Whatsapp and personal Phone use

mirrorwall14

I’m just wondering how this works in other schools. For context we are a large secondary. All permanent staff given devices last year by the ETB. All staff on google mail.

WhatsApp used to be for messaging friends, the odd group of staff organising a meet up etc. You would get phone calls or the odd message from management when urgent about something

The creep began a few years ago to needing our phones with us at all times because text were coming in about cover classes etc. I found this really strange as any other school I had taught in phones out was frowned on by management (and that had been the case here too)

Then in the last year or two there have been whatsapp groups for subject depts, tutor groups etc

And the latest proposal was large WhatsApp groups for all teachers of second year for example where everyone would be being text about overflow classrooms.

We don’t really have a landline to ring parents off because all the offices are usually full and this year is worse with Covid as staff workspaces are at a premium. Staff seem to be putting our own phones on private and ringing home that way

At this point I think the creep has registered and everyone is wondering where the line is or if there is one

How do other schools manage this? Surely it should be on email or similar? It seems mental to be using our personal devices to be contacted about x/y being absent etc (even if it’s initials) Or being on cover at x time but it’s been such a slow creep staff has just rolled with it as needed

RealJohn

I wouldn’t allow my crowd to use my personal phone for regular work stuff, on a point of principle. Obviously, the school needs to have my number, and I’m fine with it if they want to send the occasional text (we got one to tell us we had emails to read before the return to school, for example), but if they wanted me to start using my phone for specific work related things on a regular basis, I’d be telling me that they can buy me a phone and pay for the credit, and be happy if I’m willing to charge it at home, if I even bring it home.

We were told that we shouldn’t use any personal devices for school work for GDPR reasons. Funnily enough though, around the same time we were told that, the principal added the entire teaching staff to a school WhatsApp group without asking us first (while also claiming that we couldn’t see each other’s timetables on vsware for GDPR reasons).
Granted, I don’t remember it ever being used, other than to send everyone a happy Christmas message, but I imagine there were a few members of staff who weren’t impressed that the rest of the staff now had access to their personal phone number.

SligoBrewer

I'd leave that straight away tbh

highly1111

We would never be expected to use personal devices for work - actually that's incorrect - we have a few high high risk kids who we need to in class at all times and if not we are asked to call their year head who has a work phone. But that's the only exception. We might get an occasional blanket text from our deputy principal but only in an absolute emergency asking us to check email for something major.

Treppen

Absolutely no ****** way would I be using personal phone for work whatsapp groups. That thing died a death after the previous craze of encouraging teachers to use facebook as a teaching tool so they could be down and hip with the kids.

In saying that, I'd have one or 2 colleagues who I'd send funny memes to and maybe if there was some big news I'd be asking them for further info.

If you really want to put a stop to this nonsense then read on...

"This is an issue for a number of reasons outside of GDPR and data protection also. For instance, if a parent in a WhatsApp group were to post unsuitable material to the WhatsApp group, and then leave the group, the administrators of the group cannot remove such material."

Link

Wouldn't it be terrible if your phone/ sim card got temporarily stolen

gaiscioch

"Creep" is definitely an accurate description for how this once firm line between homelife and worklife has been gradually blurred by technology. The level of work has definitely increased due to the myriad levels of raiméis connected with SLARs, updated department plans, allocating work for each member of the dept to create specific resources and so, so, so much else which not only takes away from our actual teaching but imposes upon far more of our private time.

To get this increased work out of the way asap, contact has moved from alert-free school email to "live" whatsapp messages. Should you not participate in this normalisation of theft of your private time, you risk "imposing" a greater work burden on your colleagues because this work "must" be shared. Essentially, this emphasis on "subject department work" acts as a sort of emotional blackmail into compelling us to give more of our private time. We can, and should, refuse to have this line blurred. If this imposition on our private time hasn't already become an expectation from all schools, it will in the not-too-distant future. Most definitely a slippery slope.

Bobtheman

Bar contact with the Principal no personal phone should be used for school unless they want to fund it. It breaks GDPR as well.
Just say no.