The dangers of being a ‘cool teacher’
The opinion argues that teachers who build online personal brands and message students informally can blur professional boundaries and increase child-safety and privacy risks.
- Teachers who privately message students or post classroom content on personal accounts can blur professional boundaries and create child-safety risks.
- The opinion says the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 restricts valid consent for processing the personal data of children under 18.
- The opinion says Central Board of Secondary Education affiliation bye-laws require teachers to maintain professional dignity and avoid conduct unbecoming of the role.
- The opinion says Tamil Nadu education authorities have issued guidelines for digital communication between teachers and students.
The Hindu opinion argues that teachers who become social-media creators can blur the line between professional authority and personal intimacy. The central concern is not friendly teaching alone, but informal digital conduct such as private messaging, late-night live sessions, and social-media following that can create risk for children and weaken institutional boundaries.
UPSC may ask how professional ethics, statutory child protection, and data-privacy norms should constrain teacher-student interactions on social media. The issue also opens questions on institutional accountability, school branding pressures, and the difference between genuine rapport and performative intimacy.
Related dispatches
