Should I publish?

[lilmaria]

Okay...I need some advice.

For one of my grad classes, I had to complete a reflection on this year''s work with my students. I became a bit emotional and wrote about the stress teachers face and how we are asked to compromise our beliefs and values from time to time. Well, apparently my class and professor thought it was worthy of being published. I am honored, but a bit apprehensive.

The piece is very reflective and though I don''t speak of any students in particular, I feel that coworkers or parents may figure it out, if they try hard enough. I retained two students this year, and they are the focus of my reflection. My professor said that it usually takes two years to publish a piece, but I am pretty sure I''ll still be teaching at my school then.

So...PSers, should I publish it since few if any parents would really research and find my writing or should I pass up the opportunity b/c of future issues which may/may not arise?

By the way, my fiance thinks I should publish it.

Thanks in advance!

 

[justjulia]

Where would you like for this to be published? Is it a professional magazine? You wouldn''t be using real names or names of schools, right?

 

[ocbride2007]

I''m not sure, but wouldn''t you need permission of the students if you quoted them in any way? Not sure about just discussing your experiences though. I know I had to sign a form when I was in high school and someone interviewed me for her graduate work... You should cover your bases and make sure you don''t need permission first.

That being said, if you have gone to lengths to make sure that no one could identify these children except for maybe the child themselves, or the parents, I don''t see much of a problem. You may want to edit the piece and make it more generalized. But it sounds like the professor believes it''s a valuable paper, and something other people may learn from. I think it would be best to see what the standard is in your field for publication in this situation.

You may consider notifying the parents out of courtesy - if it is written in a way that may be helpful to other teachers of students with similar issues in dealing with the stress and still being able to be an effective teacher, then the parents may see the value of it towards creating awareness for teachers of other students with similar challenges. Make it seem like it is important that this is published because it will help others in the future, and that their children provided an environment that let you learn and help others. Again, I would do this only if the standard in your field is to get student''s consent first. There should be other professors around who have published before that you can ask and see how it''s done.

Chances are, the parents will never in a million years read your paper. But if you feel that it is detailed enough that it would be an invasion of privacy, whether or not they saw it, that edit it or consider not publishing it. BUT you have done a great job on something, and it has the potential to educate others!! You shouldn''t pass up that opportunity without first weighing the options and considering if it may be a problem in the future. I am sure that if you wrote it in a professional manner, and the professor thinks it''s worthy, then there shouldn''t be a problem.

Also, I am sure that the publication wouldn''t approve it if they thought it was a violation of privacy. They would probably ask you to edit it if they found it too specific.

Congratulations on an excellent job!! Be proud of your work, and don''t get too hung up on a small chance that someone may get a little upset! Good luck on your decision!

 

[lizz]

I don''t know, but I''m a counselor, and I cannot ever publish anything without anyone''s written permission that may give away their identity (name or otherwise). If the students can figure out it''s them, and they don''t give their written permission, I''m not so sure this would be kosher.

Years ago, I had a client who had a very rare genetic disease. It''s so rare that there are only a handful of people in the country who have it. The mother told me (and showed me) where her daughter''s case had been published IN A TEXTBOOK. She said she never gave permission (nor did her daughter, nor could she since she was non-verbal and non-responsive). She was very angry and hurt about this. Something to think about.

 

[lilmaria]

Thank you for your thoughtful responses.

The paper only speaks of the grade I teach and my experiences this year. It doesn''t refer to the children specifically. It mentions their gender and my reasons/feelings regarding their retention. The children aren''t quoted and their work is not sampled. My fear, which my fiance feels is irrational, is that my school will find out that I published a paper, will look or ask for it and then the trouble begins.

I''ve never retained a boy and girl in the same year during my career. I feel that if the paper (in a education journal) is read by staff then the parents could find out by putting two and two together. Far fetched, but my concern nonetheless.

My professor and cohort feel that my paper will help other teachers especially as they face high stakes testing tied to merit pay. I think it is extremely personal, but I can see how it may be benefial to others who find themselves in my position. My professor stated that educators need more stories from "the trenches" and this reflection could move many people.

I think it would be nice to move onto a different aspect of my career. I want to make sure that I dot my i''s and cross my t''s.

 

[Kaleigh]

Can you alter it without loosing the meaning behind it?? So if they did read it, they would be hard pressed to know who exactly you were referring to?? Just thinking out loud here....

 

[lilmaria]

Unfortunately, if I did change anything such as the grade level, I feel that it would not longer be a reflection, but a piece of realistic fiction. I chose not to mention which area of the U.S. I teach in, i.e. Northeast, Southwest, etc. which is typcially commonplace in ed articles. I can''t change their genders b/c many of my experiences with them this year were based on their gender identities.

I may have to retain another boy and girl just to throw people off...lol just kidding. I''d never do that intentionally!

 

[ocbride2007]

It really seems like your paper means a lot to you and your professor, and is helpful for those in the field. It would be a shame if you didn''t get it published in some form! Again, I am sure you are not the first person who has written about their experience in teaching and published it, so I would really just check and see what others have done. Contact the publication you are submitting to first, and ask about the legal issues, etc. If there is another paper written in one of the journals that talks about students in a similar, general way I would see if you could contact that author and ask them how they dealt with this situation.

I really don''t think that there is much reason a parent would find out about it. Maybe you could talk to a trusted colleague at your school and see what they would think about it? Chances are, if anyone found it, it would be another teacher. And they would have to be pretty jealous or vindictive to contact the parents and cause a stir. You may not want to talk directly to your principal about it at first, because you would run into the chance of being told "no" then it would be really hard for you to turn around and publish it anyway. But you should definitely get input from other teachers or grad students and professors.

And honestly, my mother is a teacher, with a graduate degree, and I don''t think she has ever picked up an educational journal unless she was assigned to read an article in graduate work!! Unless you are at a school that really values that sort of thing, I don''t think you have anything to worry about as far as people finding it. And if they do read those things at your school, well, then they would be able to appreciate the importance of the work.

 

[strmrdr]

The best teachers build the trust of their students.
Betraying that trust is the worst thing a teacher can do.
If publishing this in any way would betray that trust then dont do it.
They may never find out or even mind but you will know in you heart.

Follow you heart and do what you know is right.

 

[Scintillating]

Date: 6/19/2006 3:05:48 AM
Author: strmrdr
The best teachers build the trust of their students.

Betraying that trust is the worst thing a teacher can do.

If publishing this in any way would betray that trust then dont do it.

They may never find out or even mind but you will know in you heart.


Follow you heart and do what you know is right.

Nonsense Storm.
I assume - we're talking about a professional writing about her profession for professionals to read.
Any professional or academic has a right/duty to write about their experiences or discoveries to advance/help those in their field.
If your Prof thinks it's okay - then it probably is.
Career wise - It's also quite helpful to be published. You should be very proud of your work!
You sound like a very sensitive person - I'm sure you're a great teacher!

Scintillating...

 

[lilmaria]

hello! Thank you for all of your wonderful responses! I shared my writing with my closest friend at work who happens to teach the same grade. She said that she would be able to figure out the boy that I talk about b/c she knows him and his work well. She didn''t know which girl I was talking about, aside from the retention list. She thinks that I''m worrying for no reason and that it is something that would truly touch other teachers and move them to be more reflective themselves. She said I''d be a fool if I didn''t take the opportunity, so thanks to your advice as well as my fiance, friend and professor''s advice, I will give it a shot. I''ll be sure to keep you updated.

Thanks for the kind words and helpful suggestions!

 

[rainbowtrout]

Just out of curiosity, but why don''t you give the students'' parents a copy before it comes out as a courtesy? That way it doesnt ever look like you were covering anything up if they do read it.

 

[froufrou]

As a bizarre coincidence, I am currently taking the online course to get certified in Human Subject Testing and they have some official info on what constitutes as protecting privacy. I will post some here, maybe it can help you.


INTRO

The importance of protecting the privacy of research subjects and ensuring confidentiality of research data is widely acknowledged. The right to privacy is highly valued in the United States and secured by laws other than those for protecting research subjects. For example, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is designed to protect the privacy of students’ educational records. And the Privacy Rules of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) describes conditions under which researchers can access and use private health information.

PRIVATE VS PUBLIC

The federal regulations define “private information” to mean “information about behavior that occurs in a context in which an individual can reasonably assume that no observation or recording is taking place, and information which has been provided for specific purposes by an individual and which he or she can reasonably expect will not be made public (for example, a medical record).”

This definition offers a yardstick for differentiating between public and private behavior, and whether it is reasonable for subjects to expect privacy in a particular context.

It would be unreasonable to expect that behavior on a street corner is not public, but reasonable to assume that behavior in our homes is private. However, individuals may identify private spaces in the midst of very public ones. Consider the following two situations:

Parents taking their children to a city park might consider it a violation of privacy if the interactions of their children were filmed and used for research purposes. (They might be less likely to consider it such if their children’s behaviors were simply coded by observers.)
Members of an on-line support group might express dismay at being observed by researchers, even though the communications among group members could technically be accessed by hundreds of thousands of people.
There is a conundrum here for investigators and IRBs. Subjects’ expectations form the basis for making distinctions between public and private behavior — in other words, privacy is in the eye of the subjects. Yet the reasonableness of their expectations must be assessed in some way. Investigators and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) members will have to make the judgment about what is private information based upon their knowledge of the population and the context in which research will take place.

COVERT OBSERVATION

Privacy issues arise in regard to information obtained for research purposes without the consent of subjects, such as through observational studies.

Observational studies raise serious ethical concerns when they access information that individuals might choose not to reveal, or take away individuals’ rights to control information about them, regardless of how innocuous it may be. The following questions might be used to assess the ethical soundness of observational research:

Is private identifiable information being collected about subjects without their knowledge (for example, covert observation recorded on videotape) in a situation in which individuals could reasonably expect privacy? If it is, then the following questions would also arise:
Would reasonable people be offended by such an intrusion?
Can the research be redesigned to avoid the intrusion?
Would information gathered through covert observation place the subject at risk if disclosed?
Is any invasion of privacy justified by the benefits of the study? In other words, is the knowledge to be gained important enough to involve subjects without their consent?
What, if anything, will the subject be told later?

CONFIDENTIALITY

If data are individually identifiable, if the research topic is sensitive, if subjects will be taped, or if the researcher plans to use the data for purposes other than those of the original study, ensuring confidentiality may require more complex procedures.
The following questions may be used to guide the design of procedures to safeguard subjects'' privacy by protecting the data they provide in the research context:
Are identifiers really needed?
How will data be reported? In aggregate? Using pseudonyms? Using real names?
Who will have access to study data in the present and in the future?
If audiotapes or videotapes are made, what will be done with them during and after the research? Will they be shown at scholarly conferences? Used to train graduate students? Archived? Will they be saved in case they have an, as yet unknown, research use?
How will the data be protected from inadvertent disclosure or unauthorized access?
Can identifiers be destroyed, thus anonymizing the data?
If participation in the study could put people at risk, for example, sex workers subject to police harassment, has the requirement for documentation of consent been waived?
Does sensitive data need to be protected from subpoena by third parties? Should a Certificate of Confidentiality be obtained?

INDIRECT IDENTIFIERS

It is often possible to identify subjects indirectly based on combinations of demographic data. For example, the number of Asian female varsity athletes at a particular university might be small. Or there may be only a few Caucasian managers over 40 who have been employed in the marketing department of a mid-sized company for five years.
Using individual-level data when reporting research results could violate subjects’ expectations of privacy and agreements about confidentiality. Such an outcome could be damaging if the study were about sensitive topics such as the use of steroids or employee assessments of their managers.

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It seems like you would have the indirect identifier problem. I think what I would do in this case is find where your university has this IRB stuff and take the online CITI course to become certified in Human Subject Research (Behavioral and Social), then they show you what forms you would need, on the form you explain the expected benefit of the study and have the parents sign it.