10. A former teacher fights to clear her name

It was every educator's nightmare scenario: Connecticut substitute teacher Julie Amero was teaching class in October 2004 when her desktop computer kept spewing online pornography. Each time she closed one lurid browser window, another would appear. Although Amero claimed the images were inadvertently thrust onto the screen by pornographers' unseen spyware and adware programs, she was arrested and--in January 2007--convicted of exposing her students to obscene material in what most observers viewed as a gross miscarriage of justice.

Amero's conviction set off a firestorm of reaction in the blogosphere, with computer experts questioning the prosecutor's account and the way evidence was collected. eSchool News readers also weighed in with their opinions, which were overwhelmingly in favor of Amero. "Using this substitute teacher as the scapegoat for the school's lack of action for internet safety is more of a criminal act than having the pop-ups on the screen," wrote one incensed reader.

Ultimately, common sense appears to have prevailed, and after her sentencing was postponed several times, Amero was granted another trial. But Amero's plight still has chilling implications for educators nationwide. Said computer consultant Herb Horner, who testified for the defense: "It can happen to anybody."

See these related stories:

Pop-up porn sinks school substitute

Teacher gets new trial in web-porn case

Full coverage: Julie Amero trial

9. eMail retention rules cause confusion among schools

A year ago last month, eSchool News reported on new federal guidelines stemming from a recent Supreme Court ruling that confirmed eMail messages were matters of public record.

The guidelines--which declare that any entity involved in litigation must be able to produce "electronically stored information" during the discovery process, in which opposing sides of a legal dispute must share evidence before trial--have significant implications for school technology departments, especially in places where technicians routinely copy over backup discs and other information housed on school servers.