A Missouri Teacher, Christina Thompson, is suing the state of Missouri over a new law banning teachers from contacting students via the internet. Thompson states that this law would prevent her from talking to her own child over Facebook.
The law, which has been coined the Facebook Law, prohibits teachers from having exclusive communication with a student over a non-work internet site. Students qualify as any persons under the age of 18 who attend or used to attend the school where the teacher works. Seems like a good idea to me, there is no reason a teacher needs to contact a student outside of a “work” environment.
Thanks to Christina now the courts have to waste their time on a technicality that might of been overlooked. I don’t think any person in their reasonable mind would consider talking to your own child via Facebook a violation of this law. Yes, I know that technically she is right. Maybe she is just trying to protect herself from that annoying person at the board who is like the student that reminds others of every school rule even when they don’t apply like ‘no running while at school’ even though they are outside, then I understand. Unfortunately those people tend to stay in the school system.
If the board would just go back and add the exception this lawsuit could be over and then Christina would not have a case, but instead the ACLU has backed her and is representing her. The fact that the ACLU is defending Christina goes to show that this case is ridiculous. Yes the ACLU does some good things but 90% of the time they defend rights on the pure principle that it inhibits our lives in a very minor way, without looking at the entire picture.
This law is created to protect the children from “bad/dumb” teachers who overstep their boundaries. It does not prohibit communication between a teacher and a student it just prohibits private communication. Some teachers forget that they are at work and that their role is to be an educator or a guide in a students life, not a friend. Yes you can be nice and like your student and help them but like a parent has a role to be a parent and not a friend a teacher has a role to be a teacher and not a friend.
Clearly, I completely support this law and I could go on for hours how stupid this lawsuit this but I think you get the point. If the board amends the law so parents can still talk to their children/student via Facebook or any other internet medium then Thomspon needs to drop her case.
The only reason I can even see her filing this suit is to prevent that little snot nosed brat at the board who tries to fire a teacher over talking to their own kid. In that case I fully support Thompson and would like to give that person a knuckle sandwich and five other reasons why the suck.
