#Unfriend your Teacher @Facebook

Topic: Teacher / Student Facebook Relationship

Branded as a controversial issue , in my eyes there is nothing whatsoever to debate. Teachers and Students SHOULD NOT be FRIENDS on Facebook. I will actually go one step further. A parliamentary law or at least school regulation should forbid it.

Don’t get me wrong – I have nothing against Facebook and actually think it is a great medium that can be used for scholastic ends. I also believe that most teachers who have created friendships with their students via this social media outlet have done so in good faith and are teachers that are willing to explore new boundaries and use technology for the benefit of their students. but being friends with your students on Facebook is NOT ethically and professionally correct.

Being friends on Facebook gives access to ALL the content of a student’s account. Teachers should not have exclusive access to this information. What students do in their free time and personal lives outside of school and in particular the dynamics of their family and personal relationships should not be at the disposition of a teacher.

Furthermore, It is not appropriate for a teacher (an adult) to have a personal relationship with a minor (a child below the age of eighteen) outside of the professional and scholastic environment. With the Facebook Wall a teacher is constantly updated with the status of the student and vice-verse.

There are alternatives.

Most schools now have an internal system for communication and collaboration as the likes of Moodle. This would be the ideal means of correspondence but how many students actually use their school Email or at least have a forwarder set up?

If a teacher wants to reach students through Facebook they MUST create a FACEBOOK PAGE or GROUP where neither teacher nor student has access to personal information.

Read the Facebook official blog on the topic – Facebook Tips: What’s the Difference between a Facebook Page and Group?

Prof. Mark

My ESL Facebook Pages