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The overview of teachers' unique legal issues covered provocative topics such as how "search and seizure" laws apply to students, emerging threats with cyber-bullying and cyber-stalking -- such as aggressive texting, sexual harassment and hazing -- religious and personal expression, school violence and advice for teachers to sanitize their own personal Web pages.

Technology has out-paced the legal system in issues related to cyberbullying in the schools. When a cyberbullying incident happens at your school, how will you handle it? What board policies will protect you? What is appropriate discipline? What kind of documentation do you need? How will you assure a safe environment for your students? Learn from national experts who have studied court decisions related to cyberbullying of students, teachers and school administrators.

Accessing music online and via mobile phones has never been easier, but it does raise legal, security and ethical issues. This new guide for parents and teachers provides essential advice about how young people can get the best out of downloading and sharing music online and via mobile technology in a safe and legal way, as well as providing tips for discussion.

Bullying Beyond the Schoolyard: Preventing and Responding to Cyberbullying

Co-authors Dr. Sameer Hinduja and Dr. Justin W. Patchin provide a comprehensive guide to identify, prevent and respond to this increasingly serious problem. The book is primarily based on Hinduja and Patchin's original research with thousands of adolescents, many of whom were victims of cyberbullying. In addition to providing numerous practical strategies for educators, parents and other youth-serving adults, the book includes personal stories and case scenarios, an extensive overview of terminology and legal issues, and a clear explanation of the scope and prevalence of online aggression among youth.

A new state law in Kentucky now requires the state Board of Education to develop disciplinary guidelines for bullying. Under the bullying law, the legal definition of harassment would be changed to include student behavior that causes physical harm, intimidation or humiliation for fellow students. The AB 91 law also says bullying can be done and cause harm to a student through the Internet, phone or by mail. It also elevates bullying to a criminal offense - a class B misdemeanor.

What Can Parents Do? Schools should start addressing students, parents and staff about the issues of cyberbullying. Students need to be reminded that what they do in cyberspace is not really anonymous. They need to know their behaviors and words are downloadable, printable and sometimes punishable by law. The courts have given some direction for schools dealing with cyberbullying. "School districts are well within their legal rights to intervene in cyberbullying incidents - even if these incidents were initiated off-campus - if it can be demonstrated that the incident resulted in a substantial disruption of the educational environment"

Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Aggression, Threats, and Distress
This book belongs in every school district! Nancy Willard is Director of the Center for Safe & Responsible Internet Use and a noted expert and speaker on the challenges and legal issues related to technology use in the schools. Her book helps school administrators analyze and intervene in cases involving cyberbullying or cyberthreats. She includes illustrative examples, recommendations for practice, and many practical resources. Available through Amazon.com

Legal Implications for Searching Student Cell Phones. Although this article is written against Michigan law, it does help clarify some of the concepts for what is permissable. Note that searching a student's cell phone or wireless device without parent permission may violate state wiretapping laws.

Confiscating and looking at information on cell phones by school officials is still not clear. This is a very interesting case study for those working with digital citizenship issues at their school.

Fascinating article explaining Michigan take on searching and confiscating cell phones.

It is becoming generally accepted that virtual property has real value and virtual crimes have spawned a whole new class of crime in real life.

Legal Debate Springs Up 18 year old is Put on Sex Offender List for Forwarding Risque Images

CTAP Region IV has designed this collection of Administrator Resources specifically with the needs of school administrators in mind. Administrator Resources cover 6 vital areas:
1. Legal Issues
2. Student Misbehavior in Cyberspace: MySpace, YouTube, Facebook
3. Cybersafety and School Board Policy Statements
4. Cyberbullying Documentation: Incident Reports/Review Process
5. Articles Related to Internet MisUse in the Schools
6. Materials for PTA Presentations

To help educators address this issue in their classrooms, Media Awareness Network has developed a series of four lesson plans, in English and in French, to give students a better understanding of the ethical and legal implications of cyberbullying and to promote positive Internet use.

Our Acceptable Use of the Internet policy next school year will definitely not only address cyberbullying, it will include a clause that states something to the effect, "If cyberbullying outside of school becomes an issue in which a student feels threatened or unsafe in any way at school, the principal has the authority to discipline the cyber bully." It will give the school community the clear message that cyberbullying will not be tolerated and at the very least will give me a little leverage when I need it.

Do school officials have the authority to impose discipline in response to harmful off-campus online speech? Should they? This is a major challenge facing school administrators today. Many state legislatures are now adding statutory provisions requiring schools to incorporate cyberbullying into bullying prevention policies. But this has presented some concerns. For example, in Oregon and Washington, language incorporated into cyberbullying legislation appears to restrict administrators from responding to any off-campus bullying regardless of the harmful impact on campus. Administrators from these two states are advised to check with their legal council. Administrators in other states should understand that the American Civil Liberties Union is trying to use language in the cyberbullying statutes to override federal case law and restrict administrators from doing anything in response to off-campus harmful speech.

This lesson plan demonstrates not only how to align learning goals and outcomes with curriculum standards but also with ISTE NETS for digital citizenship and 21st century learning goals.

Katherine Evans wanted everyone to know: Ms. Phelps was the worst English teacher she'd ever had. So Evans, a Florida high school senior and honors student, posted a Facebook page to publicly criticize the teacher. Two months later, though, Evans was suspended for cyberbullying the teacher with her very precisely named group, "Ms. Sarah Phelps is the worst teacher I've ever had," on the social-networking site.

Limited Liability Companies ("LLCs") are great vehicles for individuals and groups of people who are interested in protecting their personal assets from business liabilities while keeping their corporate tax return preparations fairly simple. Single Member LLCs ("SMLLCs") - LLCs containing only one individual - are fairly new in the world of business entities. Their use has proven to be quite popular, but their existence has also posed some fundamental legal questions.

Last year, the Court ducked an opportunity to determine in Morse v. Frederick whether public schools have authority to restrict student speech that occurs off of school grounds. The Court's refusal to address this issue was unfortunate. For several decades lower courts have struggled to determine when, if ever, public schools should have the power to restrict student expression that does not occur on school grounds during school hours. In the last several years, however, courts have struggled with this same question in a new context -- the digital media. Around the country, increasing numbers of courts have been forced to confront the authority of public schools to punish students for speech on the Internet. In most cases, students are challenging punishments they received for creating fake websites mocking their teachers or school administrators or for making offensive comments on websites or instant messages. More often than not, the lower courts are ruling in favor of the schools.

Text messages are forcing us to rethink the way we deal with the difficult issues that arise when teenagers get involved with sex; The Times addressed this touchy issue in its June 1 editorial, "Keeping an eye on 'sexting.' " Some in law enforcement have taken extreme measures against teens who send sexually explicit words and images using cellphones and Internet sites. Their solution? Treat these kids just like adults who traffic in pornographic pictures of children.

As the prevalence of sexting cases continue to come to light, many states are grappling to determine an appropriate punishment for this frightening new trend. With no federal law on the books, kids committing the same act in different states are finding themselves facing drastically different, sometimes life-altering, punishments.

Discussion of the issue of how to judge Sexting - Felony or Flirting?

Here in Australia a wonderful new App came out by the South Australian Law Society called the 'Naked Truth'. It explains using a teens medium the ramifications of sexting with some recent legal cases as examples http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-03/app-aimed-at-teaching-youth-sa-sex-laws/5787012.