editorials

At some point during our school years, most of us have likely had this experience: To encourage excellence and reward hard work, a well-meaning teacher displays graded papers or test scores from top students. Getting the equivalent of a gold star or smiley face sticker for being the best has long been common in classrooms.

That explains the buzz this week over news that the practice can violate Minnesota law.

Last year, a Northfield High School teacher wrote the names and grades of students with the highest scores on the classroom blackboard. A parent of one of the high achievers complained to the state that the teacher made the information public without permission. An advisory opinion from the Minnesota Department of Administration concurred that state law prohibits disclosure of individual scores without parental approval.

Being identified for outstanding work might seem harmless. In fact, many educators argue that acknowledging stellar students rewards them and motivates their classmates to do better.

But when it comes to important student data, privacy should be paramount.

That doesn't mean schools should abandon efforts to recognize outstanding performance. School leaders can get permission from students and parents to use names at the beginning of the year -- much in the same way some schools ask for photo or other releases to cover an entire school year. Another way to stay within the law is to post scores identified only with student ID numbers. Under that approach, students know what the top scores are without necessarily knowing who earned them. If individual students want to share their results with others, it's up to them.

Some argue that competition is the way of the world and that protecting student test score data is more about political correctness than helping kids. But another reality is that private information -- even when it's positive -- is sometimes used in harmful ways.

Just ask the top students who get teased via text messaging or physically victimized because they do well in school.

The Northfield case should not discourage educators from recognizing high achievers. It should simply remind them to follow the law and tread carefully when dealing with privacy issues