The bullying on TikTok that is pushing teachers “to the limit”

A teacher who has been bullied by students in TikTok says others are “reaching the limit” for online attacks.

Tom Rogers is one of dozens of British teachers who have reported being harassed on social media in recent weeks. Some have reported sick.

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Posts often include images of learning resources used by teachers in online teaching during the quarantines adopted by the coronavirus pandemic.

TikTok says it is taking additional steps to remove videos that are aimed at attacking teachers.

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Rogers, who is a history teacher, was unaware that a clip from one of his virtual lessons had been uploaded to TikTok until a colleague alerted him last week.

When he searched the platform, he found two videos posted from an anonymous account with a combined total of approximately 12,000 views.

“When you enter the app, you think that the children are laughing at you and that everyone has seen it,” he told the BBC.

“You don’t know who has seen it, but you do know that probably many children have.”

Rogers reported the videos, but police were unable to act.

The professor had not received a response from TikTok when interviewed by the BBC and the videos were still online at the time this article was published.

Rogers says that he tries not to let the trolls get to him, but that he worries about other teachers who are not so used to social media.

Tom Rogers says the idea of ​​people laughing at content is very “disgusting”. (TikTok).

“I think this is pushing some to the limit because of everything we’ve been through in the last two years,” he said, adding that some of his colleagues are in a “pretty fragile state coming out of the pandemic.”

“They will quit their jobs and go away with stress-related illnesses because of this. This will be the turning point ”, he added.

“This is different”

Tom Quinn, a professor and CEO of the Frank Field Education Trust in north-west England, told the BBC that two of his professors are ill due to abuse and that social media platforms must react faster to remove the offending videos. .

“Over the years, teachers and students have had relationships, and in many cases, relationships where they joke; they have nicknames for each other. This is different, ”he said.

“When a child posts defamatory comments or demeaning comments on TikTok, it can be seen by two million people around the world. That has a really huge impact when the teacher has no right to respond. “

Quinn said the organization is working with parents of children who posted videos to make sure they understand the seriousness of the problem.

“In some of the most watched videos, children are horrified that this has happened. They are also victims of all this, ”he said. “We urge TikTok to consider that we are talking about children, who make mistakes and make mistakes.”

A helpline for teachers

A TikTok spokesperson said that harassment and bullying “have no place” on the platform.

“We regret the anguish caused to some teachers as a result of the abusive content posted on our platform,” he said.

“We have already implemented additional technical measures and guidance and continue to proactively detect and remove offending content and accounts.”

The spokesperson said that TikTok will increase its budget to implement an online system for teachers to report offensive content.

Tom Quinn, executive director of the Frank Field Education Trust, says they are working with parents of children who have posted offensive videos to understand the seriousness of the problem.

“We will write to every school in the country to make sure all staff have access to the resources they need, and we will continue to work with affected schools, teachers, parents, unions, and others to eradicate this intolerable abuse.”

The principals union – the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) – said it has received more than 50 reports of “Shameful abuse” and said there are likely to be “many more” cases.

Secretary General Geoff Barton welcomed TikTok’s response and said he hopes “this matter can be resolved quickly.”

But he cautioned that the trend “reinforces the urgent need to regulate social media platforms,” ​​as teachers spend time removing content and dealing with the consequences of so much disruption during the pandemic.

“Social media platforms must be legally responsible for ensuring that they have processes in place that prevent offensive and abusive material from being posted,” he said.

“This material is extremely distressing for the personnel who are the target. And the young people who publish it are involved in behaviors that could lead them to be expelled from school and, in extreme cases, to be the subject of a police investigation.

The Minister of the School System, Diana Barran, said on Twitter that the Department of Education (DfE) is “working with TikTok on steps to address the problem.”

A spokeswoman for the DfE said that harassment of educational personnel “is never acceptable” and that criminal attacks online should be reported to the police.

“We are clear that social media companies must take action against harmful content on their platforms and we are introducing laws that will usher in a new era of accountability for these companies,” he said.

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