Dear parents/guardians,
On May 29, 2024, it was announced that Trillium Lakelands District School Board (TLDSB) has joined the lawsuit against tech giants Meta, Snapchat, and TikTok for disruption to student learning and the education system. We, alongside other Ontario schools and boards, allege that these companies have negligently designed and marketed addictive products that have disrupted our educational mandate and obligation to enhance student achievement and well-being.
It is important to note that TLDSB has retained Neinstein LLP on a contingency fee basis – there is a fee only if there is a positive result which would be paid from the damages awarded. Litigation costs will not come from the Board’s budget.
As parents/guardians, many of you know firsthand the impact that social media products have had on students. In fact, it’s rewiring the way they think, act, behave, and learn. As a result, educators are spending increased classroom time managing issues caused by social media, administrators are adapting to the needs of the student body with significant attention, focus, and mental health concerns, and the changing behavioral dynamics of the student population are causing significant shifts in the educational landscape and huge strains on school boards’ finite resources.
The impact of social media products on student learning is a multifaceted problem that requires a multipronged approach. Restricting the use of devices in schools is just one action, but as we know, compulsive social media use outside the classroom will continue to permeate the education system and impact student learning unless change is made by the social media companies.
While still in its early stages, this litigation calls on social media giants to make their products safer, to compensate our Board for its disruption to our mandate, and to support TLDSB students’ fundamental right to education.
Follow Schools for Social Media Change for updates in the litigation and to learn more.
Sincerely,
Wes Hahn
Director of Education, Trillium Lakelands District School Board
