Students are gassing each other up
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Surpassing both BeReal and TikTok on the App Store rankings, a new social media app is having a profound impact on students. The new app, “Gas,” lets users send anonymous compliments to their friends and classmates through polls. Students are loving the platform and some even have reached out to the creator to let them know how the app has helped their well-being and self-esteem.
Anonymous social media apps often get a bad reputation when it comes to students’ well-being, with apps like Yik Yak and Ask.fm connected to several cyberbullying controversies. Gas, however, is intentionally designed to reduce the possibility of cyberbullying by creating a space where students can feel better about themselves and see that there are people who love and admire them.
It’s true that social media can present challenges to students, but Gas is an amazing example of how students can use technology and social media to cyberback, or support each other online.
Why “Gas” is now #1 on the App Store
Since its release in August 2022, Gas has exploded in popularity among students– surpassing TikTok and BeReal in the App Store. For those who don’t know, the app is named after the popular phrase “to gas someone up” which Gen-Zers use to mean “give someone a compliment.” On Gas, students can sync up their location and contacts to the app and anonymously vote for their friends on polls. Each poll has a different compliment and if you win a poll, a “flame” gets sent to your inbox.
What makes this app different from other anonymous social media apps is that it is designed to completely eliminate the chance of anonymous cyberbullying. Users can only vote on the pre-written compliments and cannot direct message one another. Students who use Gas have even reached out to one of the founders, Nikita Bier, to let them know how the app has made them “smile” and feel “more confident.”
Though the drawbacks of social media should not be overlooked, when used in positive ways, it can fuel student health, happiness, and success. Gas provides a positive space for students to turn to when they are in need of a positive connection with their friends.
TSI’s take on how Gas inspires students to cyberback
With students spending more and more time on social media and technology, we are loving how Gas is empowering students to support each other online and connect with friends in positive ways. In addition to connecting to friends and family, technology can help students build a variety of skills, create amazing change, spread information about important causes to inspire others, and hear from role models about how to be our best selves.
You can empower your students to use social media in ways that positively impact them and those around them by encouraging students to:
- Treat others with respect on (and off) social media
- Follow the platforms and people who make them feel happy and inspired
- Strike a healthy balance between social media and real-life
The Social Institute is dedicated to helping students and educators better understand the world of social media. For more information on how to overcome social media obstacles faced by schools, download this TSI insight report, School Playbook: Social Media’s Role in Student Well-Being.
The Social Institute (TSI) is the leader in understanding student experiences and creator of #WinAtSocial, a gamified, online learning platform that equips students, educators, and families to navigate social experiences — online and offline — in healthy ways. Our unique, student-respected approach incorporates topics like social media, technology use, and current events that have a significant impact on student well-being. Lessons teach life skills for the modern day to inspire high-character decisions that support the health, happiness, and future success of students, while capturing data that provides insights to school leaders to inform school policy and communications, and enable high-impact teaching and a healthy learning environment. For schools, our turnkey technology allows for easy implementation and a comprehensive game plan to support the well-being of school communities. For schools, our turnkey technology allows for easy implementation and a comprehensive game plan to support the well-being of school communities.