Teachers Take Over TikTok
Every day 500 million people log in to the app TikTok, but even with all these people, do our West High teachers have any idea what TikTok is?
TikTok, previously named Musical.ly is a social media app that includes people, usually from ages 12- 30, dancing to songs, lip syncing to various audios, and making many different forms of original content.
This app sprang into the forefront of media in January 2018, when it became the number one free mobile app in the app store. From there it grew to the trend it is today with the famous songs of the app, like “Obsessed” by Mariah Carey, being played everywhere.
We decided to let teachers share their opinions on the famous app, and participate in the dancing portion of TikTok as well, by emulating TikToks of West High students. Five West High teachers were interviewed and they all had varying opinions on the app
Some were confused. “Do I understand the trend? Maybe not apparently, it felt to me like another Vine type,” said Jeff Finn, English teacher.
Others were angered. “TikTok is a plague on society,” Byron Butler, science teacher responded in an email.
After emulating TikToks, we wondered if teachers would have a different opinion on the app. While some did others were hesitant to change their opinions, because of how often they’ve seen it in the schools.
TikTok has an impact on the classroom in some cases. Many videos are scattered throughout the app of students making TikToks at school and during school hours. Some teachers noticed it as a distraction while others said they never really noticed if it was in the classroom.
For some teachers TikTok is hard to notice, with students who make them at home or only watch them by themselves when they have a chance. For other teachers, they have noticed TikTok in the school, because of people making them in the lunchroom, or even the classroom during free time.
Unbeknownst to most teachers TikTok becoming a distraction in class is the least of their worries. TikTok also controls the time for students at West and is a major reason for bad time management. Tiktok videos are very short, less than 60 seconds each, under 15 seconds for most, so watching one seems like nothing, but one leads to another and another, and after spending your whole night watching TikToks it’s hard to go back to doing homework.
A big question with all trends, TikTok being no exception is if the app will last. Even with the trend being as big as it is now in just a few short months the next top thing could be in the forefront of our minds, taking up our time, and leaving teachers confused with the Gen Z habits.