SOCIAL MEDIA RULES FOR TEACHERS - Social Media Consent and Student Safety Guidelines

Aug 13, 2026

Education Ministry (MoE) issued social media guidelines requiring teachers to obtain written consent from parents or guardians before recording and sharing students’ images, videos, or audio online. The move targets sexual harassment prevention and safeguards student safety and consent. The article also notes compliance with relevant child protection and public officers’ conduct regulations, highlights prior use of parental declaration letters, and outlines broader learning-recovery efforts to reduce dropouts through improved literacy and arithmetic, teacher training, and digital learning tools.

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Social media consent requirement for teachers

Purpose: student safety and reducing harassment

Legal compliance and parental declaration letters

Learning recovery program for dropouts

Focus areas and implementation

TARIKH:25 SEPTEMBER 2024(RABU) BERITA HARIAN□UTUSAN M'SIAN.STRAITS TIMES THE STAR□SINAR HARIAN□ SOCIAL MEDIA RULESFOR TEACHERS # AMIRUL AIMAN HAMSUDDINAND IYLIA MARSYA ISKANDARTANJUNG KARANGnews@nst.com.my R9.2 HE Education Ministry(MoE)has issued guide-lines last month requir-ing teachers to obtainwritten consent from parents orguardians before recording andsharing images,videos or audicof students on social media. Minister Fadhlina Sidek saidthe move aimed to tackle sexualharassment in schools and safe-guard students. "These guidelines remindteachers to seek parental consentwhen creating content,as we takechildren's safety and consent se-riously,”she said during theSTEMHub launch at the TanjungKarangTeacher Activity Centre. Yayasan Petronas chief execu-tive officer Shariah Nelly Francisand deputy education director-general(School OperationsZainal Abas were also present. On Sept 6,CommunicationsMinister Fahmi Fadzil had saidteachers must adhere to the law,and the MoE should ensure com-pliance with the Child Act 2001when producing social mediacontent. Fadhlina added that the guidelines appliedto everyone,not justteachers,when featuring stu-dents. "I trust educators will complyto ensure everyone's safety,es-pecially the children,"she said. Previously,the MoE informedschools about using parental dec-laration letters for consent torecord and share student contenton social media,aligning with its“Guidelines on Values and EthicsofSocial Media Use”issued onOct4last year. This was in line with the PublicOfficers(Conduct and Discipline)Regulations 1993,which prohib-ited the sharing of content involv-ing school administrators,teach-ers,students,parents or guardianswithout their permission. Meanwhile,the MoE and the Finance Ministry will be launch-ing the Anak Kita programme toaddress the issue of dropouts inthe country,with the involve-ment of various government de-partments and agencies througha whole-of-nation approach. In a joint statement,the min-istries said the learning recoveryprogramme aimed to enhancethe standard of living for the peo-ple,in line with one of theMadani Economy frameworkgoals,which is to improve theeconomic status of citizens. "This learning recovery pro-gramme focuses on improvingliteracy and arithmetic skillsamong primary school pupils,in-creasing Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia(SPM)pass rates and reintegrat-ing dropouts back into the ed-ucation system. "It is organised by the FinanceMinistry and the Education Min-istry,in collaboration withYayasan Hasanah,and will belaunched on Friday,Sept 27,”itsaid. Fadhlina said the initiative waspart of a broader commitment toimprove educational standardsin Malaysia,aligning with globaleducation agendas such as theUnited Nations'Sustainable De-velopment Goal 4(Quality Ed-ucation)(SDG4)and the MalaysiaMadani concept,which empha-sises sustainability,wellbeingand creativity. "The Education Ministry is ac-tively implementing educationalreform initiatives aimed at ad-dressing learning dropouts.Thisis being achieved through six keypathways,including the realign-ment of the preschool system andcurriculum interventions,"sheadded. Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan said pos-sessing an SPM qualification wascritical in empowering youngpeople and ensuring their pro-ductive participationin the work-force. "The government is committedto building a competitive andknowledgeable society to drivethe country's economic growth.Quality education can nurture ageneration with good characterand intellectual skills,which areessential for driving a sustainableeconomy,as outlined in theMadani Economy framework. "Througheducational advance-ment,people can break the cycleof poverty,thus elevating the eco-nomic baseline for families in thelong term,in line with the gov-ernment's goal of eradicatingpoverty in the country,"he said. The collaboration between thetwoministries also brings togeth-er corporate organisations,civilsociety groups,publi

FAQs

What new requirement did the Education Ministry issue for teachers using social media?

Teachers must obtain written consent from parents or guardians before recording and sharing students’ images, videos, or audio on social media.

Why did the Education Ministry introduce these guidelines?

The guidelines aim to tackle sexual harassment in schools and safeguard students’ safety and consent.

How does the article connect the education initiatives to dropout reduction?

It mentions the Anak Kita learning recovery programme, focused on improving literacy and arithmetic, raising SPM pass rates, and reintegrating dropouts into the education system through targeted interventions.

Aug 13, 2026

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