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Is Class Dojo Simply More Work for Teachers?

Photo Courtesy: @ClassDojo/Twitter

ClassDojo is an application made for mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) that educators use, typically to encourage positive student behavior. The program can also be accessed via a Google classroom or Google account. The app can be used by children as young as Pre-K and kindergarten (with their parents' help) and can be used by children as old as the high school grades.

The main premise of the app is meant to foster better communication between school and home (parents can download the app as well), and to improve behavior in the classroom. Students can get either negative or positive "Dojo Points" based on their classroom behavior. But, is the app more work for teachers—or for parents? Read on to learn more about ClassDojo, and what both parents and educators have had to say about the app.

How ClassDojo Works

At the beginning of the year, if your child's school or teacher uses ClassDojo, you will be given instructions on how to sign up and log in, and how to download the app. Generally, each class is set up with core values, although teachers can customize their individual rooms. General setups include values such as helping others, on task, participating, perseverance, teamwork, and working hard. There are also areas where the student may need work. These "needs work" values include: disrespect, no homework, off task, talking out of turn, and unprepared.

Photo Courtesy: @ClassDojo/Twitter

Obviously, these would need to be tweaked for different grade levels and abilities, but these are the standard "values" ClassDojo is set to. If your child does well in one of the core values, they usually receive one positive Dojo Point. If they talk out of turn or are off task, etc., then they would receive a negative Dojo Point.

What Do Educators Think of ClassDojo?

In reviews provided in an online format, educators and teachers talked favorably about ClassDojo, and did not indicate that they felt it seemed to be causing them "more work." For teachers that are used to using online or electronic formats with which to teach, ClassDojo is an easy and organized way of tracking behavior patterns and trying to reward good behaviors and provide incentives to work on doing better next time.

Photo Courtesy: @ClassDojo/Twitter

ClassDojo is always free for educators, so it is easy on their school budgets. Teachers also found it was an easier way to communicate between school and home if there was a behavioral problem within the classroom. In fact, many educators said they used ClassDojo every day and gave it five out of five stars.

What Do Parents Think of ClassDojo?

Parents were not as fond of the ClassDojo app as educators. Parents pointed out that their children received too many negative Dojo Points and not enough positive ones, saying that negative reinforcement is not always the best way to reinforce a change in behavior. Also, parents are not always fond of being taxed with downloading yet another app or program at back-to-school time and having to learn how to use it.

Photo Courtesy: @ClassDojo/Twitter

For parents of elementary and preschool children, ClassDojo is likely more work for the parents than for the teachers, who are already used to using the app. Also, there are privacy concerns with ClassDojo. While the developers say that children's information is not being used, Common Sense Education did point out some privacy concerns, saying that users can freely interact with other unrestricted users (meaning that children may potentially chat freely with others), and that personally identifiable information is collected and often uploaded, which does cause privacy concerns. While this may be safe, it makes some parents feel uneasy.