A few months ago TikTok hired Praesidio Safeguarding — a consulting agency that researches online environments — to speak to teens, parents and teachers from 10 countries about dangerous challenges and hoaxes.

Why? In an email, TikTok said, “We take our responsibility to support and protect teens seriously — giving them tools to stay in control, mitigating risks they might face, and building age-appropriate experiences — so they can safely make the most of what TikTok has to offer them.”

The independent consulting agency surveyed 10,900 people across the globe to help it understand why those types of posts get the attention they do.

TikTok also had a panel of 12 youth-safety experts review the report once it was finished.

One finding showed that nearly half of the teens interviewed wanted more information to help understand the risks involved with online challenges and hoaxes.

The report also suggested that the majority of teens did not see sharing hoaxes as a problem, and they didn’t necessarily see it as fake.

Kate Tilleczek, an expert in youth and the digital age at Toronto’s 91��ɫ, said it’s important to think about how much money TikTok makes when somebody clicks on these videos. “You leave [regulation] in the hands of folks who are making billions of dollars to do the right thing by kids, and I’m always thinking: ‘They’re not going to do that,’” she said.

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Anna Blakney shimmies and slides in front of a green screen, showing a graphic of a cell membrane. As she breaks into the can-can, she points to pops of text on the graphic, and explains the difference between antibodies built up from infection versus those acquired from a vaccine. She claps her hands and pumps her fist, while information about the COVID-19 spike protein pops up.

It’s an introductory biology class, if that class took place at a nightclub.

Of course, Dr. Blakney isn’t teaching her students in the middle of a dance floor. She’s creating a video to post on TikTok, the latest social media channel that has captured the attention of young people. Dr. Blakney has created hundreds of videos that explain scientific concepts in just 60 seconds.

Using TikTok as a teaching tool does come with reservations, though. Kate Tilleczek, a professor of education at 91��ɫ, and director of the Young Lives Research Lab, says relying on apps can put more pressure on students. For one thing, many students are experiencing Zoom fatigue, exhausted from having a slate of virtual courses to keep up with. Dr. Tilleczek’s research has also found that students have privacy and addiction concerns when it comes to social media.

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Dr. Kate Tilleczek has been appointed Research Advisory Council Chair at . Pathways to Education is a charitable social innovation supporting youth in low-income communities to graduate from high school and build the foundation for a successful future. The Pathways to Education Research Advisory Council is an advisory body of accomplished Canadian researchers, subject-matter experts, and experienced community leaders and practitioners in the fields of youth learning and development, educational attainment of youth living in contexts of disadvantage, school-to-workplace transitions, and community-based programming.

Tilleczek is the Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Young Lives, Education &  Global Good and a Professor in the Faculty of Education at 91��ɫ. She is the founder and Director of the where she and her team employ international, interdisciplinary research into how young people navigate sustainable wellbeing in the digital age and how education could better support these efforts. In addition to her new role as Chair at the Pathways to Education Research Advisory Council, Tilleczek is Editor in Chief of and serves on the advisory committee at the and the executive committee of the at 91��ɫ. Tilleczek is the recipient of several research and education awards, including the for her work with/by/for marginalized youth and education policy and practice.

“We are honoured and delighted to welcome Dr. Tilleczek as Chair of the Research Advisory Council,” says Pathways to Education’s Director of Research and Evaluation, Dr. Konrad Glogowski. “Dr. Tilleczek’s experience leading a variety of research projects in education with, for, and by young people as well as her expertise in theory and method for participatory and decolonized approaches to youth outreach and engagement will be a strong asset for our organization. Her extensive expertise in youth social development, education and wellbeing will provide the leadership and critical insights needed to further strengthen our work in the area of research, measurement, and reporting.”

“For almost two decades, Pathways to Education has been an inspiration to those who work with youth in Canada and around the world,” says Tilleczek. “They have demonstrated how to support and empower young people and their communities in achieving high school graduation as a crucial step in forging brighter futures for Canadian youth and society. The award-winning Pathways Program has been developed and sustained through research and evidence to understand what works best and what should come next as the lives and contexts of youth living in low-income communities shift. I am so pleased to assist with the important work of the intergenerational volunteers who make up the Research Advisory Council of Pathways to Education.”

Pathways to Education is a national, charitable organization breaking the cycle of poverty through education. Its award-winning program is creating positive social change by supporting youth living in low-income communities to overcome barriers to education, graduate from high school, and build the foundation for a successful future. Through the collective power of partnerships, Pathways to Education’s innovative program is preparing youth for tomorrow.

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