Teachers: do you delete/hide 'personal' stuff on the internet?

[MeaMaximaCulpa]

We've come across 'questionable'/embarrassing stuff on the web about DCs new teacher, whilst looking them up on school website.

As an ancient, old-fashioned parent, I'm shocked at what's out there which I presume was 'displayed' when the teacher was even younger than they are now. But clearly it's easy to find and if others googled, the first results would bring them straight to these various sites on which teacher has photos and text that wouldn't merit 'respect' from their students.

Are teachers warned about what they make accessible on the web, prior to taking up teaching posts? Do young people/teachers 'mind' as much as those from my generation would, if their students know stuff about their sex lives and see questionable photos of them?

Do I let this teacher know or make a general comment to a senior member of staff about warning their young, new staff to delete/hide personal stuff on the web - but not refer to the specific teacher?

Would you want to know, as a teacher, that your students could easily google info. about your past sex life and see 'sexy' photos of you - or would you rather not know and be mortified if a parent flagged this up?

DCs have seen the stuff but have been told in no uncertain terms not to disclose to anyone else and are fairly sensible about this kind of thing. If the teacher knows the DCs know, teacher will probably alter their attitude towards DCs. So don't particularly want to get into this, for sake of DCs - but wonder if teacher should be warned for their own sake?

Interested in feedback.

[ravenAK]

If the teacher is doing something online which is illegal (eg. drug taking, indecent images), or which breaches the terms of their employment by bringing their role into disrepute (a status moaning about the awfulness of an identifiable student or group, calling a colleague a rude name, saying the school they work at is crap etc), they can indeed be in deep trouble.

A parent or student stumbling across something like that could legitimately pass on concerns to the HT, who could then take disciplinary action.

However, if the teacher is simply going about their off-duty life, behaving socially in a manner which wouldn't actually get them arrested & not linking their personal use of a social network to their workplace, then I'd be inclined to teach my dc that yes, Mrs X probably does have a life outside of the classroom & hurrah for her.

Then if an opportunity arose I'd tip her off re: the need to update her privacy settings...having a 'sexy' photo visible to the world, if you're a teacher, is pretty much the online equivalent of marching out of the staff loo with your skirt tucked into your knickers. Kids will inevitably find it hilarious.

As a teacher myself, with an unusual surname, I have my privacy locked down AND I make sure I don't post anything that I couldn't defend should I be confronted by my HT waving a screengrab at me. & yes, we do all get training to that effect.

However, I'd defend myself fairly robustly if I'd posted something entirely legal, nothing to do with work, & it had been happened upon & objected to subjectively by a parent or student actively searching me out, as seems to have happened here.

I understand the explanation as to how this came about, re: this student's HFA & anxiety, but the issue here is the student's need to understand that teachers can be 'benevolent, wise, authority figures' AND have private lives that do not require their students' oversight or approval...

[HumblePieMonster]

Under the Teacher's Standards, 2, Personal and Professional Conduct, www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/301107/Teachers__Standards.pdf teachers can be called to account for what they have put online.
Schools will have made this clear to staff.
Raise your concerns with the Assistant Head who has responsibility for staffing/staff training.

[TheReluctantCountess]

Pumpkin, you don't have to accept their friend requests if it makes you uncomfortable.

[PumpkinBones]

Yes - a couple of DS1's teachers have added me on Facebook! Between them, work colleagues, and various relatives, I am so conscious of everything I post!

[DownByTheRiverside]

Works in reverse too, I know several teachers that google/ fb to see what parents get up to. Usually younger teachers. Whether social boundaries are set differently for many of he under 30s I have no idea, but they don't see a problem with it.

[PumpkinBones]

Stalking is a ridiculous and inappropriate word to use. Looking
people up online is commonplace. I look up people who apply for jobs I am advertising on Facebook, LinkedIn etc as a matter of course. Most teenagers will look up their teachers, for much less reason than the OP's DC. This is why there are generally guidelines as to how you use social media provided to staff. Googling takes seconds and is simple to do.

[BoneyBackJefferson]

"The onus is on the teacher"

It really isn't that simple though, from this the assumption is that the pictures are on a webspace that the teacher controls.

I have known teachers be tagged on hen/stag nights, night clubs, peoples homes etc. and have no control over the pictures themselves.

On one occasion the pictures where up for 24 hours before the teacher even knew that they where on the net.

[Happy36]

MrsAtticus Well then I agree, taking drugs is quite different to being in a nightclub. However really the school would need evidence of her taking the drug in order to sack her, I´d think.

[MrsAtticus]

Happy36 I see what you mean, but she was clearly off her head on illegal drugs!

[Phineyj]

This is precisely the reason I changed to DH's very common surname on entering teaching!

[diddlediddledumpling]

I don't think it's old school to believe the onus is on the individual to make sure there's nothing embarrassing about them online.
I do think the teacher should be made aware of it, because it has the potential to make life difficult for her if not now, then at some stage in her teaching career. op has no obligation or responsibility to make her aware, but someone should, out of decency.

The onus is on the teacher though. As others have said, this is very foolish of her.

op your dc has done nothing wrong in searching for information, imo. I'm a teacher, I would be very surprised if none of my pupils had ever done this. they're teenagers.

[BoneyBackJefferson]

It would also depend on what use you are going to put the information too.

[Nerf]

I disagree. It's one thing to join something online and find other people who have also joined and recognise each other but to actively seek out information on an individual, relying on lax security or just nosiness is not the same at all.

[DownByTheRiverside]

' One assumes that if people are publishing things about themselves on the internet, it is not an invasion of privacy to look at it.'

Exactly.

[MissMillament]

Did you say the stuff your DS found was on Bebo, OP? This could be from quite a long time ago as nobody has used Bebo for a few years now. It might be that the teacher has actually forgotten all about its existence and would be very embarrassed to realise that it was still accessible on the internet.

[MexicanSpringtime]

Re. Stalking, I don't understand the use of this term in this context.

I look things up all the time on the internet and just as easily throw the name of someone into the search box as anything else. One assumes that if people are publishing things about themselves on the internet, it is not an invasion of privacy to look at it.

[DownByTheRiverside]

I'm an old teacher, and I work with young teachers. I've even mentored a few. One of the things that they need to be aware of is that parents and children will find out things, many will actively seek out information. I don't see that as stalking, but many parents are very nosey. OP, I understand that a child with HFA has entirely different reasons.
So teachers need to be aware that their private life should be private, they are as entitled as anyone to get pissed or take photos that reveal more than they would at school. But to make their own life less stressful, they need to take precautions, like privacy settings and being careful about what they share under their own names.

[Happy36]

MeaMaximaCulpa Remember that the other teachers could be doing what this teacher has said she´s doing online, it´s they don´t tell everyone on the internet...

On a more serious note, if you are in any way worried about your children, speak to the teacher herself or to the school.

[TheReluctantCountess]

I agree with Happy with regard to the teacher in a nightclub.

[finallydelurking]

What lulujakey said

The teacher is in idiot. Anybody working in a secondary school will be googled by students. This should have been covered in their training if they qualified recently and also during induction in any decent school as part of safeguarding.

Sooner or later this will be brought to the schools attention and depending on the severity of the posts result in something between 'management advice' and instant dismissal.

If your child hasn't 'hacked' anything they weren't stalking, though there is the risk the teacher will view it as such if you report despite the fact the onus is on them to be responsible for their own 'digital footprint'

Your call if you report it, your dc has done nothing wrong and I hope they settle in well next term.

[Happy36]

MrsAtticus As long as the teacher wasn´t doing anything illegal and it was on her own time I can´t see why she should have lost her job. More worrying is that the students were in the nightclub!

[Happy36]

I try to be careful. Some of my friends on social media are students´ parents and also colleagues. All of my settings are private but I know that isn´t totally foolproof. I don´t have any sexy photos or make any particularly controversial posts, e.g. about drug taking or with swear words in. However, there are things like photos of me with a glass of wine in my hand around a dinner table, (not drunk, though).

If I were younger I think I would be even more cautious. At 36 I have a pretty dull life from a student´s point of view and I rarely take photos - most of the pictures I get tagged in are from sports´ matches and most of my posts are about training times or factual stuff like that. I don´t put photos of our children on social media (my husband doesn´t use social media) but I think my general online profile comes across as a boring, typical mom - once students have found out you have Facebook or whatever (and seen that your posts/photos are really dull) I think their curiosity is satisfied.

At my school and in my previous office jobs candidates are always screened online before we ask them for interview or offer them a job.

[MrsAtticus]

I once saw a teacher in a very bad way in a night club...surrounded by some of her students cackling and shouting 'look, miss is off er 'ed!'.
I've often wondered if she lost her job!

[MeaMaximaCulpa]

Teacher has a v unique name - hence the ease with which DC found info. inadvertently.

To put this in context, last year, some pupils from a different yr group apparently found something online about a different teacher - v innocuous but v personal. All the students from their class were looking at it, as the teacher had put up something in the class that used their personal account for some site. A senior member of staff realised what had happened, had a quiet word with young teacher and teacher deleted the stuff.

However, this material referred to in my OP would be perceived as much more embarassing I would think. Teacher is new to teaching and new to school and will have a key role over the next few yrs with my DC. Hence my disquiet.

To be honest, it may be tricky for me to liaise with new teacher about DC, knowing what I've seen and and read - but I will rise above it and treat them with respect and 'forget' everything, as much as possible.

It could be my 'age' that makes it harder for me to deal with things like knowing intimate and personal sexual details about a professional, as in my own working world, there's a separation between the personal and the professional and this is how I've always experienced life myself.

I think nowadays, maybe younger people don't feel the same about 'the world' knowing about their personal details and opinions. I'm probably far too 'old school' in that I'd never want a FB account or use any kind of social media for connect with my personal life and network.

[RebeccaCloud9]

BTW the term 'Facebook stalking' is more like being overly inquisitive and searching out details that maybe you shouldn't ie finding out details about an ex's new girlfriend - rather than 'real' stalking (criminal, invasive, threatening).