Student-teacher relationship in the Facebook era: the student perspective

Abstract

Student-teacher relationships are vital for students’ academic development and for their well-being. As social network sites (SNS) have become increasingly popular, school authorities and policymakers are concerned about the implications of student-teacher connections using them, often resulting in banning such communication. While these regulations might have far-reaching social impacts, empirical evidence supporting them is meager. The main goal of the qualitative exploratory study reported herewith, involving lower and higher secondary school Israeli students (N = 11), is to understand the relations between Facebook-based student-teacher communication and student-teacher relationships. Findings suggest that communication between Israeli students and teachers on Facebook was limited; however, it was useful for some students as an available means of communication with their teachers. Generally, students see Facebook as a closed territory for youngsters; still, they do tend to befriend teachers they connect with in ‘real-life’. Findings highlight opportunities, rather than risks, of SNS-mediated student-teacher relationships, implicating the need for evidence-based decision-making.