Cyber-Venting

New Kids on the Blog

When new teachers get fed up with the principal, the parents, the kids (oh yes, the kids!), not all take their beefs to the teachers lounge. Some turn to a more electric setting: their blog.

Teacher blogs, which now number more than 800, range from advocacy to anecdotal, and many belong to young, tech-savvy teachers. And while the online diaries do provide valuable space to sound off and get virtual community support, they also can be risky.

A young teacher in Arkansas lost his job after blogging about teaching wood shop without any equipment, USA Today reports. Another in Chicago quit after students learned he was the one writing about chaos in their school. To stay safe: Think before posting the negative stuff, and don’t believe you’re ever really anonymous.