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Lost in "Cyber" Space
by V. Wayne Young, Executive Director |
“MySpace,” “Facebook” and other popular websites bring new legal challenges to administrators and open new venues for student misbehavior.
The 1960’s futuristic TV show Lost in Space included, as one of its characters, a robot that could sense impending threats to the young space traveler featured in the show. The robot would shout, “Danger, Will Robinson! Danger, Will Robinson!,” thus saving its young companion from certain doom.
Unfortunately, we may have reached a point that even the futuristic sci-fi writers of the 60s could not have imagined; a place where every school leader needs his or her own personal Model B-9 Robot, saying, “Danger, school administrator! Danger!” I am speaking of the rapidly growing and complex arena of school law issues related to the use of technology in – and out – of school, particularly involving student use of the Internet.
Educators have always known that the implementation of technology in schools carried additional legal risks and burdens, involving everything from student confidentiality to test security. But the advent of websites such as “MySpace,” “Xanga,” and “Facebook,” has raised a whole new set of concerns. These sites, which are immensely popular with students, allow anonymous postings of all manner of information, including false statements, vulgarity, and defamatory materials.
This new venue for student misbehavior has begun to plague school districts all around the nation. Consider the following:
A student in Pennsylvania was suspended for using his home computer to place a vulgar parody of his principal on MySpace. He filed suit in federal court, claiming the suspension was a violation of his 1st Amendment free speech rights.
An assistant principal in Texas filed suit against two students and their parents, claiming she was defamed when the students used her school picture and biography to create a MySpace page about her that was false and obscene.
A middle school student in California was expelled for “cyber-bullying,” after describing a fellow student on his MySpace page, using vulgar and racist terminology, stating he wanted to “take a shotgun” and “blast her in the head a thousand times.” Twenty other students were suspended for reading the posting.
School administrators are rightfully concerned about the safety and discipline issues raised by these kinds of activities. But there already exists a chorus of critics (including parents) who claim that districts are going too far in monitoring and policing off-campus, non school-time activities by students. And the issue is so new that there is little guidance to be found in statutes or court decisions.
Misuse of technology at school is certainly a legitimate basis for student discipline. But, right now, school administrators are simply left to their best judgment, and seeking sound legal advice, when facing problems brought about by student Internet use that has some connection to school, but is done outside of school buildings and hours.
-11/01/2006
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