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With the ease of internet access, in the last few years, social media has become the key channel of communication. WhatsApp is probably the most popular in the social media platform. The number of users of this Facebook owned platform has reached 400 million in 2018. Survey data collected over successive rounds of the Lokniti-CSDS Mood of the Nation (MOTN) survey shows that currently around 31 per cent Indian use WhatsApp on a daily basis.

WhatsApp goes to school

One of the frequent users of WhatsApp is teacher-parents-students community in schools. Use of this medium is relatively new in the arena of education.

Although social networks were not initially created for academic purposes, they are gradually being used as a means of communication between teachers and students. Education institutions have started adopting these developments into their systems and are relying on group resources and mechanisms to make education convenient to students.

This is a growing trend mostly among private schools, where WhatsApp groups are being created through which students interact with teachers; teachers interact with parents to share on a regular basis. WhatsApp groups are also being used to make up for lost school days. Not only does class notes get exchanged between teachers and students or between students through this medium, sometimes teachers also manage their lost teaching time by sharing resources with students through the app.

The medium is not only confined to private institutions now. In recent past, the Union Government as well as a number of State governments have started using WhatsApp as a policy tool. NITI Aayog has tied up with WhatsApp on digital skilling programme to promote women entrepreneurship. Many of the government schools in Rajasthan are using WhatsApp as enrolment strategy to bring more students in schools to compete with the private schools.  In Haryana, WhatsApp is being used to facilitate important conversations between teachers and the education department. The department has started sharing teaching guidelines and techniques in teachers-only WhatsApp groups as per their requirements. Similarly, to share ideas and professional experiences among themselves, Delhi Government has recommended the teachers in government schools to form WhatsApp groups.

Definitely there are some positive features of WhatsApp which have made this app attractive not only among school management, students, parents and teachers but also to policy makers.

Two major advantages of this app are its simplicity and low usage cost. It also enables learning beyond the classroom. The availability of teachers to students after school hours has made the learning process easier. Accessibility of learning materials, the possibility of learning any time and any place is the other feature of the app that encourages policy makers to use this app for teachers’ development.

 Is this all good for students and teachers?

While WhatsApp could be a useful way of communications in schools, it also has flipsides.

If we look from the students’ perspective the main technical challenge is that not all students/parents possess a Smartphone or the application. Thus, by default all those students face exclusion from this mode of communication which is not desirable.

Secondly, the teacher-student communication is apparently a communication between teachers and parents. The schools expect parents’ participation rather than their children in every bit of information. In this way, schools are to some extent shrugging their responsibilities. This mechanism of passing information to parents is also detrimental to children. It is not only hindering a child’s natural ability to think independently, but also restraining the child from developing a sense of responsibility.

On the other hand, the continuous flow of messages from different parents or teachers from different groups turns into a relentless, 24/7 activity for every parent. This in turn is inducing parents (mostly mothers as it is rare to find fathers in the parent-teachers WhatsApp groups) to monitor all the activities of their children and control them excessively. This additional stress on students is impeding their learning to deal with a situation.

The case is slightly different for teachers.  Though, most of the teachers see merit in forming WhatsApp groups with parents, some teachers reported being flooded by too many messages, in a way that burdened and annoyed them, especially if they have more than one group or groups with a large number of students/parents. It also takes away a lot of productive time of teachers. In addition, late hour messaging, challenges of expression in communication, or demand for an instant solution are some of the disadvantages that teachers face with this communication tool.

Indeed, WhatsApp has created a space in the communication of school education with all its advantages of facilitating access to information easily even in the remote areas and disseminating knowledge among teachers and students at almost zero cost. However, given the actual and potential risks associated with the use of this social media in schools, it would be worthwhile for schools to consider the implications of WhatsApp use before embracing it. Schools should encourage as much dialogue as possible with students and parents instead of over-reliance on this virtual mode of communication.

In the process of connecting, we should not disconnect ourselves further from our children.

The views expressed in this piece are those of the author, and don’t necessarily reflect the position of CBGA. You can reach Protiva Kundu at protiva@cbgaindia.org.