Clarence asks an interesting question in regards to getting permission for technological tools:
Do we ask the permission of parents before we give their kids pencils
and paper and they give us their thoughts on other topics?If we are
arguing that these tools are basic, and the use of them should be
evenly distributed throughout society, should people be able to opt out
of their use? Is that not like opting out of math class?
I think he’s right. What do you think?
I think that the tool analogy breaks down here. If we think of it as an environment, we might say that if we get permission for field trips, we should do the same with the internet.
We do ask for permission if what students create with pencil and paper are to go before a wider audience (local newspaper, art show, whatever).
In my class, all final versions of formal writing must be word processed. There is no opting out of the tool (barring, naturally, an IEP-level concern).
However, if what they write is to be public in nature (blog, wiki, website, or more traditional avenue of publication), then I do seek parent permission, not for the use of the tool but for the publication.
You can ask for permission; however, the parents no longer have the power to grant it. My daughter attends a private school and plays on the volleyball team, whose coach just held his beginning-of- the-season meeting with parents and players. One of the new rules this year is that the coach “reserves the right” (his words) to inspect players’ MySpace sites. Players who have inappropriate content on MySpace may be subject to sanctions. As a result, the players went home and set their MySpace profiles to private.
What do you consider the tool? The computer? The Internet? The software? Our school policy puts computers under the “equipment and materials” clause in terms of damage to property. Word processing, encyclopedias, and other software are used by students freely, as they are the true tools being talked about. I have an acceptable use policy for students to use the Internet. There are still parents out there that don’t want their children exposed to that technology for whatever reason. I liken it to permission slips for field trips and controversial movies/books/topics that usually also require parent permission. With the vast resources (positive and negative) out there and students usually two steps ahead of us, it is hard to police something sufficiently for those parents that would just prefer to have that control.
The approach should be one of informing parents of the educational benefits associated the technology rather than seeking permission from the parents. As the teacher, you are the education professional – a point that is often forgotten by parents, administrators, and even teachers themselves.
Unfortunately in this litigious world we are required to cover our behinds. Just as doctors require informed consent, we should not be put off by the opportunity to discuss our teaching techniques with our parents. If done well, this discussion will result in an ally in your quest to teach.
Ah, the all-important AUP. How could we live without it?
The guy who realized that every student already had a MySpace site and scared them into setting them private had a fabulous idea.
Safety is always about numbers. I would think that most computer professionals have already gone to read Danah Boyd ( http://www.danah.org )on the MySpace controversey. I’m so glad I don’t have middle school students!
Maybe when this NCLB stuff is all over we will have a more risk management oriented business. Decoded, that means we won’t be needing 30,000 teachers in our district making sure 300,000 students and 600,000 parents fill out a form that everybody understands already in order to give a school board lawyer a way to disclaim responbibility once every two years.
Has everybody seen “Me You and Everyone We Know”? It’s apt even though the child is something of a prodigy.