The issue of electronic communication, cyberbullying, defamatory websites, and social networking sites has been the topic of numerous ETFO publications over the past few years. In an effort to be proactive and prevent possible difficulties, ETFO has advised members to be extremely cautious when communicating electronically with students as well as parents. The following information is from a PRS Matters bulletin issued by ETFO last spring. For more information about this topic or to read other PRS Matters bulletins (on a wide variety of topics), click on the title of today's post or on the link at the bottom of today's post.The following tips regarding electronic communication are provided for members to guide you in your professional practise:
General
- Always maintain a professional demeanor in all interactions with students, parents, colleagues, and administrators.
- Failure to communicate appropriately puts teaches at risk with the employer, College of Teachers, Children’s Aid Society, and police.
- Do not e-mail students or communicate via instant messaging services.
- Always maintain professional boundaries and avoid communications that could be interpreted as personal.
- It may be inadvisable to use your home/personal computer for contact with parents or students.
Communicating with students
- Do not e-mail students for personal reasons.
- Your messages may be forwarded to a much wider audience – deliberately or unintentionally and they may be manipulated.
- Avoid casual, familiar tone that can erode boundaries.
- Watch your language.
- Do not comment on student-parent or student-student relationships or other colleagues.
- Avoid sharing or receiving personal information which might be construed as violating boundaries or “grooming.
Communicating with parents
- Be aware that your e-mail can be used as evidence of your conduct.
- Your messages may be forwarded to a much wider audience – deliberately or unintentionally.
- Avoid lengthy e-mail exchanges that consume a lot of time. In addition to increasing your workload, protracted exchanges may be prone to misinterpretation.
- Respect confidentiality: obtain permission to use e-mail communications.
Protect Yourself
- Refrain from using a personal computer account for school communication purposes and use caution when using school based computers.
- Do not leave a computer unattended when logged into the school board system.
- Protect username and password against identity theft to prevent unauthorized e-mail under your name or access to school documents.
- Where possible, change your password(s) on a regular basis.
- Respond to complex messages from parents by telephone or face-to-face meeting whenever possible.
- Clear the web browser’s cache memory after every session on a computer.
If you do send messages:
- Save a copy of the original message.
- Use spelling and grammar checks on materials that you plan to e-mail or post on a web site.
- Signatures should include your name, assignment title, and school name.
- Avoid unnecessary attachments and/or forwards.
- Do not write e-mails in capital letters (capitals indicate SHOUTING).
- Never forward a message without permission from the sender first.
- Always maintain professional standards when sending e-mails to students, parents, colleagues (including friends), and administrators on board equipment – treat every e-mail as though it is a written letter.
- Do not engage in casual gossip on chat lines as it is unprofessional.
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