Teachers and Social Networks

I read the article: Teachers and Social Networks: Should you be Friends with your Pupils? I think this is an interesting question and have wondered what the appropriate protocol is. Using a social networking site as an educational tool with students is different from using it in one's personal life and in the process possibly connecting with pupils. I thought the article raised questions to consider but was disappointed with its inability to differentiate between the two.

I once heard a conversation where a student asked a teacher why she would not accept his request to be a "friend." The teacher responded that this student should not be on Facebook in the first place since he did not meet the age requirements to posses an account. That raised a whole other set of questions for me--did this child's parents know he had an account? For what could an Elementary student possibly use a Facebook account?