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ClassDojo

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ClassDojo
Type of site
Private
FoundedAugust 2011
HeadquartersSan Francisco, California
Area servedWorldwide
Founder(s)Sam Chaudhary
Liam Don
IndustryEducation[1]
ProductsEducational technology
Employees40 (2019)[2]
URLclassdojo.com

ClassDojo is a classroom communication app used to share reports between parents and teachers. It connects parents and teachers on a student's conduct and performance through real-time reports as well as a feed for photos and videos during the school day.[3][4] The gamification style system teaches developmental skills and creates a portfolio for the student, so that a parent can be aware of activities ahead of meeting with teachers.[5][6]

It was launched in August 2011 by Sam Chaudhary and Liam Don through funding in the ImagineK12 education seed accelerator.[7] The app can translate all messaging into 35 languages and has been used in 180 countries.[8] According to ClassDojo, its app is used by at least one teacher in 95% of pre-kindergarten through eighth grade schools in the United States.[2]

History

In August 2011, Sam Chaudhary, a teacher, and Liam Don, a game developer, quit their jobs in the United Kingdom and moved to Palo Alto, California to join the first cohort of the education tech accelerator, ImagineK12.[9] They formed the company, Class Twist Inc., to launch ClassDojo after the startup was accepted into the Y-combinator program.[3] Chaudhary and Don met with hundreds of teachers to gain insight on how to progress technology in the classroom.[10] In September 2011 the company released a beta version of the platform.[11] Within a year of launching, the platform had been used by 3.5 million teachers and students, in more than 30 countries.[12][13] In August 2012, ClassDojo announced it had raised $1.6 million of main seed capital from Paul Graham, SV Angel, SoftTech VC, Mitch Kapor, Lerer Ventures, and General Catalyst Partners.[14][12][15]

In February 2013, ClassDojo released its first app for the Android operating system.[16] That same year, the company raised $8.5 million in a series A round of funding,[17] and began offering the platform in native languages other than English.[18] In 2014, ClassDojo added a messaging function to its platform, allowing teachers to communicate with parents as a group or directly.[19][20] ClassDojo added Class Story, a digital content stream created by class teachers and accessible by parents in August 2015.[21] In late 2015, the company raised $21 million in a series B round of funding led by General Catalyst Partners.[22]

In January 2016, ClassDojo partnered with Stanford University's Project for Education Research That Scales (PERTS) lab, to release a five-part series of educational videos discussing growth mindset.[23] In September 2016, it was reported that the series had been viewed by one of every four kids in American classrooms.[24] That same year, the platform added School Story, the update enables school administration and teachers to share school-related content to all parents connected to the school,[25] and Student Stories, a tool for students to manage their unique portfolios, interact with classmates and share their experiences with their parents.[26] In October 2016, ClassDojo released a video series about empathy that it created in partnership with the Making Caring Common Project at Harvard Graduate School of Education.[24][8] In May 2017, the company, in partnership with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, released a mindfulness curriculum.[27][28]

In September 2018, ClassDojo partnered with Elon Musk's Ad Astra private school to develop "Conundrums", a set of open-ended critical thinking and ethics challenges for elementary and middle school students.[29]

Features and tools

The platform allows students, teachers and parents to connect, support and develop student skills.[12][30] To use the classroom communication program, teachers register to obtain a free account, and then create "classes" with their students.[31][30] Students use the program initially with an access code (students can also log into their class on a tablet using a QR code generated by ClassDojo);[32] after creating an account, the students can customize avatars, see classes and see individual progress.[30] Parents can also access ClassDojo when they are invited by the teachers, and can visualize the progress of the child and the information shared by the teachers.[13] Parents can only see their student's profile and the class story.[33] Teachers can reward students with positive feedback in real time when they show good exertion in a task or activity in class.[30] Teachers are also able to communicate directly with parents through the platform.[20] Teachers also have the option to post to the school's story or ClassDojo page that can be viewed by anyone linked to the school.[33]

The program is customizable, and the teachers can change the skills for which the students obtain feedback to adapt to the needs of the class or of the school.[30] ClassDojo is available as a web application that can be used in any device with a web browser, and also with native applications for iPhone (iOS) and Android.[14] The company plans to keep the main platform free for teachers. The founders say that it is because they want teachers, students and parents in all types of schools to use ClassDojo to encourage learning, skill development, and character-building.[14][31]

Platforms

ClassDojo is available as a web application that can be used on any device with a web browser, and also as a native application for iPhone and Android, with a website in HTML 5.2. The program can be viewed on any mobile device including Android, iOS, and other phones and tablets.[34]

Recognition

In 2011, ClassDojo received the Today Show's Education Innovation Award.[35][36] The founders of the company were included on the Forbes "30 Under 30: Education" list in 2012.[35] In 2013, Forbes recognized ClassDojo as one of the "100 Most Promising Companies of the United States".[37] That same year, Fast Company included the company on its "10 Most Innovative Education Companies in the World" list.[38] ClassDojo was awarded TechCrunch's Crunchie award for Best Education Startup and its founders were included on Inc.'s "30 Under 30" list in 2015.[39][40] In 2016, Fast Company recognized the ClassDojo app as one of "The 35 Most Innovative Apps of the Year".[41] In 2017, Inc. named ClassDojo one of the "25 Most Disruptive Companies" of the year.[42]

Criticism

In 2017, The London School of Economics, Parenting for a Digital Future , published a series of ethical, legal and mental health concerns related to the rapid growth of ClassDojo's use in the classroom. In the article, Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Stirling, Ben Williamson and Alasdair Rutherford, write about the possible conflict that the ClassDojo Company could encounter as a private for-profit company collecting and storing sensitive student behavior data. They ask if parents are being fully informed about what the ClassDojo Company intends to do with the collected student data.[43] Likewise, Williamson and Rutherford warn of a scenario where the ClassDojo Company could be sold for the data it collects and stores.[43]

Williamson and Rutherford also explore the possible negative impact ClassDojo could impose on the classroom environment where they claim ClassDojo essentially acts as a classroom social media application where students face constant competition for teacher awarded ClassDojo behavior points.[43] They question whether the classroom time teachers spend on data input could potentially reduce critical face-to-face interaction between teachers and students.[43] They also warn of the possible negative impact the application can have on children's mental health potentially creating a distressed classroom climate where student behavior is individualized to dojo points discounting larger social and environmental influences on behavior.[43]

Williamson and Rutherford write that they believe when considering the serious concerns of student data protection and mental health, it is time for teachers and parents to have a transparent conversation regarding use of ClassDojo in the classroom.[43]

Cultural critic Grafton Tanner claims ClassDojo "teaches students to understand life as being inseparable from digital technology, and...normalizes both surveillance and the kind of isolating individualism that can cause mental illness."[44]

References

  1. ^ Chaykowski, Kathleen (May 22, 2017). "How ClassDojo Built One of the Most Popular Classroom Apps by Listening to Teachers". Forbes. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  2. ^ a b {{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/28/classdojo-an-app-to-help-teachers-and-parents-communicate-better-raises-35m/%7Ctitle=ClassDojo, an app to help teachers and parents communicate better, raises $35M|work=TechCrunch|date=28 February 2019|author=Ingrid Lunde
  3. ^ a b If Your Child Acts Up at School, Do You Want to Know in Real Time?
  4. ^ Is This the Ed-Tech App That Will Change the Way Teachers, Students and Parents Communicate?
  5. ^ Ainsley Harris (1 December 2016). "ClassDojo Is Teaching Kids Empathy In 90% Of K-8 Schools Nationwide". Fast Company.
  6. ^ Rip Empson (August 15, 2012). "ClassDojo Lands $1.6M From Paul Graham, Ron Conway To Help Teachers Control Their Classrooms". TechCrunch. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
  7. ^ DeAmicis, Carmel (March 12, 2014). "The edtech startup that's shucking the playbook by acting like a consumer company". PandoDaily. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  8. ^ a b O'Connell, Ainsley (December 1, 2016). "ClassDojo is Teaching Kids Empathy in 90% of K-8 Schools Nationwide". Fast Company. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  9. ^ This app gives parents a real-time view of the classroom
  10. ^ Kathleen Chaykowski (May 22, 2017). "How ClassDojo Built One Of The Most Popular Classroom Apps By Listening To Teachers". Retrieved November 9, 2017.
  11. ^ James, Andrew (August 15, 2012). "ClassDojo Raises $1.6M, Announces Upcoming iPhone and iPad Apps". PandoDaily. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  12. ^ a b c Empson, Rip (August 15, 2012). "ClassDojo Lands $1.6M From Paul Graham, Ron Conway To Help Teachers Control Their Classrooms". TechCrunch. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  13. ^ a b Sawers, Paul (August 15, 2012). "ClassDojo taps $1.6m in seed funding, as its student behaviour-improvement platform rolls out of beta". TheNextWeb. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  14. ^ a b c "Crunchbase: ClassDojo". Crunchbase. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  15. ^ Grant, Rebecca (August 15, 2012). "Funding Daily: watch out for spies and ninjas". VentureBeat. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  16. ^ "ClassDojo Release Android App". Avatar Generation. February 28, 2013. Archived from the original on June 6, 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  17. ^ Kokalitcheva, Kia (March 3, 2014). "ClassDojo Raises $8.5M to Put Digital Gold Stars On Your Kid's Digital Folder". VentureBeat. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  18. ^ Czikk, Joseph (September 23, 2013). "ClassDojo, The "World's Fastest Growing Education Startup", Launches in Canada". Betakit. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  19. ^ "ClassDojo Announces New Messaging Feature". EdSurge News. March 27, 2014. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  20. ^ a b Bharti, Prasanna (September 10, 2014). "Simple, Positive Communication With Parents Made Easy With ClassDojo Messenger". EdTech Review. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  21. ^ Wan, Tony (August 5, 2015). "ClassDojo's Summer Updates Include 'Instagram for the Classroom'". EdSurge News. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  22. ^ Kolodny, Lora (April 15, 2016). "ClassDojo Raises $21 Million For App to Make Parent-Teacher Meetings Obsolete". TechCrunch. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  23. ^ Wan, Tony (January 19, 2016). "ClassDojo's Critters Want to Teach You About Growth Mindsets". EdSurge News. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  24. ^ a b Anderson, Jenny (September 27, 2016). "Meet Mojo, The Monster Stanford and Harvard Are Using to Teach Your Kids "Growth Mindset" and Empathy". Quartz. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  25. ^ "ClassDojo Moves Beyond Classrooms to Whole School Sharing". eSchool News. April 18, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  26. ^ Bolkan, Joshua (July 20, 2016). "ClassDojo Launches Parental Engagement Tool". The Journal. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  27. ^ Toppos, Greg (May 8, 2017). "Breathe Deeply: Mindfulness Coming to a School Near You". USA Today. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  28. ^ Dobo, Nichole (May 10, 2017). "Be Mindful: How a Tech Tool Can Help". The Hechinger Report. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  29. ^ Andy Kiersz (3 September 2018). "Elon Musk's secretive LA private school doesn't just teach spelling and math — it also asks students ethics and critical thinking puzzles you usually don't see elsewhere". Business Insider.
  30. ^ a b c d e Pierce, Jessi; Seibel, Phil (September 14, 2012). "Tech Savvy: In the classroom". Brainerd Dispatch. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  31. ^ a b Rubin, Shawn (April 2, 2013). "OPINION: Bridging the Disconnect Between Teachers and the Edtech Industry". EdSurge. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  32. ^ https://static.classdojo.com/docs/TeacherResources/StudentFAQs/ClassDojo_Student_FAQ_Teachers.pdf
  33. ^ a b https://static.classdojo.com/img/2018_Mentors/07_July_2018/ClassDojoPD2018.pdf
  34. ^ Abby Jackson (8 July 2016). "A 'very non-Silicon Valley' startup is going viral among teachers and parents". Business Insider.
  35. ^ a b Casserly, Meghan (December 17, 2012). "30 Under 30: The Millennials Overhauling Education And Leaving No Child (Or Teacher) Behind". Forbes. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  36. ^ Barseghian, Tina (September 27, 2011). "Class Dojo Wins Innovation Challenge at Education Nation". KQED. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  37. ^ "America's Most Promising Companies". Forbes. May 2013. Archived from the original on May 23, 2013. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  38. ^ "The World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Education". Fast Company. 2013. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  39. ^ Fenn, Donna (2015). "Remember These Names: The 2015 30 Under 30 List Is Here". Inc. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  40. ^ Williams, Felicia (February 5, 2015). "ClassDojo: 2015 Best Education Startup Winner". TechCrunch. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  41. ^ Brownlee, John (September 28, 2016). "The 35 Most Innovative Apps of the Year". Fast Company. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  42. ^ "ClassDojo". Inc. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  43. ^ a b c d e f "ClassDojo poses data protection concerns for parents". Parenting for a Digital Future. 2017-01-04. Retrieved 2018-08-07.
  44. ^ "Classroom Management: Simon Sinek, ClassDojo, and the Nostalgia Industry". www.lareviewofbooks.com. Retrieved 2019-02-02.
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