Teachers at a public high school in Iloilo have come under fire after a Facebook Reel showed them holding placards with slang phrases deemed inappropriate for students.
A Reddit user raised concern over the now-unavailable Reel, reportedly posted by the Passi NHS-SHS-Butlak Club, the official English club of Passi National High School’s Senior High School program.
In screenshots shared on Reddit, one teacher is seen holding a placard with the slang term “AFAM,” while another holds one reading “FRIENDS WITH BINIFEETS”—a play on “friends with benefits,” substituting “benefits” with “BINIFEETS.”
It was unclear whether the term referenced the P-pop girl group BINI.
A third placard in the video reportedly read, “WE ARE LOOKING FOR.”
In Filipino slang, “AFAM” is short for “A Foreigner Around Manila” or “A Foreigner Assigned in Manila.”
It has since been used colloquially to refer to any foreigners in the country, most particularly in romantic or dating contexts when Filipinas date foreigners.
Meanwhile, “friends with benefits” refers to a setup in which individuals who know each other as friends engage in intimate or sexual activity without dating each other.
The Reddit user shared a screengrab of the supposed Facebook Reel which had the following as part of its caption, “Soafer happy day, mga ka-BUTLAK!”
The video has since been taken down from the club’s Facebook page.
Teachers called out
In the screengrab, a comment could be seen from a Facebook user, which reads, “You guys are professional licensed teachers…”
“Professional teachers tapos ganito,” the Redditor said on Saturday, July 5.
Professional teachers tapos ganito
byu/sausage_0120 inPhilippines
Even as the post had disappeared, it has earned flak on Reddit, where some users referenced teachers who exhibit similar behaviors.
“My fiance is now [in] her 6th [sixth] year as a public school teacher. Totoo na may crisis sa mga teachers. Sa faculty pa lang nila, nasa around 5-6 [five to six] lang matino,” a Redditor commented.
“‘Yung isa nagpapakalat na ‘yung COVID vaccine daw may microchip. Meron na sa group chat ng parents at students, nagsasabi na ‘bring PRRD home’ daw. Meron ding manyak, merong walang pake sa mga students kahit na walang natututunan, basta uuwi lang, meron ding late sa class [two] hours everyday (‘di ko alam bakit ‘di pa ‘to natatanggal),” the user added.
“Marami [nang] ganito. Mga co-teachers ko ganito, kanal. Kanal ang ugali, ‘di napasok sa klase para mag-TikTok at gumawa ng mga contents. Ayun, na-promote pa sila, hahhaha. Pero tingin [niyo], ano iisipin ng mga estudyante? Na okay lang gumawa ng ganyan?” another Redditor said.
“I’m a teacher myself (tho umalis na ako sa pagtuturo) and I’m telling y’all, mapa-public [or] private, maraming teachers ang puro kalandian ang alam. ‘Yung iba, crush ‘yung students nila ta’s medyo pinapahalata. ‘Yung iba, shiniship co-teachers nila sa mga students. Meron ‘yung iba na questionable ‘yung closeness sa mga piling students [kasi] lumalabas sila ‘pag weekends,” said a different user.
“‘Yung iba, student teacher pa lang — wala pang bachelor’s degree at lisensya — hinihingan na ng number ‘yung mga students nila, inii-stalk din sa social media ta’s proud pang sine-save ‘yung pics ng student tapos ima-MyDay ‘yung zoomed na mata ng student with matching cute captions,” the Redditor added.
What the Code of Ethics says
Based on the Code of Ethics for Professional Teachers, educators are supposed to “actively help ensure that teaching is the noblest profession, and shall manifest genuine enthusiasm and pride in teaching as a noble calling.”
“Every teacher shall uphold the highest possible standards of quality education, shall make the best preparation for the career of teaching, and shall be at his best at all times in the practice of his profession,” the code added.
It also stated that “a teacher shall maintain at all times a dignified personality which could serve as a model worthy of emulation by learners, peers, and others.”
The code likewise stated that “a teacher shall place premium upon self-respect and self-discipline as the principles of personal behavior in all relationships with others and in all situations.”