A decile 1 school has wifi access and allows all students and staff access to the internet. The school has secure filtering and blocks sites that have adult content. The school has a policy for mobile phones. They are permitted in schools but are not allowed out in class. The school has a BYOD policy, most, but not all students bring phones, some do not bring anything at all. School has adopted the netsafe student responsible usage agreement. The school has included a tick box on enrolment covering the use of images for publicity and use on websites and newsletters.
The NZQA has expressly challenged schools to think of new ways to record evidence of student performances for moderation purposes and it is the intention of the NZQA to transform assessment.
Scenario: Students in a construction class have been challenged to record evidence of their practical work and reflect using a blog. The images of the practical work contain images of fellow students, and their work, taken on their phones. Some students have been posting these images on social media when they return home along with comments in relation to other student performances. One Tongan parent complained when a student denigrated their son, on social media, for a poorly made project, in their native Tongan language. The teacher was not aware until the cultural leader brought it to the attention of the teacher. The parent expressed concern that school work was being shared publically and that images taken, by students, were being used by students for unethical purposes.
In this case, there are number of issues to consider:
- publically available evidence of student work, broadcast world-wide, on a student blogs
- student device usage and the purpose of the images. Who owns the image of a school project for example?
- native language used to denigrate other students
- school imagery linked to gang culture
Blogs
“Teachers nurture the capacities of all learners to think and act with developing independence, and strive to encourage an informed appreciation of the fundamental values of a democratic society.” Code of Ethics for Registered Teachers in New Zealand
The blog is a useful tool to share work and since “The profession is a knowledge-building community. As a member of the profession a teacher should seek and respond to opportunities to share knowledge and discuss concerns.” In this case the teacher can speak with the parent concerned with a view to appease and protect the fundamental nature of sharing student learning. It is great that a parent is taking interest in what students create and share as part of their learning. The teacher could explore the possibility of involving the parent in the process by providing comments on work observed. In this way the teacher is addressing the principle that Social media provides a great opportunity to collaborate and communicate with parents and family. Social media can provide a window into a school/centre so that ideas and information can be shared and exchanged all the time.
Rights to use the images
Students need to be reminded of their obligations under the responsible usage. Once again this is a teaching moment. Students need to be advised that any images they take of work commissioned in school is owned by the school.
"...in relation to photographs, … if the author was commissioned to make the work, the person who commissioned the work may own copyright in the work ( – subject to an agreement to the contrary).” Copyright guidance for schools, TKI.
So the fact that the image is on their phone means that students can be asked, by the teacher, to surrender their phone and images can be deleted.
Language use
The implication here is that the language used to denigrate is Tongan and the teacher doesn’t speak Tongan. So what! Ethically speaking “Teachers are entrusted with the care and education of learners. Teachers who model good social media use will grow learners who apply positive, respectful values in their interactions on social media platforms. These skills will equip them for life beyond school in an increasingly digital world.” An insult is an insult. The language doesn’t matter, since the teacher may not be friends with the student on Facebook and would not be aware of the insult. At this point it is imperative the teacher visits the teaching moment of decisions taken by the protagonist and speaks with the cultural leader and the family of both the protagonist and the injured party, to apply the principles of social justice and the school’s restorative behaviour model.
Gang Culture
Is all gang culture bad? Is MOTUGANG a bad gang? Fullan (2013) speaks of using the team to benefit the outcomes for all members of the team. Once again a teaching moment applies here and by addressing the commitment to ALL learners a discussion around encouraging learners to think critically about significant social issues, may open up the features of this gang. Can all members of the class join? What are the aims? Is it a gang in the sense of the word as explored by Gilbert.
It is safe to assume this is not permissible in this school where illegal gang culture is a real issue. So when school images are linked to gangs the teacher needs to hold the discussion with the student, and ask them to remove, or, at least, update the status comment, to reflect more positively the image and the intentions of the course.
References
(2012). the netsafe kit for schools. Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://www.netsafe.org.nz/the-kit/policy-and-use-agreements.
(2012). Teachers & Social Media | Commitment to Parents ... Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://teachersandsocialmedia.co.nz/guidelines/commitment-parentsguardians-and-familywh%C4%81nau
(2012). Teachers & Social Media | Commitment to the Profession. Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://teachersandsocialmedia.co.nz/guidelines/commitment-profession.
Teachers & Social Media | Commitment to Society. Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://teachersandsocialmedia.co.nz/guidelines/commitment-society.
(2014). Innovation at NZQA » NZQA. Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/about-us/innovation-at-nzqa/.
(2015). NZQA's Digital Assessment Transformation. Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/assets/About-us/Our-role/innovation/DA-Factsheet-May15.pdf.
(2015). What is copyright? / For students / Guidelines for schools ... Retrieved March 5, 2016, from https://www.tki.org.nz/Copyright-in-Schools/Guidelines-for-schools/For-students/What-is-copyright.
(2016). Code of Ethics for Registered Teachers in New Zealand. Retrieved March 5, 2016, from http://educationcouncil.org.nz/required/ethics/codeofethics.stm.
Inside the culture of gangs. (2013). Stuff. Retrieved 5 March 2016, from http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/8464475/Inside-the-culture-of-gangs
Fullan, M. (2013). Stratosphere: Integrating Technology, Pedagogy, and Change Knowledge: Pearson
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