‘Influencer teachers’ spark debate on education quality, safety

ISTANBUL

The recent surge in "influencer teachers," who create videos with students and garner income and followers through related posts on social media, has become a topic of discussion due to potential threats to both the quality of education and the safety of students.

Following the Education Ministry’s ban on the use of mobile phones in schools for primary, middle and high school students, despite the instruction from minister Yusuf Tekin for teachers to refrain from using phones in class as much as possible, these influencer teachers have almost transformed schools into film sets, according to numerous experts and parents.

Some create entertaining videos, while others film disadvantaged students' hardships with emotional music in the background. Furthermore, some of them earn significant sums of money by accepting advertisements.

Academic Yusuf Kızıltaş, who categorized "influencer teachers" as an obsession and discusses this phenomenon in an academic article for the first time in Türkiye, pointed out that teachers rehearse their videos during class hours, and although dealing with these videos may seem fun, it could potentially hinder students from acquiring knowledge during essential learning hours.

Highlighting the potential security threats posed by the frequent exposure of children in social media platforms, Kızıltaş asserted that among those following teachers with numerous followers, there are a large number of accounts engaged in pedophilia and sharing explicit content.

Additionally, some of these teachers have parents sign consent forms for video shooting, but do not share the specific content details with them. Şahin Antakyalıoğlu, coordinator of the Network of Lawyers Working in the Field of Children, stated that parental consent alone is not sufficient.