The Department of Education (DepEd) MIMAROPA is looking into providing training on social media education for teachers to highlight the ethical guidelines for using the platform.
In the latest episode of the Philippine Information Agency MIMAROPA Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas, DepEd MIMAROPA Regional Director Nicolas Capulong highlighted that teachers and DepEd staff are public figures and must be careful in posting on any social media platforms.
“Pagdating sa [social] media, I think everybody is thinking it is a right without understanding their responsibility…I think also there must be a proper education [for] our teachers when they are involved in this. Ano ba talaga ang katungkulan mo as far as social media is concerned?” Capulong said.
He specifically mentioned that posting photos or videos showing students’ faces is prohibited without the parent’s consent under the child protection policy and data privacy.
“Unang-una ho, nandiyan po yung child protection policy…Hindi natin pwedeng ipakita ang mukha kung ano man po, no kung may kasalanan man ang bata, o kaya kung content lang o vlog lang without permission of their parents. And then yung data privacy, hindi rin ho siya pwedeng ilabas,” he said.
Capulong said that capacitating teachers on social media education would help teachers use the platform more effectively and safely.
“I think that is [a] good idea on our part [on] how we could educate our fellow workers in the field as far as social media is concerned. ‘Tama ba ito?’ I would like to use ‘Is it ethical or not to do it’?” he explained.
Capulong encouraged the public to inform their office if they see social media posts by teachers that do not adhere to the guidelines. (DSG/PIA MIMAROPA – Occidental Mindoro)
