Despite four large Ontario school boards filing a statement of claim against some social media companies for allegedly causing harm to students, the Wild Rose School Division says it has no plans to do the same.

Public school boards in Toronto, Peel and Ottawa-Carlton as well as the Toronto Catholic board are suing Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat & TikTok for $4.5 billion, alleging these social media companies are knowingly harming kids.

The lawsuit alleges the platforms were designed to rewire children’s brains and disrupt how they think and learn, making it harder for schools to operate.

Jennifer Lefebvre, Director of Instruction at Wild Rose School Division (WRSD) says social media certainly does have an impact on classrooms.

“Students love their phones. Students use social media quite a bit. Sometimes it can be a very positive thing, sometimes it can be a very negative thing. Students are very much dependent on their phones and families are very much dependent on their phones. So there definitely is an impact, but it really is a case-by-case on whether it’s a positive or negative.”

Lefebvre says the school board has empowered teachers to monitor social media use in their own classrooms.

“We made sure that every teacher was in charge of the rules in their own classroom. Sometimes some teachers use the technology in their own classroom. Some teachers ask the students to tuck it away or leave it in their locker. We gave the autonomy to the professionals to really see where their students were at.”

Lefebvre also notes there can be positives to social media in the classroom, as it can be a powerful tool to keep parents informed.

“Often the best way to send messages to our parents, whether that’s the busses are cancelled or the basketball game got moved to six o’clock, is to do it through social media. It’s a great way to share quick things that are happening in the school.”