Federal judge upholds student's rights to bash teacher on Facebook

[barrons]

<p>Heh, everyone loved the bathroom stall postings. Poetry, dating advice, teacher reviews—just like Facebook. And you could unfriend people too. Viciously.</p>

[blankmind]

<p>So does the teacher have the free speech right to post something like “Katherine Evans is the worst student I’ve ever taught”?</p>

[momofthreeboys]

<p>^^sure…</p>

[SlitheyTove]

<p>

I see a problem stemming from what appears to be Constitutional protection for the “mean girl” facebook pages and websites that target and harass fellow students and can create a terrible social environment in schools. I really hope I’m missing something here, but it sounds as if the vaguer the slams, the harder it will be to establish libel – not to mention most parents will not have the resources to take action. For example, “Tara is a slutty girl whose clothes are heinous. Did you see what she was wearing on Tuesday? O.M.G., why doesn’t someone stop her from leaving the house like that? And everything she says in history is so stuck up, bla bla bla.” There, no libel, but under this court’s decision, how can a public school shut it down?

</p>

<p>The Beverly Hills school district ran right into this problem:</p>

<p>[For</a> students, a right to be mean online? - Los Angeles Times](<a href=“http://articles.latimes.com/2009/dec/13/local/la-me-youtube-schools13-2009dec13]For”>For students, a right to be mean online?)</p>

<p>It’s an odd situation that “mean girl” speech can be banned at schools as bullying, but can be allowed online as free speech.</p>

[mimimomx3]

<p>

So does the teacher have the free speech right to post something like “Katherine Evans is the worst student I’ve ever taught”?

</p>

<p>Considering many people consider that a teacher drinking a beer in public is wrong, the teacher would probably be fired. :(</p>

[Mopinionated]

<p>

So does the teacher have the free speech right to post something like “Katherine Evans is the worst student I’ve ever taught”?

No, because of confidentiality. But we can be reasonably honest when writing letters of recommendation.</p>

[toblin]

<p>School administrators, teachers and school boards have gotten too use to employing abusive, high handed policies and actions under the “zero tolerance” doctrine, (more honestly refereed to as “zero common sense doctrine”. Public employees should not be protected by the government when they violate the law and harm people? They should be held personally accountable and financially liable, not the taxpayers.</p>

[blankmind]

<p>Why bother with all that Toblin? If someone bugs you, just make a facebook page and tell the world they are the worst person evah. That will solve all your problems, and make the world a better place.</p>