Activity Five: Legal and ethical contexts in my digital practice

Activity Five: Legal and ethical contexts in my digital practice

With the constant use of smart-phones, many students are armed with these pocket rockets and use these devices for a myriad of uses. One particular use that is popular with students is videoing. It seems this readily available device gives rise to becoming a lethal weapon when used for purposes other than what may have been requested by the teacher.

I feel concerned that too often I hear reported cases of students videoing disputes between other students and using this as evidence to the detriment of those videoed. A worse-case scenario; students sharing these videos on Facebook. This is an ethical dilemma that I feel is on shaky ground and needs specific attention.

I am acutely conscious of the risks involved when using social media and smart phones appear in my view, to be a given digital device carried by most students as a communication tool for a myriad of uses.

The use of such devices include working in a collaborative space sharing information. Despite the given instructions of determining clear guidelines in the use of such devices and ensuring students are aware they are to be used as a learning device with a particular sense of purpose and audience, I fear this can easily be overlooked as a minority of students test the boundaries and use their devices for other purposes other than those stated.

A useful guide given by Nias(1999) identifies six aspects which I consider noteworthy; affectivity, responsibility of learners, responsibility of relationships in the school, self-sacrifice, over conscientiousness and identity. These play a critical framework for ethical practice.

Clearly, because students depend on more than just themselves to navigate through their lives and their education, Levinas, (1979) espouses we are therefore continuously in an ethical relationship with the “other”.

Unless clear boundaries with clear consequences on the use of digital devices such as smart phones are put into place, I feel we compromise our position as classroom practitioners.

Our school policy requires students to be respectful of other students and videoing is not allowed without specific permission. Students are made to understand the public and private boundaries of the use of digital devices and they are also made aware of the fact that traceability of who and what happened is also readily available.

I worry that students can so easily be persuaded and influenced into making the wrong choices when using digital devices, in particular smart phones. Therefore we need to be vigilant in our stance on ensuring stringent policies around the use of technology in forms.

References:

Levinas, E. (1979). Totality and infinity : an essay on exteriority> Dordrecc=ht: Kluwer Academic Publishers.

Nias, J. (1999). Primary teaching as a culture of care,. In J. Prosser (Ed.), School culture (pp. 66-81). London: Paul Chapman.