Cybertraps for Educators: Digest #2022-06-13

Frederick Lane -

Some Thoughts and Observations

Newsletter Upgrades. You'll notice in today's newsletter (and past editions) that I have added a floating Table of Contents, which eliminates the need for static links at the top of the page. If anyone has any problems with it, please let me know.

Search. The Ghost publishing platform is excellent but remarkably, the programmers have not yet added a native search capability. Fortunately, there is a large community of programmers developing plug-ins for the site, several of which focus on search. You can now search the contents of The Cybertraps Newsletter for specific terms by clicking on the "Search" option in the menu bar above. For example:

  • Search for references to your state, e.g., Vermont.
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Surveillance Tech Is Having a Moment. Remarkably, the focus of most policy makers and district administrators is on reducing the number of children injured and killed when someone opens fire at a school, rather than making it harder for people to open fire in a school in the first place. If the newly-announced bipartisan gun safety legislation makes it through Congress, little will be done to prevent access to weapons of mass destruction but billions of dollars will be available for K-12 security measures. And even if the bill does not become law, school administrators will be under enormous pressure to spend precious local resources on increasingly intrusive surveillance technology. Jethro Jones and I discussed some of the implications of surveillance technology in Episode 129 of The Cybertraps Podcast.

Still Too Easy to 'Pass the Trash.' A report prepared for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education of the U.S. Department of Education (link below) shows that much more work needs to be done to prevent educators who solicit or assault students from finding jobs in new districts. From the Executive Summary:

States vary in the number and types of provisions included in their laws and policies prohibiting aiding and abetting sexual misconduct. For example, some but not all states require prospective employers to contact prior employers for information about an applicant’s certification status. Similarly, some but not all states prohibit employers from engaging in practices that suppress information about incidents or allegations of sexual misconduct. Across the 51 states in the study, the number of provisions included in state hiring and disclosure laws and policies ranged from one in one state to as many as 13 in another.

A Study of Freedom of Artistic Expression in Academic Art Museums and Galleries

Last fall, Dr. Amy Werbel, Professor of the History of Art, State University
of New York - Fashion Institute of Technology, was selected as a 2021-2022 Fellow for the National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement at the University of California. Over the course of the past academic year, Dr. Werbel "used art historical and First Amendment frameworks to analyze art censorship controversies in academic museums and galleries."

She summarized her findings in a report that she hopes "will encourage students, artists, curators, and administrators to think about exhibitions, audiences, and freedom of expression in new ways." A copy of the report can be read and downloaded on the NCFSCE web site.

While Dr. Werbel's report focuses on the display of art in physical spaces at institutions of higher learning, many of the issues she researched, including the political and social pressures faced by art professionals, are relevant to K-12 educators as well. A video of Dr. Werbel discussing her work is embedded below.

Dr. Amy Werbel discussing her research project on artistic expression.

[In the interests of full disclosure, I am married to Dr. Werbel and had a front-row seat to the research and writing contained in her report.]

The Cybertraps Podcast: Week of June 6, 2022

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TCP Episode 129 — Social Media Monitoring: Can It Prevent School Shootings?

“The Cybertraps Podcast” is recorded live most Mondays at noon Eastern. You can watch the broadcast of the show on the Cybertraps Facebook page.

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The Cybertraps Podcast is a production of The Center for Cyberethics, a 501(c)(3) independent, non-partisan educational institute dedicated to the study and promotion of cyberethics as a positive social force through research, curricula development, publishing and media, professional training, and public advocacy. Click here to donate.

Interesting C4E Headlines for the Week of June 6, 2022

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Want to reduce the chances that you or your school will show up in a future edition of The Cybertraps Newsletter? Schedule some timely, informative professional development by contacting me at FSLane3@Cybertraps.com

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