College Student Teacher Relationship

College Student-Teacher Relationship - Crossing the Line?


We've all heard of the story of Mary Kay Letorneau, a former middle-school teacher now a registered sex-offender that had a romantic and sexual relationship with one of her students. Since then, several other teachers have been charged due to relations they had with their students. It's considered taboo for teachers to have any romantic relations with their students, especially in the case of Mary Kay and others because the children involved were just that: children - minors. But is it still taboo if the parties involved are both consenting adults such as in the case of a college student-teacher relationship?

The biggest difference between a college student-teacher relationship and the Mary Kay Letorneau story is that two adults are involved. Most college students are already 18-years of age or older and are no longer minors. At this point, not only are students consenting but also not illegal for their older teachers to have a relationship with. But can a college student-teacher relationship be accepted in society?

No matter the age of the student involved, these types of relationships are still considered taboo in society. Perhaps it is still socially unacceptable because of the fact that the term "student" can always be associated with the relationship. The parents of students put their trust into the school system and faculty to not cross any sort of line against the good welfare of their children. Whether that line involves hitting the students as a form of disciplinary action or having sexual relations with students, parents do not wish to hear that their children were involved in any way.

However, a college student-teacher relationship cannot really be prevented. It can be heavily discouraged but never really prevented. At the ages of late teens to early adulthood, college students tend to be impressionable when faced with the idea of relationships, moreover, a sexual relationship. Perhaps what is even more interesting to them is the idea of something forbidden which can provide excitement, revelation, or adventure.

Society needs to accept that in a college student-teacher relationship it is not only the teacher that is involved but the student as well. The things to really consider here are if ever the relationship between the student and teacher discouragingly affects academics and lifestyle. Otherwise, there's really no point at efforts to put down these college relationships. Anyone involved in a college student-teacher relationship need not be stoned for having the relationship but rather, treated as a delicate subject to be analyzed and carefully considered.