Parent and Teacher Guide to Tik Tok

February 28, 2022
Parent and Teacher Guide to Tik Tok

Age Restrictions

Take the time to become familiar with the age restrictions that Tik Tok has in place to protect younger users. Tik Tok prevents anyone under the age of thirteen from posting content, and automatically defaults to private accounts for young adolescents between the ages of thirteen and fifteen. The only flaw in this system? Not all younger users are honest about their age and content can still be posted and shared if the user consents (or confirms) to being the minimum user age. It is encouraged to report young Tik Tok users so that their accounts and content can be disabled to protect their personal privacy and safety. Any Tik Tok user under eighteen should have parent consent.

The Tik Tok Algorithm

The combination of the Tik Tok videos and content that are liked, and the imputed category preferences, work together as a recommendation system to determine what videos will appear in your “for you” app setting. The more views and engagement that a Tik Tok video receives, the more likely it will be served to larger audiences. Encourage your child or student to only engage and interact with positive, kind, or inspirational Tik Tok content to ensure that we are always supporting the well being of others and ourselves.

Trending Tik Tok Challenges can include anything from choreographed dance moves, to lip synching, to new app effects, to entertaining pranks on others. It is important to be aware that not all viral Tik Tok Challenges are designed with good intentions, many can be mentally and physically harmful to oneself or others, and some can even involve the destruction of property. Be on the lookout for trending Tik Tok Challenges and have immediate conversations with your child or student if there is potential for any physical harm, damage to property, or of any other negative impact on the well being of an individual, organization, or business. Trending Tik Tok challenges can go viral at any time quickly, and there is always a new one that will surface and gain traction.

Time Limits

Tik Tok offers a couple ways for parents to manage kids accounts, and one of the popular features is to set a time limit on use. Under the digital well-being feature parents can set a specified time limit of anywhere from forty minutes to two hours for individual session use. This is a great way to ensure that the app is disabled after a certain amount of time, minimize exposure to excessive content, and maintain app control with a parent passcode.

Account Sharing

Consider sharing a Tik Tok account as a family to ensure that you are familiar with the content that is being posted, shared, and viewed. You can also take advantage of the family pairing feature so that you can manage your child’s Tik Tok settings from your phone. This is a great way to ensure that your child’s privacy is maintained, content filters remain intact, and to monitor engagement with other Tik Tok accounts. Family accounts can be quickly and easily synced through a QR code, making this a great way to monitor Tik Top app use until all users turn eighteen.


Learn more

Take a look at our other articles here. To learn how UpSavvy can help solve digital citizenship at your school district check out UpSavvy.com.

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