School discipline over photos sparks free speech lawsuit

[Kevin J. Galbraith]

I'm interested in your thought on this article concerning a student who was suspended for posting photos of a teacher on his private Facebook site.

Thanks!

[Kevin J. Galbraith]

The article states, 'Peter Jay, a law professor at Washington University, said the case would hinge on whether the district properly articulated its policies regarding use of cameras.'

Are you familiar with your district's policies, as they might pertain to a situation like this?

[Chris Eldred]

Wouldn't it depend on the text of the discipline documents, i.e. referral. If the student is cited for having a cell phone or camera out during class time, causing a disruption, they are good. If they try to cite the student for posting pictures? That's walking a line they don't want to be on. There should be a some case history with case involving blogging, no?

We have a situation with dress code in my school. We have been instructed to cite students for insubordination, not "Dress Code." They are committing insubordination by disregarding the student code of conduct, which contains the dress code.

[Sylvia Maisano]

The teacher felt she couldn't trust the student? This I don't understand. With all the technology that is out there, don't underestimate what is possible. Students take phone pictures all the time. People, in general do. If the pictures are not malicious, harmful or defame any one person's character, then I do not see the problem. I think we need to embrace the technology and find successful ways of teaching kids how to use it.
The fact that they are always one step ahead is something we need to face. We need to educate ourselves more and fine ways to be effective in the use of technology.
I really believe the school over reacted in this situation and that first amendment rights are going to be an ongoing issue as technology continues to grow.

[Ben Rimes]

Is this a violation of First Amendment right? No

Is this a violation of trust between the student and the teacher? Absolutely

Did it disrupt the normal classroom lessons? Doesn't look like it.

There is a certain amount of absurdity with this (and many) lawsuits. The protection of the freedom of speech is a protection of political opinions and self expression. I don't see in any way, shape, or form that a photograph (taken covertly) could possibly be upheld as a freedom of speech, especially since there were no captions posted with the images.

If I found photos of myself, that had obviously been taken without my knowledge, with no clear indication why the student had taken them, I would certainly feel a bit apprehensive. That's not to say I wouldn't expect it; I'm not a luddite, and I understand that as technology and the way we use it constantly evolves, I wouldn't be surprised to see pictures of myself online taken by some student, but I would be very anxious to learn that said student had taken them without my knowledge, and then posted them with no indication of what purpose they were for.

When a student takes a picture of me on a field trip, I can assume they want memories of the trip. When my picture is taken while teaching, I can assume it's for the yearbook. When a student secretly takes a picture, only to post them online without letting me know, I (and most people) might assume that there was some misguided purpose.

Sylvia is right though, the school did over react a bit with a 3 day suspension, but if there is indeed a policy in place about the taking of photos and/or camera phones in school (as Kevin pointed out), then the school could come out the winner.