Previous talk of a potential TikTok ban on January 19 was spread across campus, leaving students and faculty questioning the validity of this information. When the 24-hour ban came into effect, students and faculty had a reflection period of how the ban could reshape how students engage (or don’t) in the classroom.

When TikTok first debuted in 2016, the idea of short form content was new and different compared to YouTube’s longer content that was popular at the time.

Many question whether TikTok’s impact on education has been beneficial in enhancing creativity and learning, or if its fast paced content leads to decreased attention spans and helps to promote misinformation.

As TikTok became a popular app outside of the classroom, some teachers, like Bob McIntosh, IB Digital Society teacher, have wrestled with the place of this app inside the classroom.

“If we are going to use TikTok as an educational tool, teachers need to promote creators who create educational content or integrate TikTok into class projects such as students making videos on misinformation,” McIntosh said.

While concerns about the app still persist, McIntosh decided to incorporate some of the elements that contributed to TikTok’s success, such as its short format, into his International Baccalaureate (IB) Digital Society classes.

“I’ve had to adjust my presentations into little chunks to make sure students understand better. I even have ideas about students creating a TikTok video as a presentation of one of our topics,” McIntosh said.

For students like Azaliah Kekuna, a senior, using TikTok in the classroom has helped her hone media presentation skills. She found that there are creators that deepened her knowledge in educational topics and her niche interests, such as dance.

“I used TikTok to put together my psychology video, and it was actually very helpful because of all the special editing features. Not only does it help with that, but I also use it to help study and give study tips,” Kekuna said.

Looking to further its educational impact, TikTok added a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) feature in 2023 that promotes education content only, allowing for a learning environment to thrive alongside entertainment. This feature was made to encourage students to view content outside of their specific algorithms.

“There is the STEM tool which is monetized which can be accurate and entertaining,” said McIntosh.

However, TikTok’s educational output may not be appropriate to utilize in the classroom. Many are concerned about the accuracy of information spread over social media apps like TikTok. Viewers have a tendency to believe anything they see online is true.

“I get most of my news and updates on current events from TikTok. In that way I feel like it could be educational,” Kekuna said.

Ahead of the news of TikTok’s potential ban, senior Sebastian Sattullo-Yamashita was optimistic that it would be a positive development for students since it will decrease the amount of misinformation spread.

“If TikTok gets banned, I think it would keep me off my phone more and people will be able to talk in person more often,” Sattullo-Yamashita said

He feels TikTok has deeply influenced relationships inside and outside of the classroom. He feels it can create a divide between him and classmates because of how distracting it can be. This drives his low desire to have the app and how it doesn’t really benefit him in any way other than entertainment purposes.

“TikTok spreads a ton of misinformation. People see a TikTok and believe anything they see because they don’t fact-check. There is not much research and not enough critical thinking,” Sattullo-Yamashita said.

The necessity of fact-checking is important for any student, especially if these facts are being shared or taught within the classroom.

As users leave with the uncertainty of TikTok getting banned every year, they are left feeling more unsure what will happen in the future.

“TikTok is a very dynamic platform so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens from here and what this can look like in the classroom,” McIntosh said.