within the school, then it is Parker’s responsibility to punish and put an end to that behavior. Because this matter occurs within the school, the administration must ensure that other students are not impacted negatively by the posts.

Of course, more than anything, it is up to the school to make sure every individual student feels welcome and comfortable walking through the doors each day. Offensive or inappropriate posts on social media could very well interfere with that.

The school needs to make sure that whether something occurs inside or outside of school, that every student involved can move forward feeling comfortable within the school. Even if something is posted outside the building, the school’s job is to make sure that the repercussions do not harm the students involved.

Parker should hope all that is taught within the classrooms and hallways of the school, is carried off with students when they leave the building. Outside of the school, it’s up to each individual student how the student wishes to apply what was learned. We all spend great deals of time at Parker following the rules and listening to teachers. Outside of school, the school should guide and not punish.