“A Case Study about Teacher-Student Relationship”

OUR society is averse to teacher-student love affairs. It is considered a forbidden act

for teachers to fall for their students. As teachers, they stand in loco parentis as regards
their minor wards. It is therefore unthinkable for a teacher, who under the law is a
substitute parent, to have amorous feelings towards his or her minor student. A student
on the other hand is vulnerable and therefore protected by laws against abuses such as
RA 7610, or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation
and Discrimination Act; and RA 7877, or the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of
1995.

A student is likewise both innocent and adventurous and therefore susceptible to

abuses and fraud by a teacher who has influence and moral ascendancy over him or
her. Thus, even when a minor student voluntarily enters into a love affair with his or
her teacher, consent is disregarded by law and the teacher may be deemed to have
committed child abuse as a criminal offense.

Student as the child

The public policy against teacher-student relationships is clearer when the student is a
minor, but not when the student is already of majority age. Children as defined in RA
7610 refer to persons below 18 years of age or over but are unable to fully take care of
themselves or protect themselves from abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation or
discrimination because of a physical or mental disability or condition.

But DepEd’s Child Protection Policy, or D.O. 40 series of 2012, which also
protects students from all forms of child abuse, provides for a different definition of a
“child.” Under this DepEd policy, the term “child” includes those who are 18 years of
age or older but are in school. This policy expands the definition of a “child” under RA
7610, and RA 6809 which states that majority commences at the age of 18 years. Does
this mean that under the DepEd Child Protection Policy, a basic education student of
majority age may also file an administrative complaint for child abuse against the
teacher?

Students getting older, teachers getting younger

Because of the present senior high school curriculum implementation, students are
getting older and teachers are getting younger. At Grade 12, students are already
expected to be 18years of age. And because professional teachers now are as young as
20 years old, the generation gap between teachers and students has been rendered
insignificant. A lot of them now belong to the same generation of millennials. And this
phenomenon has increased the incidents of teacher-student relationships.

So how should schools look at student-teacher relationships?

When the teacher is married, it is both illegal and immoral to maintain a relationship
with a student. When the student and teacher in a relationship engage in PDAs (public
displays of affection) in school, it is also easy to cite them for immorality and
inappropriate behavior. When there is proof that a sexual relationship exists and the
student is a minor, a crime exists under RA 7610 and consent is not a defense.

What if the student makes the first move is it alright?

Still no, because teacher should always be professional. His personal whims should not
interfere with his job as it involves a lot of issues not to mention moral, ethical, and
legal questions.

But what if there is no PDA in school, no proof of illicit or sexual relations,

and there is mutual consent between two adults who are both single?

In the case of Evelyn Chua Qua v. Clave, the female teacher who had a relationship
with her 16-year-old student and eventually married the latter, the Supreme Court ruled
that she was illegally dismissed on the ground of immorality. The Supreme Court said
that to constitute immorality, the totality of circumstances of each particular case must
be holistically considered and evaluated in the light of prevailing norms of conduct and
the applicable law. Immorality is a factual question that should be determined in the
circumstances surrounding every case and cannot simply be presumed. This case is
known for the Supreme Court’s pronouncement, borrowing the quote from French
philosopher Blaise Pascal, saying, “If the two eventually fell in love, despite the disparity
in their ages and academic levels, this only lends substance to the truism that the heart
has reasons of its own which reason does not know.” However, Teacher should
establish a benchmark to their students to avoid gossips in the school and the
community. They should set standards to avoid conflict of interest and favoritism. Thus,
Student- Teacher relationship can only be acceptable if the Teacher is no longer
teaching in the same school where his/her partner is studying.

Effect of social media

But applying the totality of circumstances in student-teacher relationship cases in this
day and age is problematic for school administrators. This is because student-teacher
interaction is no longer limited in-campus. They now interact in social media and
beyond school hours. And when both the student and the teacher belong to the same
generation and their age difference is irrelevant, the moral ascendancy or influence can
no longer be presumed especially when they interact not as such students and teachers
but simply, as persons. Feelings of attraction and admiration among them are almost
inevitable.

Ultimately, how a student-teacher relationship is addressed depends on the school’s

consistency in implementing its own policy and standards on morality and appropriate
behavior. The school’s duty to preserve both its integrity as an educational institution
and that of its teachers, and the responsibility to act in accordance with the best
interest of the child student, will always be the primary consideration above all else.
 A Case Study about Student Discipline and Teacher Protection Act

Many teachers, particularly those working in public schools, face the dilemma
of trying to instill discipline in their students because a lot of so-called ‘bad students’
could easily turn the tables on them, accusing them of maltreatment. A lot of parents
expect that teachers will instill discipline in their children because they find that difficult
to do at home; yet many of them also complain when teachers do impose discipline on
the kids. Some even file charges against the teacher. Considering that most teachers
handle dozens of students per day, aside from the many additional tasks like reports
and evaluations they need to submit, it is important that they are also given protection
from bad students who could easily get away because there are still minors.

With the aim to protect teachers from ‘bad students’ and saving them from
unfair cases, party-list ACT Teachers Representatives Antonio Tinio and France Castro
passed for the second reading the “Teacher Protection Act”, House bill 9065. The
House bill states that “an act committed by a teacher or school staff pursuant to the
disciplinary rules and procedure issued by the Department shall not be deemed as child
abuse, cruelty, exploitation as denied in Republic Act No. 7610 or the Special
Protection of Children against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act.”

The House bill was done after radio personality Raffy Tulfo publicly shamed a
teacher, who was accused of allegedly maltreating a student, and pressured her to quit
her job and give up her license.

In the episode of “Raffy Tulfo in Action,” the family of the Grade 2 student
complained about teacher Melita Limjuco who allegedly maltreated the child. Tulfo, in
a phone call, asked the teacher if she would rather face charges or agree to have her
license revoked.

Limjuco agreed to the latter, drawing backlash on social media from teachers and
supporters who condemned Tulfo’s action.

DepEd said that Tulfo’s “on-the-spot compromise” is against the agency’s

policy and deprived Limjuco of her right to due process. Incidents of child abuse are not
subject to compromise under DepEd’s Child Protection Policy. The department added:
“On the other hand, teachers are entitled to due process, which was not given to her
during the program.”