It’s a new year and no time is as good as right now to pass on empowering information to our parents. We love technology for education, but parents can, and do, find this a treacherous road to navigate, especially when confronted by requests to set up social media accounts.
I stumbled upon this website, National Online Safety, and while it is actually aimed at schools and teachers, it is a treasure trove for parents who want to do their homework before giving their young ones carte blanche to social media.
Having one older teenager and another child in her early twenties at home, I have been exposed to quite a bit of Tik Tok content over the holidays. Much of what I was shown was not appropriate for under 16s, nevermind under 13s. I was also made aware of some other Tik Tok issues, such as strangers private messaging younger children, sexual content, etc. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, as I know that Tik Tok is a very popular app amongst tweens. I turned to Common Sense Media for more information and, hopefully, some common sense! Common Sense Media should become a parent’s go-to place for checking out any apps requested by children. Their reviews are easy to read, are balanced and give many tips for parents. Please do take a look there too.
UPDATE: It has recently come to my attention that the creators of Tik Tok have listened to the concerns of parents, and they have now put parental controls in place to assist parents in managing their children’s access to this app. The age restriction of 13+ has, however, not changed.
Learning in a Digital World 