‘Teacher reprimanded over inappropriate Facebook photos!” is not a headline any of us want to see associated with ourselves and yet privacy settings seemingly change without warning and we need to be aware of the risks of using social media sites. Take it as read that most parents will try to google you before their child starts in your class.
Following an increasing number of media cases about teachers who have got into trouble because of their posts or images on social media sites we thought we’d look for some good tips to help you keep safe on social media. The advice on ‘Teacher Toolkit’ is well worth the read - and if you follow the advice you will keep your name out of tomorrow’s headlines.
Our personal Facebook tips are:
Don’t use your real surname - use a nickname or perhaps just your first and middle name?
Don’t be friends on social media with work colleagues - there’s no reason to if you’re seeing them every day anyway.
Don’t accept a friend request from anyone who is just a passing acquaintance - who do they know who might have a link to someone at school?
Do think about the photos and comments you post - a good tip is to ask yourself… ‘Would I be happy for my headteacher to see this?’ before posting. You never know when the privacy settings are going to change again and if you wouldn’t want it popping up…don’t post it in the first place!