As a former dance teacher, I thoroughly enjoy watching my students in the playground popping shoulders, shaking hips, bopping heads and pointing fingers, all whilst staring down the lens of their phones. But other than my casual spectatorship, I have to admit, I know very little about TikTok. Perhaps its explosion in popularity was so fast that I missed it. And by explosion, I mean explosion!
Data provided by Campos (2021) shows that the growth of TikTok far surpasses that of any other social networking site, with worldwide downloads now exceeding one billion users. That means that one in every seven people worldwide are engaged in the app.
For the uninitiated, such as myself, TikTok is a social media app that allows users to scroll through and create videos that usually entail lip syncing and dancing along to trending songs (Thurrott, 2019). The videos can be shared with friends and wider groups of followers. In the aptly named book TikTok for Dummies, Stay (2021) captures the app’s fun spirit and addictive qualities:
“Be goofy, learn from what others are doing, and have fun. Join some memes and trends. Dance like you’ve never danced. Lip sync like you’ve never lip synced. Follow as many people as you can, and you’ll quickly get the hang of it.” (p.5)
Whilst TikTok can be a creative, social and humorous outlet for teenagers, all interactions through social apps come with some risk. Thurrott (2019) recommends a number of strategies for clueless parents to keep their teens safe on the TikTok:
1. Watch out for inappropriate content
2. Limit the people who can access your child’s videos
3. Teach your child how to stay safe online
4. Check it yourself
5. Monitor screen time
Read the full article here: https://www.nbcnews.com/better/lifestyle/what-tiktok-guide-clueless-parents-ncna1066466
So whether TikTok is a fad or is here to stay, there is no denying its presence in popular culture and its influence over the social media interactions of our teens. And I have to admit, it does sound like fun! This week’s challenge: make a TikTok with your teenager and report back!
References:
Campos, G (2021). How Many People Are On TikTok? Social Media App Reports Astounding Number Of Global Users. International Business Times. https://www.ibtimes.com/how-many-people-are-tiktok-social-media-app-reports-astounding-number-global-users-3305169
Stay, J. (2021). TikTok for Dummies. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Thurrott, S. (2019). What is TikTok? And is it safe? A guide for clueless parents. Better by Today. https://www.nbcnews.com/better/lifestyle/what-tiktok-guide-clueless-parents-ncna1066466
Her-selfie 
Michelle,
First and foremost, your blog is extremely easy to navigate and the colours you have chosen are easy to read against your backdrop, with your accompanying photos adding to the overall aesthetic of the blog, something that I am trying to master with my own but struggling to find balance.
As someone who has just missed out on being classified to being in the Tik Tok generation and not truly understanding its appeal and or how it came about so quick, I was glad to know I’m not alone. I was honestly shocked to see those statistics from Campos which stated that the growth of TikTok had surpassed social media sites such as Instagram and Snapchat (Medias myself and friends my age use each and every day). I also found the article from NBC to be highly interesting and something that I can now use during my cybersafe unit as there seems to be a lot more ‘dangers’ then on other social media sites.
I would like to know in following if you think Tik Tok could be used as a teaching tool? I know the risks may be to great and the department may not allow for them to be actually posted on the platform but I think if we aren’t capitalising on this boom then we may be missing out on something potentially great. Something to think about 😊
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