Oh Classroom DoJo, how I love thee…Let me count the ways…
First, I love that there is instant feedback to parents and
family members – in a way that is most efficient. Parents no longer have to
wait until the end of the day to receive a colored face calendar reporting
behavior; instead, they receive minute to minute behavior reports on their student.
Second, I can report the good, the bad, and the ugly on just
about EVERY STUDENT EVER! Want that positive note home, or just a quick
reminder about how your student is doing during specials, then Dojo can provide
it.
Third, it allows a team, administrator, or anyone to track
the habits of any single team or the entire school. The only problem is that I
haven’t had whole school buy in.
I honestly see a great potential with whole school
management and Classroom Dojo. If students and families are exposed to it in
Kindergarten, and they stick with it throughout their entire tenure at a
school, then the buy in from families and students is immediate. Schools can
really leverage a universal system to track not only behavior but provide
intensive support where behavior is now trackable. Trends like issues in the
cafeteria, on buses, or in bathrooms can be addressed and data can support
administrative decisions. I am also hoping and believe that it is a way to
progress monitor students with behavior issues because it allows any person to
pull up longitudinal data on a student (i.e. they seem to always have issues
during math. This may be indicative of a larger problem).
But not everyone likes it. The New York Times reported an
article last year about privacy concerns regarding student information in the
use of Classroom DoJo: (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/17/technology/privacy-concerns-for-classdojo-and-other-tracking-apps-for-schoolchildren.html?_r=0)
Another large pickle the article addresses is that parents
have to request from the teacher or the company to have their student’s account
taken down – ouch! That doesn’t bode well for buy in, but still I believe that
the positives outweigh the negatives. I am a big fan of Dojo and I would love
to hear from anyone else who is or who isn’t. But, I believe that a whole
school management system like that one can truly be beneficial to families and
the entire school community. Want to know more? Check it out: https://www.classdojo.com/ So for me,
there is a vision in the use of Dojo and I am hoping that others in my school
would fall in love with it just as I have.
I'm really glad to hear some positive things about this site. We had several teachers try it and it was met with mixed reviews. I tried it a few years ago, but didn't like having to turn on my projector every time I needed to record something. I actually don't think I gave it a fair try and it may be new and improved since I last used it. There was a teacher who used it well, but we had too many parent complaints, so I don't think she uses it any more. I keep reading articles about behavior in the classroom and parents who are upset about their child being called out or "labeled" but the articles never address an alternative solution or why the child was being called out in the first place. I don't necessarily agree with the NY Times article. I think at some point we have to have student accountability. I love the idea of class dojo and after reading your post am willing to look at it again. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHey Kimberly!
ReplyDeleteLike you, the projector totally bothered me. But now they have a Dojo APP! So our teachers use tablets, or their phones to just quickly update the site and let the students know. I think that has been making a lot of positive difference for us.
I love Class Dojo! I am a parent of a kindergartener in a school that uses it. I can see my daughter's behavior in real time with bothering the teacher or leaving the comfort of my own job. I get pictures of class activities and can send and receive messages from the teachers. I don't have to share my number so I never thought about privacy issues.
ReplyDeleteIt is simple enough for my daughter to understand and reflect on her own behavior. When attached to rewards and negative consequences I think it really works! We review her progress on the app daily. I wish my middle school would use it to get kids motivated (one teacher uses it) You'd be surprised what gets even big kids excited!