ABC Week 10: Student Rights in the Digital Age

I happened to read a blog this week about a student rights conference that I thought was interesting (http://bit.ly/b3yzHq).  Discussions about student rights in school have addressed various issues throughout the decades.  From wearing certain colors or clothing items to freedom of speech, student rights have been argued by individual school districts, states, and sometimes in courts.  Now, in the digital age, we have arguments about cell phones and the internet.  Can school officials search a student’s cell phone?  Can they punish a student for comments made on the internet?  I think the same rules as they have for lockers apply to cell phones.  If there is reasonable suspicion of say cyber bullying and administrators believe that evidence can be found on the phone then they have a right to search it.  The second question starts to get into freedom of speech rights and it really depends on when and where they make the comments as well as whether it disrupts the operation of the school.  If students make negative comments about the school staff or teachers online when they aren’t in school and it doesn’t affect school operation, then it’s the parents’ responsibility to deal with it.  However, if they’re making these comments during school then I’d say the school has jurisdiction.  It still depends on whether those comments are disruptive.  If a student makes a comment about a teacher, other students see it, and they talk about that all day rather than focusing on their work, then that is disrupting the school environment and hindering learning.  Students have a right to their opinions, but they still need to be taught how to express those opinions in an acceptable manner and venue.  Honestly, my students can hate me if they want as long as they’re learning.  I would prefer to have them like me, but the most important thing is whether they’re learning.