A number of schools have asked us recently if we have a Social Media policy.
Well, we nearly have but we want to know what exactly you want it to cover. What are the issues around social media? What social media are we talking about? Twitter? Facebook? Online groups and forums? Wikipedia? Blogs?
We could acknowledge the widespread use of social media and the benefits of using it, ie, to communicate and connect with other communities and individuals, and to share resources, links, insights, etc. You know, like this blog …
Are we also talking about the school’s own blogs and Facebook, Twitter, and other accounts?
Here at SchoolDocs we like social media and see that it’s being used more and more and in a variety of contexts. We touch on it in our Cybersafety policy but maybe we need specific social media guidelines around:
· acceptable use and unacceptable use
o unsafe use, eg, giving out personal information
o copyright and privacy issues around sharing material and sharing photos of people
o harassment or embarassment issues
o representing the school, disclaimers, personal opinions, etc
o parents connecting with the school’s social media
o issues about effective use of time, etc
o damage control.
· setting up and managing the school blogs, Facebook page, and any other social media.
Does that sound like the sort of information you’re requesting? What have we missed out? What has triggered the requests – problems, or a growing awareness that some guidelines? Please comment on this blog – let us know your experiences, concerns, successes, etc.
By the way, SchoolDocs is on Facebook you know. You could be our friend.
