Suspended Teacher in Facebook Incident Ignites Debate: Should Online Privacy for Educators Exist?

According to the attorney for a Charlotte, North Carolina teacher suspended for a comment made on her Facebook page, the postings were intended to be read only by friends to whom she granted access. In an article published Friday by The Charlotte Observer, attorney John Gresham is quoted as saying, "Facebook pages are only meant to be viewed by people permitted to see them." He questioned how the private postings became public and whether "it was appropriate for a reporter to air private postings."

The suspension occurred after a Charlotte television news station did a search on the social networking site for people who identified themselves as staff members of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

The unidentified teacher, who teaches at Thomasboro Elementary School, which has 94 percent of its students in the free lunch program, wrote in her Facebook page, "I am teaching in the most ghetto school in Charlotte."

Four other teachers in the district are also being disciplined for statements and photos posted to their Facebook pages.

The incident has generated a discussion among teachers, parents, administrators, and privacy advocates regarding free speech for teachers, what district policy should be allowed to mandate about teachers' involvements in social networking sits, and the definition of what's really private in online settings.

Among comments made to The Charlotte Observer article, several posters suggested that firing was too harsh a punishment for the Thomasboro teacher.

"The teacher probably didn't understand the privacy settings on her Facebook account. Information you post can be either publicly viewable or something that is just seen by your friends. She probably thought what she was posting was private, but left the default settings on to let everyone see your profile," commented BluNews. "A lot of people unknowingly do this. That said, the teacher messed up and certainly diminished her ability to teach her kids. I'm not sure if firing her is the right thing to do, but she should be disciplined. Also, I doubt this is the last time we'll hear about something like this. School systems should set policy on issues like this and warn teachers that negative postings about their jobs could lead to disciplinary actions."

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • open laptop displaying an AI head graphic, with glowing icons of a padlock, graduation cap and paper, and a secure database floating beside it

    Survey: AI Optimism Is Rising, but Cheating and Privacy Concerns Persist

    Artificial intelligence is evolving rapidly — both in how it's used and how it's perceived in K-12 education. As a result, schools and districts are under increasing pressure to adapt and respond to the changes AI is driving.

  • Rebind platform

    Grant Program to Give Free Access to AI-Powered Reading Platform

    E-reading publishing company Rebind has announced a new "Classics in the Classroom" grant program for United States high school and college educators, providing free access to the company's AI-powered reading platform for the Fall 2025 term.

  • horizontal stack of U.S. dollar bills breaking in half

    ED Abruptly Cancels ESSER Funding Extensions

    The Department of Education has moved to close the door on COVID relief funding for schools, declaring that "extending deadlines for COVID-related grants, which are in fact taxpayer funds, years after the COVID pandemic ended is not consistent with the Department’s priorities and thus not a worthwhile exercise of its discretion."

  • split-screen digital illustration of two AI-influenced classrooms

    What AI Gets Right and How It Will Be Used in the Year Ahead

    AI has tremendous potential to do good in education while honoring and upholding the essential role of teachers. However, its success will depend on how we choose to use it.