Teachers could now be punished by TSC for posting on social media

TSC Acting CEO Eveleen Mitei before Senate Education Committee at Bunge Towers, Nairobi. [Elvis Ogina,Standard]

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is cracking the whip on teachers’ use of social media, warning those engaging in cyberbullying and unprofessional conduct that they will face disciplinary action.

The warning comes as teachers, particularly young ones, increasingly turn to social media to share their day-to-day experiences in the classroom.

Across TikTok, Facebook and Instagram, teachers are posting videos of themselves dancing, singing, teaching and interacting with learners.

The videos have gained popularity, with many social media users praising the teachers for making learning more engaging and wishing they had such teachers when they were in school.

But some of the content has also raised questions over where teachers should draw the line between content creation and professional conduct.

In some instances, teachers have been filmed dancing with learners in ways that have been described as inappropriate, raising concerns about the boundaries that should exist between teachers and their students.

In a circular, TSC Chief Executive Officer Evelyne Mitei said the Commission is concerned about the prevalence of unprofessional conduct among teachers on social media.

Mitei warned that teachers engaging in cyberbullying or other forms of unprofessional conduct online would face disciplinary action.

“Any teacher found to have engaged in cyberbullying or unprofessional conduct on social media shall be subject to disciplinary measures in accordance with the Teachers Service Commission Act, the Code of Regulations for Teachers, and any other relevant legislation, including administrative or disciplinary sanctions,” the circular reads.

The warning comes as social media increasingly becomes part of the way teachers interact with learners and the public, with some teachers building large audiences from content recorded in and around their classrooms.

The directive now places teachers who record and post content involving learners under major scrutiny, particularly where the privacy, dignity and welfare of children could be affected.

The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) has raised concerns over the lack of clear guidelines on social media usage in schools and by educators.

KNUT Nairobi branch Executive Secretary Macharia Mugwe said the TSC should have first developed guidelines on the use of social media in consultation with teachers and other stakeholders before issuing the circular.

“TSC has come up with a circular on social media, but what is worrying is that it has not come up, first of all, with guidelines,” Mugwe said.

He said social media had become an important communication and teaching tool for teachers, with staff rooms and schools using platforms such as WhatsApp to communicate.

Mugwe said teachers were also using social media for online teaching, something he noted the employer had previously encouraged.

“Teachers have been using social media to teach, online teaching. And in fact, the same employer has been advocating,” he said.

Mugwe further warned that the circular could be abused by school administrators to intimidate teachers who express views that are critical of their superiors or institutions. “Whenever a teacher posts something contrary to the school or to the superiors, a teacher will be accused of cyberbullying,” he said. He also raised concerns that teachers could be punished for expressing political views, particularly as the country enters a political season.

The KNUT official also defended teachers who use social media to expose problems within schools and the wider education sector, saying some of the whistleblowing had helped expose wrongdoing.

“Some of this whistleblowing is positive. It has been exposing some of the evils in the education sector,” Mugwe said.

Constitutional lawyer Ken Echesa says the freedom enjoyed by teachers on social media must be exercised alongside their professional obligations.

However, Echesa said the circular should not be interpreted as giving TSC a blanket power to punish teachers for everything they post online.

He said teachers, like other citizens, retain their constitutional right to freedom of expression and can hold or express opinions, including criticism, provided they do not cross the limits set by law.

He argued that a teacher criticising a school, an administrator or a government policy should not automatically be treated as engaging in cyberbullying or unprofessional conduct.

“The greatest concern would arise if the circular is applied selectively or used to silence legitimate criticism and whistleblowing. There must be a clear distinction between unlawful online conduct and the expression of an opinion that may be unpopular or critical of those in authority,” he said.

He further said that where teachers post content involving learners, their right to create content must be balanced against the learners’ privacy, dignity and best interests.

Echesa has doubled on the need for TSC to provide clear guidelines on how the circular will be enforced, including what constitutes unprofessional online conduct and the circumstances under which disciplinary action can be taken.