New Rules Proposed for Teacher-Pupil WhatsApp Chats in South Africa

• The Department of Basic Education is working on guidance to regulate how teachers communicate with learners on WhatsApp and other social media platforms
• A school governance expert warned that private one-on-one chats between teachers and learners are particularly concerning and urged a shift to group communication
• Parents were called on to take an active role in monitoring their children's online activity rather than leaving all responsibility to schools

SOUTH AFRICA - South Africa's Department of Basic Education (DBE) is putting together new guidance to set clearer boundaries around how teachers and learners communicate on WhatsApp and other social media platforms.

According to EWN, the move comes amid growing concern that professional relationships between educators and pupils can quickly become blurred when digital communication moves into informal spaces. The proposed guidance is intended to protect both teachers and children from situations that could lead to inappropriate conduct or abuse.

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Group chats over private messages

Riaan van der Bergh, Deputy CEO of the Federation of Governing Bodies of South African Schools (FEDSAS), spoke about the issue on 702. He made it clear that the technology itself is not the problem; the real issue lies in how it is being used.

Van der Bergh highlighted private, one-on-one conversations between teachers and learners as a particular area of concern. He argued that group chats, where parents and other learners can see what is being discussed, offer a much safer and more transparent alternative.

He also suggested that schools look at formal communication platforms rather than allowing teachers to use their personal WhatsApp accounts for learner contact. Alongside this, he recommended setting firm limits around communication hours, proposing that contact between teachers and learners be restricted to school hours or no later than around 4pm. Late-night private conversations, he warned, create conditions where professional limits become increasingly difficult to uphold.

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Parents must step in

Van der Bergh was equally direct about the role parents need to play. He argued that families cannot simply hand over responsibility to schools when it comes to what their children are doing online. Parents should be actively involved in monitoring the phones and digital spaces their children access.

Suggested practical measures include keeping teacher-learner communication within school hours, avoiding private chats where possible, and looping parents into conversations where appropriate.

While Van der Bergh welcomed the idea of stronger boundaries, he cautioned against leaning too heavily on policy documents. He said protecting learners ultimately depends on educators genuinely understanding and respecting professional boundaries, not simply following another set of rules on paper.

16 countries ban social media for children

Previously, Briefly News also reported 16 countries have moved to ban social media for childen under 16. The countries include Atustralia, Indonesia and Malaysia with more countries set to follow. Indonesia and Malaysia brouht similar bans into effect in March and June 2026 respectively. Brazil took a different approach, passing a law in March that requires platforms to link accounts of users under 16 to their parents and to verify users' ages.

Source: Briefly News