In Norton, Teachers And Students Can’t Be 'Friends'

Anyone who participates in online social networks has been navigating some potentially hazardous and uncharted territory in recent years, and have had to ask themselves a lot of questions. Do I want to be Facebook friends with my mother-in-law? When I post on Twitter, am I representing myself or my workplace?

Questions like that are tricky enough when you're dealing with family and co-workers. They're doubly tricky when you involve children. Such is the case in the small Massachusetts town of Norton, where school administrators have just adopted a first-in-the-state policy that forbids teachers from becoming Facebook friends with their students. Now, other school districts, including Foxborough, are looking at similar policies.

We speak with WBUR's Hubbub blogger Andrew Phelps about the online reaction.

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