A popular teacher at an Abbotsford, B.C., Catholic high school has been charged with child exploitation after an incident involving one of his female students.

Abbotsford Police say the two charges against Martin Careen, 49, were laid after an investigation began in April.

He is facing one count of inviting a young person to sexual touching, and one count of communicating via computer to lure a child.

The luring is alleged to have occurred via cell phone text messaging with the student and overt gestures at the school.

Careen teaches at St. John Brebeuf Regional Secondary School (SJB), a private Catholic school in the Fraser Valley.

The alleged victim is a female youth. Police are not releasing specifics of the offence.

Investigators believe the incident was isolated but they are asking anyone with any information to come forward.

Careen, described as a "well liked teacher," has been on paid administrative leave since the school board became aware of the police investigation.

A Facebook group, the "Mr. Martin Careen Fan Club," describes him as "possibly one of the greatest teachers St. John Brebeuf has ever had."

He is expected to appear in Abbotsford provincial court August 6.

Merlyn Horton, a child educator with the Safe Online Outreach Society, says text messaging represents an opportunity for a new type of child exploitation.

"Social networking, text messaging, webcams in bedrooms, those kinds of things bring up risks for opportunities for exploitation that haven't existed in the past," she said.

"In some ways exploitation that occurs online is more damaging to young people."

Police and experts agree the best way to protect against online or texting predators is through having an open dialogue with kids.

"Be aware of what your kids are up to whether it's with a cell phone or with a computer," RCMP Sgt. Rob Vermeulen said.

"Parents need to acknowledge that young people's online lives are as much a part of their experiences as offline activity -- so ask," Horton said.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Stephen Smart