Teacher suspended - who IBU?

[Wondermoomin]

Female teacher is suspended for an "inappropriate" selfie. I'm of the opinion that whilst it might be unprofessional, it's not a disciplinary offence. I can't help but think she's facing such harsh treatment because she's a woman. Would a male teacher bearing the same amount of skin (essentially just arms and legs) have been told they looked "sultry" and "provocative" and suspended? I don't think so

What do you think? Is the school being unreasonable?

http://www.miltonkeynes.co.uk/news/pupils-defend-milton-keynes-teacher-suspended-over-inappropriate-selfie-shot-1-7890876

Teachers are entitled to a private life and that's why we protect it form teenage stalkiness by suing encoded names!!

I would not entertain giving someone a job with a neck tattoo. I would go through the motions of looking at qualifications, but I would not give them a job.

So where would you draw the line on, say, piercings? Wheelchair? Hair colour?

Delete I don't look for photos on FB - no. But as I explained the links are sometimes very close. Seven degrees of separation and all that. Amazing what and who pops up sometimes!

Also, it's her profile pc so not hidden at all...

Unbelievable- she looks gorgeous it's not provocative at all - shorts and a vest, on her way out. If a pupil saw her out dressed like that would there be an issue?

So the message is not a burkha and not shorts and heels, right...

Profile pictures can't be hidden, can they?
So that will be how it came to everyone's attention.

I can almost see between her legs all the way to the groin which is just TMI for me. I don't find anything else inappropriate.

I would not entertain giving someone a job with a neck tattoo. I would go through the motions of looking at qualifications, but I would not give them a job.

Why not?

Some of the best teachers I know have visible tattoos. The kids don't care. Why do you?

Suspension is such a serious step that I wonder if this is all there is to it.

I also wonder how students got to overhear the "row", what on earth was the HT doing collaring a member of staff in this way? Should have been in their office.

echt : it was in her office! Heaven knows how these lovely pupils filmed it...

Beans, the article says "school office", not head's office.

This happened to a teacher in Harrow, she posed for some topless pictures in the art depart and they went viral. She then got a job presenting on local tv here.
Obviously this teacher didn't pose topless and unless there is much more to this story, I don't see what she has done wrong.
She probably needs tighter security settings on her social media.

I suspect once the pupils filmed it the Head had no option but to suspend her or look like a grade A chump.

If the pupils were there to film it, unless people were shouting and swearing, someone tipped them off!

I do wonder what this teacher will think about her photo and the fact she has been suspended being discussed on mumsnet in this way!!!!

echt another article says 'senior teacher's office' : either way, an office! Where students were apparently filming. It's a touch odd.

I suspect there's a them v us thing going on here and that the students at this school don't like the head : any excuse to make her appear a cow, I would imagine...

I use a nickname Ilikebeans but agreed, the degrees of separation can be vanishingly small.

I'm at an international school, my dc attend it, I'm friendly with other parents & have to be VERY careful about boundaries.

For example I teach my best friend's year 7 dd & another friend's year 10 ds. They both have professional involvement with my dc. We had a lovely boozy weekend away together last week.

Come Parent's Day, we will inevitably be having 'so, Mrs Crow, is my child reaching his/her target, & if not what can we do about it?' conversations with careful ring fencing from the fact that the previous evening the year 10 chap was babysitting the rest of our dc whilst the three of us were out on the lash.

It's a massive intensification of the usual crossover when you're all neighbours!

But the basic principle stands. If one of my colleagues - who teach my dc - posted that picture, I'd think, as you do, that it's not one I'd put online myself - but then I'd conclude it's totally not my business.

I worry about my own online presence & it's carefully locked down. Students can easily find me because they, & I, will have all liked the official school FB, but all they'll see is a completely anodyne profile pic which I've run through Meitu because it's funny.

If a colleague had this profile pic I'd think 'well, I wouldn't fancy the ribbing from my Y11 tutor group - probably not a great idea' but it's not actually offensive or indecent.

Either there's more to this or school need to wind the neck in.

I don't understand why women take pictures like this. Nor do I, I think it's cringeworthy.

Suze I thought that myself. She might be more alarmed by the comments on the Daily mail article which are misogynistic and/or pervy.

Something tells me she isn't very reflective though. Just a hunch based on the fact that she felt the need to encourage (300!) comments on that photo after her 'suspension' rather than remove the photo or keep silent.

Gone now so someone must have advised her.

I too don't understand why a grown woman woudl take a photo like this. It's beyond cringe.

Me neither, Bakeoff, but what's that got to do with whether it's a disciplinary matter?

I don't understand why one FB friend of mine apparently needs to post a picture of every meal she cooks or every piece of artwork her dd ever brings home from school, but if that's what she wants to do that's up to her.

This teacher still isn't doing anything illegal or improper, just because you & I agree it's a silly photo.

Meh. I attempt to take photos like this, to send to DP because a) he likes them and moreover b) I'm vain

IMHO it's a provocative pose. And shows bad judgement on the part of the teacher. If it was on a public website then yes I think she should face disciplinary procedure. Why is she posting this kind of stuff might be asked.

How exactly are you defining 'public website' there?

Or indeed 'provocative'?

It's a photo which most teachers wouldn't post as a profile pic for fear of remorseless piss taking from their KS4 students. Agreed silly to do so.

But she isn't actually doing anything illegal, offensive or in any way endangering children she teaches.

Really not a disciplinary issue, on its own.