TIKTOK warning from Siegburg teacher: Parents must be attentive

TIKTOK warning from Siegburg teacher: Parents must be attentive

The Tikok Challenges, which are currently causing excitement at schools in the Rhein-Sieg district, have caused concerns of school employees and school leaders. Andrea Sauerzweig, the principal of the Alexander von Humboldt Realschule in Siegburg, described the TikK stories as "a plague" that could endanger children. She warned that certain challenges that are circulating on TIKTOK, such as the abuse of laughing gas or vandalism, do not belong in the hands of students.

In a specific incident, two students had passed out after they had carried out a so-called “pilot test”, which dealt with hyperventilation and imitation of breathing techniques from TikK videos. Fortunately, no girl had to be taken to the hospital, but the school informed the parents about the incident through a letter of parents. Sauerzweig emphasized the need to sensitize parents to this problem and conduct prevention measures at the school such as information offers from the police on the Internet and social media as well as the ban on cell phones in the building.

The headmaster of the municipal comprehensive school on Michaelsberg, Jochen Schütz, expressed concerns about the challenges that children are exposed to by such challenges. He spoke out against a general ban on cell phones because surveillance was difficult. Ralf Wermter, the head of the Rupert-Neudeck secondary school in Troisdorf, also commented in a similar way, which, however, emphasized that no serious damage caused by Tikok Challenges had previously occurred at his school.

The headmaster and teachers in the Rhein-Sieg region observe the influence of social media channels on children and adolescents. They warn of excessive screen time and the uncontrolled consumption of media -related content that can have negative effects on the behavior and health of the students. Schools take measures to clarify and prevention to clarify the pupils about the potential risks and to convey a responsibility with digital media.