TikTok… where to even begin? I became a member of the social networking app during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic back in January of 2019 (wow that seems crazy to say). Two years ago I too found myself as Langwitches states “in a stage of lurking, observing, curating and finding my way around” the app, these actions led to me deleting the platform from my smartphone due to over-exhaustion of the content. I find myself now three months “sober” of TikTok, re-downloading the app to meet the needs of assignments, and already feeling the craving of what the app offers for mental stimulation. To be very honest, once this class comes to an end I will probably have to once again delete the app from my phone to maintain a somewhat appropriate level of daily screen time, however for now I am enjoying the app’s comfort once again.

I have noticed that now using the app as an educational tool has changed my habits in the sense that I don’t feel the need to scroll aimlessly anymore. After reading through the various blogs and informational sites about TikTok it has broadened my views of what the app is and how it impacts our world. So what is it? Obviously it is a social media platform, truth be told I am still beyond confused about the whole Musical.ly app and the cross over it went to become the now TikTok but that is not the most important mystery to currently solve. LangWitches gave me a few ideas for how to truly define what the app is. In a sense like the blog TikTok states, its content reminds me a little bit of the TV show America’s Funniest Home Videos. Although my reasoning is slightly different from the blog’s it follows their vision of what the app is. The TV show America’s Funniest Home Videos is a series of videos shared from a diversity of backgrounds that exhibit day to day life of people all over the world simply living. TikTok “is like a documentation of our world” (LangWitches). It shows us the lives of people we have never met, whom we have no conception of other than the short 15-60 video of them we are watching. We get to view creators who have lived and are living completely different (or maybe the same) lives than we will ever know. We are exposed to and are given a glimpse of a world that is not our own yet we are now a part of. TikTok is not just a social media app and anyone who says to a kid, adult, ANYONE the older than time saying “stop wasting your time and start living” while they are using the app needs to understand that this is the reality of life and they are living in it.

Skipping ahead, how can TikTok be used as a professional? I am going to take this question and assume that it is referring to my profession of being an early elementary educator. Beginning from evidence taken from the readings, TikTok is an app that promotes creativity, collaboration, sharing of ideas, and connecting with other members of the platform. Notice how all four of those things all relate to key goals of student learning and classroom goals? Using TikTok as a digital tool in the classroom is just another method of showing our students how to utilize technology to learn more about their interests and the world around them. Being a teacher in the 21st century requires us to stay up-to-date in the technology that our students are interested in and using (as Misskirbyjarvis stated). This is because in order to teach meaningfully we need to stay “relevant to their lives and appeal to their intelligence and experience” nicely worded by The White Hatter. As an educator, simply scrolling through the dance challenges, gags, and story times may not be the most educational use of our time and resources, however, the beauty of the app is that we can adjust our search engine and what we choose to watch in order to fuel our teaching.

To conclude, you are on TikTok observing, creating, living, etc., how do you find the community that you belong to? How do you use an app to build your PLN? How do you find the people that intrigue you? Excite you? Share commonalities to you that you thought couldn’t possibly exist in the world you are in? You scroll. You comment. You like. You follow. And you don’t be ashamed of who you are, what you’re passionate about, and what you enjoy learning. It is so easy to find like-minded people and groups on TikTok, the app itself is set to even show you content that it believes you will enjoy based on its algorithm set up. For any professional, by observing or creating you’re able to reach and connect with individuals working in the same line as you. From there you can further connect through commenting, duetting, or liking their video and then further find their other online platforms (Instagram, Facebook, Blogs) where you can further create professional and personal relationships.

I apologize to all who have read and lived through this slightly emotional and disorganized thought chain. However, I also take back that apology because no one should ever have to apologize for shamelessly sharing their wonders in the hopes to enlighten others.