Teachers received naked pictures, obscene voice notes on online learning platform

By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

Ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

TEACHERS have received naked pictures and voice notes with obscene language from students during virtual learning, revealed Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) President Belinda Wilson.

Speaking at a Rotary meeting on Thursday, she expressed the concern about the safety of the virtual platform. Mrs Wilson retold the shocking stories of what happened while emphasizing the importance of policies governing behaviour of virtual learning platforms.

“I can say to you all that when our teachers were teaching some of them received naked pictures from students. Some of them received notes or voice notes with obscene language,” she said.

“Some of the teachers were teaching, the students were using maybe their parent’s laptop or their parents’ cellphone. The parent came, pulled the device out of the child’s hand and cursed while other students were able to see and hear.

“There’s a lot more to visual learning and we want to have policies in place to govern how all of us should behave ….in a COVID environment while we’re using technology.”

The President said there were many challenges faced while utilizing online learning ranging from no electricity, data, or devices. Despite noting teachers, parents, and students doing their best, Mrs Wilson shared an instance of students possibly not participating in class.

She recalled: “A Family Island teacher shared with me how she had several students logged on to the virtual platform and she had to go outside and she said as she was outside she saw two of her students riding their bicycle but they were registered and logged in and she thought they were actually on the virtual platform and in class.”