Fair? Unfair? Legal? Illegal?

[funkyjunky]

Ok.. today we had a back to school assembly and we basically went over the rules again for our school. In the middle of this, our VP said that "E-Bullying" was a concern of his(even though it doesn't really go on) and that he was going to check through every single kids' myspace(at least 9th grade[and our school is only about 600]) and report pretty much everything to the parents. (Vulgarity, people drinking, photos, anything). Do you guys think that this is right or better yet, legal?

P.S. He said that he had a webmaster so he can see even private profiles.

[steelcurtain]

I say perfectly legal.

[StevoJD]

:blink: That's not right at all. No one has the right to invade your privacy, especially your VP. Schools shouldn't care about anything that happens outside of school.

[funkyjunky]

How though? He's getting us in trouble(in some cases with the law) that is done outside of school. And it's an invasion of privacy if you have your profile set to private.

EDIT: I agree. Stevo.

[Fred Derf Veteran]

E-Bullying is something that typically happens to fellow students. Even if it happens on private property, the school has some responsibility to end the bullying.

[StevoJD]

I still think e-bullying should just be reported by the victim just like any other case of bullying, the school is taking it to the extreme here. It's still a massive invasion of privacy. If my school did this I'd set my profile pic as a giant middle finger with the VP's name at the bottom. :laugh:

[funkyjunky]

E-Bullying is something that typically happens to fellow students. Even if it happens on private property, the school has some responsibility to end the bullying.

They have nothing. It's like getting in a fight with a fellow student at a mall 20 miles from school and being suspended for it. It doesn't work.

EDIT: Yeah Stevo, we already have a bulletin going around telling him to eff off. lol and I'ma put his name in big letters and is gay next to it. haha

[LiqHead]

I'd love to see try to access a private account- what an idiot.

[Owen W Veteran]

They have nothing. It's like getting in a fight with a fellow student at a mall 20 miles from school and being suspended for it. It doesn't work.

EDIT: Yeah Stevo, we already have a bulletin going around telling him to eff off. lol and I'ma put his name in big letters and is gay next to it. haha

Haha...except I've actually seen that happen.

[funkyjunky]

Webmaster privileges...

[Brandon]

Not legal.

He could get sued for that.

The only thing they could do is investigate if there was photos of a party with alcohol, and thats with relations to sports. You can't get fined for something that happened in the past

[gigapixels Veteran]

P.S. He said that he had a webmaster so he can see even private profiles.

:laugh: Bunch of garbage right there. MySpace has patched any holes that allowed people to see private profiles and pictures, as I haven't seen anything about any vulnerabilities in ages. If you really want to be secure, just make sure your pictures are set to private as well as your profile.

However, this is completely fair and legal. If it's on the web, it's available for all to see, whether it be available intentionally or unintentionally. You put it up there, you can't completely expect it to be safe, even if you're told it will be. If you don't want somebody finding out things you've done, don't post it anywhere online. It's that simple.

[psybapunk]

Anything that's on myspace is public domain, son. Unless it's set to private.

[Fred Derf Veteran]

Pupils punished over Facebook comments

Five Grade 8ers bumped from end-of-year trip after ridiculing their teachers

Apr 30, 2007 04:30 AM

THERESA BOYLE

STAFF REPORTER

At least five Grade 8 students from a Thornhill school have been banned from an end-of-the-year trip to Montreal after disparaging remarks about teachers appeared on the Internet.

"We were just joking around. Nothing we said was meant to cause others harm," Bram Koch, a 14-year-old student from Willowbrook Public School, said last week.

Last Dec. 11, Bram wrote a message to friends on the popular website Facebook.com, a social networking service, joking that he thought he'd seen a teacher masturbating.

"I could've sworn I saw ... sitting in the back of the room rubbing herself," the message said, naming a female science instructor.

Bram said there were up to 30 students conversing on the Facebook site. Some were on the site anonymously.

Other derogatory remarks were made about teachers, including one about a phys-ed teacher who "gives masturbating tips," he said.

Letters about "misuse of the Internet" were last week sent to parents of about 20 students at Willowbrook by principal Kelly Fassel. Parents were asked to meet with her about their children's conduct and that's where at least five of the students found out they were no longer welcome on next month's two-day trip to Montreal.

Bram said he had no idea that anyone else could read the remarks: "I didn't think it would be so public. I was just writing it to my friends. I didn't expect that the teachers would get involved and that they would be reading this."

Fassel did not return a call from the Star.

The Internet musings of students is a growing problem for school administrators.

Just last month, five students at Birchmount Park Collegiate in Scarborough were suspended for writing inappropriate remarks about staff at the school on Facebook. A subsequent protest over the suspensions led to the arrests of four others at the school when police were allegedly pelted with objects.

In February, 19 students from Robert F. Hall Catholic Secondary School in Caledon East were suspended after complaining about school policies on Facebook.

Robert Dunn, a superintendent with the York Region District School Board, said he could not discuss individual students, but noted that any violation of Willowbrook's safe schools policy is subject to discipline.

Students are made aware of the policy at the beginning of the school year, when they are asked to take it home, read it, sign it and have their parents do the same, he said.

A specific section of the policy deals with Internet use and reads: "Misconduct carried out over the Internet may be subject to school discipline, whether carried out at home, at a school or elsewhere."

Bram has written a letter of apology to the science teacher and his homeroom teacher, even posting it on the Internet.

His father, David Koch, said students that age aren't always aware that their conversations on the Internet are public. "These kids are not aware of what they're doing. They don't grasp the concept," he said.

"I don't think he sees himself in the middle of Yonge and Bloor, announcing to the world what's being said," Koch added.

Koch said the school has not done enough to educate students about Internet usage.

"They have not provided any protocol for the Internet, they have not provided any etiquette for the Internet," he said.

But Dunn said the school held a forum about cyber bullying this spring and it even included a play about Facebook.

"The thing about Facebook, of course, is that it becomes public space so it's just like taking out a billboard at Yonge and Steeles, except it's larger than that because everyone in the world gets to look at it," he said.

Koch acknowledged that what Bram wrote was "stupid," but said the school has overstepped its bounds by disciplining his child for an act carried out in his own home.

"He was not on school property, he was not using school equipment, it was not during school time," he said.

"The moment you've entered my house, my living room, you're taking over my role," he charged.

Meantime, Bram is upset about being excluded from the trip. "We've been waiting for it from the beginning of the year.

"Everyone has been psyched about it. Abruptly we've been kicked off," he said, noting the Grade 8 trip is a big deal because it's a social celebration that caps their elementary school years.

He said he'd prefer if the school suspended him rather than banning him from the trip.

"(The trip) is a lot bigger and I don't think they should have done that," he said.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime trip with your friends," he added.

http://www.thestar.com/article/208693

[Budious]

I think it's fair to observe public profiles of students by school administrators. The students need to understand the real world complications involved with putting their personal life into a public domain, and that as potential job seekers, or college admissions may also anonymously view this information and form an opinion of them without their knowledge.

[Max Veteran]

I thought all myspace profiles for under-16's were set to private anyway?

[LiqHead]

Why bother to have a MS to begin with?

[Reacon]

That's jsut about as bad as having everyone know your password... If you choose to have an online profile -private- then it SHOULD BE PRIVATE. This goes against pretty much every e-morale code, but people can be ignorant about the internet that way. Luckily I do not keep a manifestation of all of my wrong-doings on the internet. They sorta brought it upon themselves in a way, but having someone like that look at their Myspace is basically like having them listen in on every single word you say to some people. Some things are not meant to be discovered, this could cause MAJOR emotional trauma and social problems if, say a person says something insulting about someone and their parents contact the other's parents and so on until everyone knows. When profiles are private, they're meant to be hidden. It's like having a secret, except everyone can learn it.

In essence, your f*cking principal is a hypocrite. He's doing exactly what he wants to prevent.

Lol, every single profile I have is different, to some people I'm 17 (I can act like it if I want) and to you guys I'm 14 which I assure you that I am indeed 14... Google the name reconunit415, add all of my profiles together, find out whats right and whats wrong, and you still do not have a complete profile. Internet anonymity is everything.

[funkyjunky]

I agree with Recon. haha

To all you saying it's perfectly fair and legal. How is it. If profiles are private...

And I haven't done anything illegal or stuff like that, but I do swear and will get in trouble for it. How does that work. It's none of his business.

And YES, my parents DO have a myspace.

[WooSH]

Yeah apparently a lot of schools are doing this, and i dont know how it is able to slide by so easily.

Back in middle school, some student forgot to log off his myspace in a classrom, the teacher went on, and viewed all of his friends (other classmates, whose profiles were set to private) he then proceeded to print out the pages with offensive pictures (posing nude, gang signs, alcohol) and contacted the parents of these students and told them what they were doing.

Second story happened last year, where a student made a seperate Facebook account, and went on to make a Facebook group against a particular student. He did this in his own time, from the comfort of his own home. He was called in and threatened with suspension stating "yeah, we scanned the ip address and it pointed back to your house. there is no denying it, we need you to take it down" Facebook, does not give out these type of information just easily, and even more so in 48 hours.

I understand that it is wrong, but for the SCHOOL to step in to this particular area is wrong. Should an IRS officer be able to stop you on the street and ticket you for speeding? It doesnt make speeding right, but it is a different branch of the government and they should have no say in that department.

[ninjamunky]

:blink: That's not right at all. No one has the right to invade your privacy, especially your VP. Schools shouldn't care about anything that happens outside of school.

I agree, but would like to add that the only time they should be involved/concerned is if something spills into the school environment/setting.

[funkyjunky]

Yeah apparently a lot of schools are doing this, and i dont know how it is able to slide by so easily.

Back in middle school, some student forgot to log off his myspace in a classrom, the teacher went on, and viewed all of his friends (other classmates, whose profiles were set to private) he then proceeded to print out the pages with offensive pictures (posing nude, gang signs, alcohol) and contacted the parents of these students and told them what they were doing.

Second story happened last year, where a student made a seperate Facebook account, and went on to make a Facebook group against a particular student. He did this in his own time, from the comfort of his own home. He was called in and threatened with suspension stating "yeah, we scanned the ip address and it pointed back to your house. there is no denying it, we need you to take it down" Facebook, does not give out these type of information just easily, and even more so in 48 hours.

I understand that it is wrong, but for the SCHOOL to step in to this particular area is wrong. Should an IRS officer be able to stop you on the street and ticket you for speeding? It doesnt make speeding right, but it is a different branch of the government and they should have no say in that department.

The one in bold: That makes sense. He was at school and did it. The other one is completely wrong and illegal. IP Scanning. Unless you work for the FBI, that's illegal.

At Ninja: Exactly. Nothings happened yet with it...

[LiqHead]

Because he was in school gave the teacher the right to log into his account and change it? bull****! A hacker would go down if he was caught.

[funkyjunky]

No. He didn't log out. It's still bullsh*t. But he did it at school. It's different.

[Reacon]

As I say, dumbasses like that bring it upon themselves, but even if you're very careful, to have a teacher go through everything despite is just BS.