Your and Your Child's Teacher on Facebook

Teachers on Facebook has generated quite a bit of discussion over the past few weeks here in North Carolina. At least one teacher has been fired and several others suspended for posting comments and pictures unbecoming of an Educator.

I asked this question before. What difference does it make what a teacher does in his or her spare time as long as it isn't directly affecting his/her job? Now when a teacher posted a comment on her Facebook page that she hated her students--that was, in my opinion, just cause for her dismissal.

But what about those teachers out there who are looking for a love connection. If you're a single parent and the teacher just happens to teach your child--do you see any harm in "hooking up"?

I posed this question to my husband and his answer surprised me. He said he saw nothing wrong with it. He said "parents and teachers need love too."

What do you say?

Your Teacher Hates Your Child

As a baby boomer parent, I am disturbed to read more and more stories about teachers and students connecting on social networking sites for purposes other than school work. But what is equally as troubling is the fact that some teachers are using their web pages to say derogatory things about the kids they teach. Recently, a high-school special-education teacher was suspended for using a Facebook “mood box” to post “I'm feeling p----- because I hate my students!”

In another NC case, the Superintendent has recommended firing a Thomasboro Elementary teacher whose page said she was “teaching in the most ghetto school in Charlotte” and described her students as “chitlins.” Her lawyer said his client intended no offense to her students and was simply telling the truth about resegregated schools in CMS.

Some teachers say what they do on their own time is their business and as long as it doesn’t affect the way they teach, it shouldn’t matter. Is this a generational thing?

What do you say?

Your Children, Their Teachers and Social Networking

Should your children be allowed to interact with their teachers through social networking web sites such as Facebook and MySpace?

A new policy is being considered by the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education in North Carolina on Tuesday, Dec. 2. This policy strongly recommends that school-system employees not communicate with students through such sites.

The policy also strongly recommends that employees not list students as "friends" on their personal pages unless the student is a relative and warns that any communication between employees and students should be appropriate.

Some teachers say they see social networking as helpful for creating connections with struggling students who might be afraid to speak up in class or in person.

So what do you think? Is there harm in students connecting with their teachers online? Should there be guildelines?

When a Mother's Love Goes Too Far

What mom hasn't gone above and beyond for her child at some point? If the truth be told, some of us could be accused of doing too much for our children. But just like with everything else, you must draw the line when it comes to protecting or standing up for them.

What kind of love drove 49-year-old Lori Drew to pose as a 16-year-old boy on MySpace to harass a 13-year-old girl who had a falling out with her daughter? What message was this woman sending by conspiring with two others in creating and maintaining a MySpace profile for a non-existent 16-year-old boy named "Josh Evans" in the summer of 2006. This baby boomer "ought to know better" mother used the account to flirt with and befriend 13-year-old Megan Meier, who later committed suicide after being told by Drew/Josh told Meier the world would be a better place without her.

Sadly, there is no law on the books that can charge her with anything more than computer hacking for allegedly violating MySpace's terms of service with the intent of inflicting emotional distress.

So what do you think? Is Drew a sicko mom who is guilty of causing this young girl's death or is she just a mother whose over-protective nature got out of control? And how would you go about protecting your child from the likes of a Lori Drew or any other cyberspace bully?

Meanwhile, Drews guilt or innocence will be determined by a jury in a trial that began today.

The New First Grandma is Going to the White House

There's a report out on the Politico website that the White House might be getting its first "First Grandma."

According to the article, 71-year-old Marian Anderson, mother of First lady Michelle Obama and mother-in-law of President-Elect Barack Obama, will be moving to the Nation's Capital to offer some much needed assistance to the family.

Throughout the past two years, it was Grandma Marian who made sure the Obamas' daughters, Malia and Sasha, were well taken care of while mom and dad were on the campaign trail. She was quoted in the Boston Globe saying, “If somebody's going to be with these kids other than their parents, it better be me."

The First Grandma is just doing what any grandmother who wants the best for her family would do. I applaud Marian "Grandma Diva" Anderson for playing such an important role in her grandchildren's lives.

Certainly she doesn't need any tips from me--but hopefully Michelle will let her read the book I gave her, Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age, so she can have a laugh or two during the "trying" times.

One thing for sure, when my grandson becomes President--I'll be right there with him. But I'll be serving in a different role. I think I'll be his Chief of Staff.

Take an Aids Test for College Extra Credit

College sure has changed a lot since I went more than 30 years ago. I recall earning extra credit in my political science class by going to see the movie Casa Blanca and then writing an analysis of the movie as it related to a topic given to the class by the instructor.

Well, it seems that in my college daughter’s Health Studies class the students have been given the opportunity to earn extra credit by going to their Student Health Services Center and taking an aids test. God forbid that some of those young people discover they have the deadly disease. But it doesn’t matter because they will still get extra credit.

So what has college come to when students are being coaxed into taking an aids test? And why would a health class be MANDATORY for all incoming freshmen?

What’s next? When she takes Economics will she have to come up with a bailout plan for Wall Street?

Change My Grandson Can Believe In

When I was growing up, my parents always told me I could be whatever I wanted. I always believed that inspite of living in a nation where the color of your skin plays more of a factor in your success than your knowledge and education.

I have passed on that same message to my daughter who, in spite of being a teenage mom, is striving to beat the odds by pursuing her college education in order to live out her goals and aspirations.

As a 51-year-old baby boomer, I never thought I would live to witness the events of November 4, 2008. That is the day the majority of America voted to elect the first African-American man as President of the United States. So now when I tell my grandson, who is as smart as a pistol and already wooing people with his charm and personality, that he can be anything he wants---I will say it with conviction. YES, HE CAN!

Thank you President-Elect Barack Obama and 51 percent of the American voters who gave my grandson the change he can believe in!