Analyzing TikTok’s Efficacy in Developing Digital Literary and Critical Thinking Skills at Young Achievers’ School

This research focuses on the effectiveness of TikTok in improving digital literacy and critical thinking skills of the Grade 11 and 12 STEM students at Young Achievers’ School of Caloocan, Inc. With a quantitative correlational research approach, the study collected data from 100 randomly chosen participants through a structured survey and an assessment test. The study attempts to answer three primary questions: what are the respondents' perceptions of TikTok as an information navigational tool; how digital literacy and critical thinking skills are related to performance in situational assessment tasks; and is there a significant relationship between TikTok use and the skills of digital literacy and critical thinking. The results indicated students generally hold a positive perception of TikTok. especially for topic and concept understanding. Nonetheless, the correlational analysis showed a weak negative relationship between TikTok usage and the development of digital literacy and critical thinking skills, as indicated by a Pearson r value of -0.115. As a result, the null hypothesis is sustained, implying that without additional educational support, TikTok fails to aid the development of the academic skills in question. The research finds that while TikTok serves an information gathering function, traditional educational frameworks are essential. Among the recommendations are that learners should consider using TikTok as an auxiliary learning resource and further investigations are encouraged to assess the consequences of TikTok use on the academic skills development process. This research is part of the continued debate around the role of social media in education, with all the benefits and drawbacks that come with it.