The Latest Dangerous TikTok Challenge is Aimed Directly at Schools
The latest dangerous TikTok challenge is aimed squarely at schools
Last month, TikTok banned the Milk Crate Challenge from its platform. If you're curious, a quick YouTube search will reveal a group of people filming themselves or their friends falling painfully to the ground after piling milk crates into a pyramid and trying to walk over it. Before the Milk Crate Challenge, there were many other dangerous TikTok challenges. The cha-cha slide challenge encouraged people to follow the directions in the song while driving a car. There were other more alarming trends too - the Benadryl Challenge, the Blackout Challenge and so on. Now it seems like the latest dangerous TikTok challenge has appeared almost out of nowhere. Most students call it "Devious Licks" and it's aimed squarely at schools.
Devious what?
"Devious Licks" are what students call the items they steal from their high schools and colleges when they reveal them on TikTok. Most of the items stolen were small, such as soap dispensers, paper towel rolls or boxes of masks. However, other students have pushed the trend to its limits, stealing much larger items. Microscopes, projectors, and even SMART Boards have all appeared in TikTok videos with a version of the caption, "Had the sneakiest lick at school today." The trend has garnered over 235 million views on the TikTop app by mid-September.
Is it really that big a deal?
People unfamiliar with TikTok might be shocked to learn how quickly the trend went viral. Schools across the country are dealing with student toilets that are missing all of their soap and paper towel dispensers. Other thefts raise security concerns -- lack of fire alarms and fire extinguishers. And others are fast approaching felony theft — items costing over $500, like expensive technology equipment or entire toilets and sinks. A Georgia high school has started asking teachers to escort students to and from the restroom throughout the day to curb vandalism. Many others simply lock vandalized bathrooms and deny students use.
How is it affecting teachers?
Stealing soap, paper towels, and other hygiene and safety items in the midst of a pandemic is bad enough. However, many teachers report that the thefts do not take place directly within the school as a whole. Individual teachers have themselves become victims of this dangerous TikTok challenge. "I had all my art supplies (supplies I bought with my own money) stolen earlier in the day for a stupid...TikTok trend," commented one teacher on the r/Teachers subreddit.
Another teacher reported he turned down several requests from students asking if they could "just pretend to steal items for TikTok."
At a time when many teachers feel exhausted and underappreciated, this dangerous TikTok challenge is infuriating some teachers. "What does it say about our society," one teacher posted in a Reddit conversation about "Devious Licks," "when students are actually so proud of stealing from their school and from their teachers that they do it online with hope." go viral?"
What are schools doing to stop vandalism?
There is some good news on this front. A TikTok representative recently released a statement stating that they are removing all content and redirecting all hashtags to end this dangerous TikTok challenge. They also reminded app users that content that encourages or enables criminal activity is against their community guidelines.
More specifically, many schools take this matter very seriously and let their students and parents know that there will be legal consequences for those caught engaging in this trend. Additionally, districts are posting messages like the one above, urging parents to talk to their children about the trend.
For teachers, this dangerous TikTok challenge becomes a "teachable moment" they never asked for or wanted. Some teachers engage in conversations with their students about who such trends are actually hurting (i.e., janitors, janitors, their peers, etc.). Others discuss how the destruction and theft are damaging to school morale. Regardless of how teachers approach the challenge with their students, many are frustrated that they showed up just when they needed a break!
Has the "devious licks" trend reached your school? Chat about it with other teachers in the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook.
