Activity 8: Legal contexts and digital identities

A situation that has occurred, and that we continuously work to prevent recurring, is the publication of students’ surnames online, in keeping with our school’s Policy on Publication of Student Images and Work. (Available for viewing HERE)

Parents sign consent in agreement with the following statement from our Policy:

“We will share, if given permission, no more than a student’s first name, surname initial and/or

photograph via the newsletter, or the wider community via school publications including our website,

class blogs and Facebook page (children will not be tagged by the school on Facebook).  However

students will have their first name and full surname published in the School Yearbook, which is

produced at the end of each school year, if permission is given.”  CBS Consent Form for Publication of Student Images and Work.

As our school’s online presence has increasingly grown over the past few years, there have been incidents wherein a child’s full name is accidentally shared online, usually on a piece of artwork that has been photographed and uploaded to a class blog or facebook page.  As soon as this is (and was) discovered, the teachers quickly work to rectify the situation.

As a school we have put steps in place to ensure best practice when sharing students’ work online.  We encourage the teachers to only use the child’s first name and first initial of surname on any artwork, so that no one has to be concerned that a photo will inadvertently be published. We are also diligent to ensure that no surnames are listed in newsletter announcements or prize-giving recognitions online.

For parents who are hesitant to agree to having their child’s image or work shared online, this reassurance seems to alleviate their concerns.

“Children and their learning is the focus of Cockle Bay School”  As a school we work hard to keep our students safe online as well as in the classroom and playground.  Protecting our students’ identity is paramount as the world becomes a smaller place through digital technologies.