Like the fences that made good neighbors inthe Robert Frost poem that was a mainstay in school textbooks,boundaries are important.

    Whether between parent-child, supervisor-employee orteacher-student, boundaries establish clearly defined lines thatshould not be crossed.

    That fact undergirds the reasoning behind a new MississippiDepartment of Education Code of Ethics policy that was announcedjust as school started again this fall. The new policy is aimed atprohibiting interaction between teachers and students via socialmedia outlets – such as Facebook and Twitter – and other privatecommunication methods.

    At least in the local school districts, the ethics rule appears tobe little more than a formalization of a policy that has alreadybeen in place. School officials said teachers “friending” studentshas been frowned upon and coaches sending text messages toindividual players has also been considered a little murky.

    Some parents may find nothing wrong with allowing their sons ordaughters to have a Facebook page and being friends with a teacher.They likely believe that their children will behave responsiblyenough and see only educational benefits of a Facebook friendshipwith a teacher.

    In many cases, that may be true. But administrators and educatorsmust always be on guard against the exception to any rule.

    The new ethics standard attempts to put in black and white whatsome may consider a “gray area.”

    Yes, there would seem to be many positives if teachers and studentsare allowed to be friends via social networks. Conceivably, therecould be better communication, the student’s grades may improve andthe school district as a whole might advance in academicstandings.

    However, there also exists the possibility for inappropriatecontact between teacher and student – the kind of contact thatleaves the teacher in legal jeopardy and the student emotionallyscarred.

    Of course, the chances of that kind of interaction exist betweenany adult and child in a social network setting. Facebook itselfrecognizes this fact in their usage policy and attempts to guardagainst it.

    Although some manage to get around it, one of Facebook’s terms ofusage prohibits anyone under age 13 from signing up for the site.But there is no real way to enforce that rule.

    Despite stories to the contrary, many people – particularly some ofus in the South – want to believe that any relationship between ateacher and a student serves as a positive example of educationworking to bolster learning and achievement.

    The difference in the ages of those in the relationship, though, istoo great, and the adults must take responsibility for setting andmaintaining appropriate boundaries.

    While perhaps an unfortunate necessity due to modern times, thestate Department of Education ethics policy should serve as anincentive, as well as an excuse, to help educators maintain theproper distance between themselves and students.