Teacher with public Facebook page and very political views. Would you find this offensive?

[Yellowbowlbanana]

My dd came home from school today and showed me a Facebook page belonging to one of her teachers. His posts were there for all to see although comments had been disabled. His personal information was not visible either.

His page was basically a homage to the Conservative party but at the expense of others with differing views. Everyone who supports labour or is a liberal is left-wing trash/Marxist/communist. He shares conspiracy theories that China imported the Covid variant because we were getting on top of the vaccine. He makes fun of Prince Harry asking if he's started lactating in a thinly veiled attempt to question his masculinity. He calls anyone who voted for Scottish independence an anglophobic dimwit and a bigot.
I have no problem with people sharing their political opinion but I really hate the need to squash others when doing so. I am sure that he is not sharing these views with his students but as they are all able to see them they are all clearly aware.
I think he is a very clever man but he is a shit teacher for my dd and I really don't like him. He was completely negligent in the first lockdown to the point that I made a formal complaint against him. I don't know whether this is clouding my viewpoint or whether this is an actual issue.
What do you think?
YANBU - this is not acceptable
YABU - this is perfectly fine

Leave him alone and don't read his facebook page. Surely that's the matter fixed. I'm sure you told your child it was a load of crap and you carried on with life. I challenge the extreme right on my facebook, I certainly dont try to silence them!

It sounds like they've rather over-egged their custard to me.
Funny how the profile was "discovered" at school isn't it? In April Fool week no less.

@ChloeDecker
You can view the comments on his posts and interact with them but not post comments.

See, this could be a sign that it is not a genuine Facebook page and has been set up by students or someone else (it happens more than you think it does) and could explain why your child suddenly came home with it today if it is being spread around.
On that reason alone, I would let the school know but not complain at this stage.

Absolutely this. DC of a colleague was involved in something like this and ended up permanently excluded in their GCSE year. Police were involved as well and it could have had serious ramifications for the poor teacher concerned had it not been possible to show whose computer had been used to set up the account etc. The others involved were very careful - set up the account, allowed it to run for a while before 'accidentally' coming across it. Thank goodness the teacher's HT was prepared to investigate the issue properly before irreparable damage was done to their career. The mental anguish is something else.

Quite.
If my DD came home with something like this I'd tell her I was going to contact the school because I was concerned that the kids had mocked up a profile in order to cyberbully the teacher and bring him into disrepute.
Then I'd wait half an hour and see if the profile disappeared. I think it probably would.

Children should not be snooping at teacher's social media. He is an idiot for not locking his Facebook down, but it's not a professional page, it's a personal one.

I worked with a teacher who used SIMS together addresses for the whole of 6th form.
He mail dropped them all pointing out that they should vote Labour if they valued their children's education.
More than one parent complained.

He very nearly lost his job.

I'm amazed that neither you nor the pupils have anything better than to search for and then moan about the personal SM presence of a teacher.
I don't agree with the guy's views AT ALL but that's not the point - he's still entitled to express them!
Unless he's made public attacks on others as a result of protected characteristics like race or sexuality, what exactly is the problem?
He may have said things you find distasteful but that's life - people do that. It might be a good opportunity to teach these kids about free speech and the right to privacy.

It's perfectly acceptable for him to have whatever views he has, as long as this does not affect his teaching. However, as a teacher he should absolutely have his social media private precisely so that students are unable to see it and be offended/upset. I would mention it to the head teacher so that they can have that discussion with him.

@NiceTwin

I worked with a teacher who used SIMS together addresses for the whole of 6th form. He mail dropped them all pointing out that they should vote Labour if they valued their children's education. More than one parent complained.

He very nearly lost his job.

Anecdote which is totally irrelevant. One of mine boffed the French teacher in the broom cupboard and he nearly did too. That's also irrelevant.

Teachers I know don’t use their real names on their FB accounts.

I am suspecting a fake account. So you could approach the teacher saying that you think a fake account has been set up with hateful views about Prince Harry (or some other example), and see his reaction.

If he has upset your DD I doubt if it is the only child he has upset.

Teacher’s Standards quote:
A teacher is expected to demonstrate consistently high standards of personal and professional conduct. The following statements define the behaviour and attitudes which set the required standard for conduct throughout a teacher’s career.
 Teachers uphold public trust in the profession and maintain high standards of ethics and behaviour, within and outside school, by:
o treating pupils with dignity, building relationships rooted in mutual
respect, and at all times observing proper boundaries appropriate
to a teacher’s professional position
o having regard for the need to safeguard pupils’ well-being, in
accordance with statutory provisions
o showing tolerance of and respect for the rights of others
o notunderminingfundamentalBritishvalues,includingdemocracy,
the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance
of those with different faiths and beliefs

Calling people he doesn’t agree with ‘bigots’ certainly contravenes the above.
OP, the school will have an SM policy that staff have to sign - I know that if a member of staff in my school were posting these things they would be questioned.

@RachelRavenRoth

As a teacher, if i found out a colleague was a tory, i would absolutely report them.

So for posters who think their children don’t know teachers political views just read this. Do you actually know how much left wing propaganda your children are fed?

Some of the responses 😆😆😆

its his PERSONAL page. He can post what he likes. For all you know he may not realise its on a public setting. Maybe send him a private message (from a fake Facebook) to discreetly tell him.

Why do you think he’s a clever man? He sounds like a total neanderthal and a prick to boot.

At election time my FB is filled with teachers with stickers on their profile saying they are voting Labour.

I'm amazed that neither you nor the pupils have anything better than to search for and then moan about the personal SM presence of a teacher.

I think it’s perfectly normal for children to search for their teachers online, I know my friends and I did this in school and that was 15+ years ago. We wanted to have a laugh at their expense basically but didn’t really find much.

The teacher is hugely unprofessional, his social media should be locked down. I’d report just incase he’s somehow unaware it’s all public.

Sorry have I woken up in 1984? Isn't the uk a country of free speech and thought. I've seen worse comments and abuse about people on mn. The man is entitled to a view....as long as he doesn't break the law.
More importantly what was your child doing fb stalking

@VeniVidiWeeWee

In his opinion it does. Just like on here all Brexiteers are racists.

Oh do fuck off

@Yellowbowlbanana

I would just drop the HT an email saying I suspected that someone had set up a fake account for this teacher as I was sure he wouldn't be posting stuff like this on an open account. Either way that should get it sorted.

It wouldn't offend me . Surely if he makes no reference to his career/ pupils/ the school he can post whatever he likes to his own personal Facebook page ? You can't police him because of his opinions.

Tell your dc to stop looking up teachers online 🙄 maybe concentrate on her studies instead 🤷‍♀️

If he worked in my school, he would be advised to use a different name so that he is harder to find and identify to students and parents that might try to find him, but that’s all.

How did he manage to negligent towards your daughter during the first lockdown when the curriculum was suspended? What happened following your complaint?

@sbhydrogen, no because that’s the truth not a conspiracy theory. 🤣🤣🤣

It sounds like you have a grudge against him anyway!

You don't know if it's a real account or not and you're child shouldn't be snooping for a teachers account in the first place.

By all means speak to the head teacher if you wish but it seems more like your grudge than concern about politics