TORONTO - Teachers should avoid connecting with their students on Facebook, Twitter or other social media, the Ontario College of Teachers said Monday.
Other popular online social media such as LinkedIn, Flickr, YouTube and MySpace also should not be used to connect one-on-one with students, the college said.
The regulatory body issued a professional advisory Monday on the use of social media to its 230,000 members. It told them to maintain professional boundaries, something that is vital to the public trust.
Teachers are advised to decline student-¡initiated "friend" requests online, and not to issue "friend" requests to students. Exchanging private texts, phone numbers, personal e¡mail addresses or photos of a personal nature with students are also taboo, the guidelines said.
The teachers' college registrar Michael Salvatori said in an interview that electronic communication and social media can offer exciting teaching experiences. But there are serious risks of misunderstandings or abuse that could result in disciplinary action or even criminal charges, he said.
If a teacher and a student were exchanging text messages or messages on Facebook, it could be misconstrued, said Salvatori.
"The tone might become too friendly or not maintain those professional boundaries and it can become a slippery slope where it could be misconstrued as grooming behaviour," he said.
The advisory states that some members "have been found to have groomed a student for sexual purposes, using electronic messages to gradually win a student's confidence and establish an inappropriate relationship."
There are many other ways teachers can communicate with students and their parents, such as face-to-face interactions, email, telephone conversations or parent-teacher conferences, said Salvatori.
Teachers are also advised to notify parents or guardians before using social networks for classroom activities.
"We're not saying don't use Facebook. We think it's a terrific medium," said Salvatori, who noted many school boards have their own Facebook pages.
"That's an ideal platform where students and teachers can interact for teaching and learning purposes in a board-sanctioned environment where parents are aware and where those professional boundaries are maintained."
Annie Kidder of the parents' group People for Education said some of the advice is common sense that teachers should already know. But she added the college could have offered more guidance on how to use social media effectively in teaching.
"It is important we understand it's 2011 and we have this incredible tool at our fingertips," said Kidder.
"We have to figure out how to use it well, instead of saying 'Stay away from this, it's dangerous."'
Students want teachers to see and understand them as human beings, she said. Research shows the teacher-student relationship is important to learning, she added.
