How SA creators are using TikTok to make learning more accessible

South African pupils are increasingly turning to TikTok for lessons beyond the school classroom, with local creators using short videos, music, movement and local languages to make science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects easier to understand.

One of the creators gaining attention is maths educator @whereistheteacher6, who uses Sepedi, song and dance to explain mathematical concepts in an engaging way.

Zodwa Mbele says she enjoys watching the creator’s videos with her son as a form of extra learning after school.

The videos stand out because they do not always resemble a conventional maths lesson.

In some videos, the educator incorporates movement and play into lessons including going under a table and asking learners where she is, turning the classroom into an interactive space.

Mbele said this approach made learning more enjoyable for her son and gave him an opportunity to learn outside the traditional classroom.

The experience forms part of a wider trend of educational content on TikTok, with the platform increasingly being used to access information beyond the classroom.

According to information provided by Lizette Mostert, account director at Irvine Partners, #LearnOnTikTok community has grown as users turn to the platform to learn new skills and engage with educational content, including science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Mostert said GWI research covering the first to fourth quarters of 2025 found that 42% of TikTok users in South Africa had watched or listened to educational content online.

The research, which covered respondents aged 18 and older in SA, Nigeria and Kenya, also found that 61% of TikTok users in SA expressed an interest in technology, while 35% expressed an interest in science.

Mostert said TikTok’s dedicated STEM feed was also helping make science, technology, engineering and mathematics content easier to discover on the platform.

Another South African maths educator, @mphokatmakhema, creates lessons for learners from Grade R through to Grade 12.

The creator breaks down challenging mathematical concepts and works through practical problems and equations in ways that learners can easily follow.

For pupil Musa Ndaba, 16, TikTok had provided another way to approach a subject she has struggled with.

Ndaba said watching maths explanations from @mphokatmakhema had helped her understand concepts without the pressure she experienced in a classroom.

In a classroom, learners may feel pressure to listen attentively, follow the lesson and answer questions in front of their peers.

On TikTok, Ndaba said she can watch a lesson in her own time, pause it, replay it and return to difficult sections.

Ndaba told TimesLIVE that this made the learning experience feel less like a formal lesson and more like consuming the short videos pupils already encounter for entertainment.

For creators such as @whereistheteacher6 and @mphokatmakhema, short-form video offers a way to take lessons beyond the classroom and present them in formats that learners can access on their phones.

Mostert said the appetite for educational content extended beyond SA. The GWI research found that 72% of TikTok users in Nigeria expressed an interest in technology, compared with 56% in Kenya and 61% in SA.

The research also found that 39% of TikTok users in Kenya and 30% in Nigeria had watched or listened to educational content online in 2025.