ClassDojo — AI Transparency Note
How data is used in ClassDojo’s AI Tools
Introduction
ClassDojo is committed to continually enhancing our platform to provide the best possible learning experience for our students, teachers, and families. In pursuit of this goal, we are thrilled to introduce artificial intelligence (“AI”) technology into the ClassDojo service. ClassDojo has partnered with trusted service provider OpenAI to launch new AI features aimed at improving the quality and efficiency of our ClassDojo service, and meeting the needs of our students, teachers, and families.
Our innovative features include tools to assist teachers in creating engaging content, effective communications, and more. These exciting new features will:
- help teachers craft engaging content for ClassDojo Story updates, including AI-enhanced narrative suggestions;
- enable teachers to draft and exchange concise, effective communications with one another;
- aid teachers in creating tailored multiple choice assessments based on specified educational standards;
- support the creation of personalized thank-you notes from teachers for students, parents, or staff; and
- assist teachers in crafting personalized comments on student report cards.
With these AI enhancements, students, teachers, and families will benefit from a more interactive, engaging, and responsive educational experience.
Our Commitment
We understand the importance of ensuring strong privacy and security protections for our students, teachers, and families as we integrate new, rapidly changing AI technology, and we want to assure you that we will handle your data with the utmost care and responsibility. As part of our ongoing commitment to transparency and responsibility in handling your data, we are providing the following information on our new ClassDojo AI tools and the choices you have with regard to them.
In addition, ClassDojo supports the Education Technology Industry’s Principles for AI in Education to ensure safe and responsible use of data in AI technology. ClassDojo was deeply involved with the development of the Principles as a member of the AI Education Steering Committee. By aligning with these principles, we aim to harness the power of AI technology to enrich the learning experience for all our users while upholding the highest standards of privacy, security, and ethical conduct. Read more about the Principles for AI in Education here that are intended to help guide the industry’s development of responsible AI that meets the needs of students, educators and families. ClassDojo is also a member of the EdSAFE AI Industry Council and supports the principles of the SAFE Framework- Safety, Accountability, Fairness & Effectiveness in AI.
This article covers:
- How ClassDojo Uses AI Features
- What Information is Used to Provide the AI features
- How ClassDojo Uses Data to Provide the AI features
- How We Work with Trusted Service Providers to Offer AI-enhanced Services
- How Can Parents Opt Out ?
- Limitations of ClassDojo AI Features
How ClassDojo Uses AI Features
Your child’s school may choose to utilize certain AI features, (e.g., Story Post Writer, Message or Response Writer, or Multiple Choice Assessment Generator) by actively engaging with one of these AI tools. The teacher will provide certain text only content which may contain student personal information (“Input”). ClassDojo will then provide a set of instructions or “prompts” (“Prompts”) into the AI-provided tool and will then send both the Input and Prompts to an integrated Large Language Model (“LLM”) service provider, OpenAI, to perform certain AI related functions upon the Input in order to produce AI-generated responses on the Input called the “Output”.
The various AI-related functions performed on the Input are done through the use of ClassDojo -directed instructions or Prompts to OpenAI (e.g., “write a thank you note”). These text-only Inputs and Prompts are sent to the LLM, OpenAI, who then processes them and generates the result called an Output and returns the result or Output to ClassDojo. ClassDojo then takes this Output and presents it to the teacher in the ClassDojo services. Input, Prompt, and Output data processed by OpenAI is retained only transiently to provide the service and for trust and safety purposes; then deleted immediately upon creation of the Outputs.
What Information is Used to Provide the AI features
In serving these new AI features, ClassDojo leverages the following information:
- Inputs from teachers, such as text for posts, messages or other contextual text input.
- Prompts or instructions from ClassDojo, such as “Write a thank you note”.
- Outputs which include AI-generated text suggestions and assessment questions, which are reviewed by teachers before being shared with the intended audience.
All information provided to Open AI is securely transmitted to OpenAI for processing, stored in the United States, and encrypted both in transit and at rest. Our data retention policies ensure Inputs and Prompts are deleted after processing by OpenAI, and that Outputs are safeguarded and stored securely in alignment with ClassDojo’s existing policies.
The following chart provides more detail on the information used to provide the various AI features as well as the processes or “Prompts” performed on the “Inputs” to obtain the results or “Output”. We will update this chart as we update our features to provide schools with the information necessary for them to act as the agent of a parent and provide any necessary consent under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and its implementing regulations under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (collectively “COPPA”) or to otherwise approve this use of the AI features under applicable laws and regulations for any student personal information that is used (for example, under state student privacy laws and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”).
| ClassDojo AI Tools and Processing Done on Inputs | User Information Used to Provide the AI Tools (Inputs) | Output Generated* | User Types Input is Collected from and Output Disclosed to | How this Information is provided to the LLM | Retention Period / Storage / Security |
| Story Post Writer Helps teachers craft engaging content for ClassDojo Story updates, including AI-enhanced narrative suggestions. The AI tool suggests edits, enhances narratives, and ensures all posts are aligned with ClassDojo’s and individual teacher’s communication standards. The teacher reviews and edits the suggestions before posting. |
–Teacher-provided text for the story post which may contain student personal information (text only, no photos) - ClassDojo - provided Prompt which will not contain any user information (e.g. “Write a post to share with parents in the ClassStory feed”* and will include communication standards to align with ) |
– AI-enhanced story post suggestions ready for review and use by the teacher. This Output may contain student personal information (text only, no photos) | – Input is collected from teachers – The Output is disclosed to teachers, then once reviewed and approved by the teacher, disclosed at the direction of the teacher to students, parents, and any ClassDojo user with access to the ClassDojo Story |
Text Inputs from teachers, along with any specific Prompts, are securely transmitted by ClassDojo to OpenAI for processing. | Retention Period Inputs and Prompts (Teacher-provided text, context, and ClassDojo provided instructions) • Open AI : Retained only transiently to provide the service (e.g. the active session) and for trust and safety purposes, then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs.ClassDojo: Retained for usage by the teacher, to enforce our policies, improve the product or to keep our community secure. Deleted upon direction by teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Outputs (AI generated story posts): • Open AI: Retained only transiently to provide the service and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Stores both the Output and the final posts (which will be the Output edited by any human review by the teacher) within the platform for as long as the teacher maintains them in the Class Story, to provide the service, enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. The Output and final posts are deleted upon direction by the teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Storage – All data is stored within the United States. Security – All inputs and outputs are encrypted in transit and at rest and in transit. |
| Message or Response Writer This AI tool helps teachers write concise, effective messages for communication with parents. It generates text suggestions based on the context provided by the teacher, to streamline communication about students, learning progress, or logistical matters. The teacher reviews and edits the suggestions before sending. All suggestions are aligned with ClassDojo’s and individual teacher’s communication standards. |
– Teacher-provided text only (no photos) which includes a recipient and message to respond with. This text may contain student personal information. A teacher can optionally include the original message they are responding to. ClassDojo - provided Prompt which will not contain any user information (e.g. “Write a professional and conversational message tailored to a specific situation, as instructed by the teacher, or respond to the provided previous communications” and will include communication standards to align with) |
– AI-generated text suggestions for tailored responses or message drafts for review and use by the teacher. This Output may contain student personal information (text only, no photos) | – Input is collected from teachers. – The Output is disclosed to teachers, then once reviewed and approved by the teacher, sent at the direction of the teacher to the recipient (e.g. parent). |
Text Inputs including the teacher's initial message or query and additional contextual information and Prompts are securely transmitted by ClassDojo to OpenAI for processing. | Retention Period Inputs and Prompts (Teacher-provided text, context, and ClassDojo provided instructions) • Open AI : Retained only transiently to provide the service (e.g. the active session) and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Retained for usage by the teacher, to enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. Deleted upon direction by teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Outputs (AI generated message): • Open AI: Retained only transiently to provide the service and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Stores both the Output and the final messages posts (which will be the Output edited by any human review by the teacher) within the platform for as long as the teacher maintains the message in order to provide the service, enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure . The Output and final messages are deleted upon direction by the teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Storage – All data is stored within the United States. Security – All inputs and outputs are encrypted in transit and at rest and in transit. |
| Multiple Choice Assessment Generator This AI tool assists teachers in creating multiple choice assessments tailored to specific topics or educational standards. It uses input from the teacher to suggest relevant questions for quizzes and tests. |
–Topic or educational standard: Text - based only Information provided by the teacher. Should not contain student personal information – Desired number of questions: How many questions the teacher needs provided by the AI tool. Text-based only and should not contain student personal information – Grade level provided by the teacher. Text-based only and should not contain student personal information ClassDojo - provided Prompt: which will not contain any user information (e.g. “Generate multiple choice questions that are engaging, educational and tailored to the cognitive abilities expected at the grade level provided by the teacher.” ) |
– AI-generated suggestions for multiple choice assessments for review and use by the teacher. | – Input is collected from teachers. – The Output is disclosed to teachers, then once reviewed and approved by the teacher, disclosed at the direction of the teacher to recipients of the assessment (e.g. students). |
– Text Inputs about the assessment, the topic and the standards as well as Prompts are securely transmitted by ClassDojo to OpenAI for processing. | Retention Period Inputs and Prompts (Teacher-provided text, context, and ClassDojo provided instructions) • Open AI : Retained only transiently to provide the service (e.g. the active session) and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Retained for usage by the teacher, to enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. Deleted upon direction by teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Outputs (AI generated text suggestions): • Open AI: Retained only transiently to provide the service and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Stores both the Output and the final suggestions (which is the Output then edited by any human review by the teacher) if the teacher decides to use the multiple-choice tool within the platform (e.g. in a ClassStory, or other post) for as long as the school directs ClassDojo in order to provide the service, enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. The Output and final questions are deleted upon direction by the teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Storage – All data is stored within the United States. Security – All inputs and outputs are encrypted in transit and at rest. |
| Thank-You Note Writer This tool helps teachers with the creation of personalized thank-you notes to acknowledge students, parents or staff. The teacher reviews and edits the suggestions before sending. All suggestions are aligned with ClassDojo’s and individual teacher’s communication standards. |
– Details for thank you note: Reasons for gratitude or acknowledgment from the teacher, along with a recipient (text only, no photos). This may contain student personal information ClassDojo- provided Prompt which will not contain any user information (e.g. “Generate a thank you note that is tailored to the context provided by the teacher.”* and will include communication standards to align with)) |
– AI-generated text suggestions for thank-you notes for review and use by the teacher. This Output may contain student personal information (text only, no photos) | – Input collected from teachers. – The Output is disclosed to teachers, then once reviewed and approved by the teacher, sent at the direction of the teacher to the recipient (e.g. student, parents or staff) |
– Text Inputs about the reasons for the thank you note and Prompts are securely transmitted by ClassDojo to OpenAI for processing. | Retention Period Inputs and Prompts (Teacher-provided text, context, and ClassDojo provided instructions) • Open AI : Retained only transiently to provide the service (e.g. the active session) and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Retained for usage by the teacher, to enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. Deleted upon direction by teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Outputs (AI generated text suggestions): • Open AI: Retained only transiently to provide the service and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Stores both the Output and the final thank-you notes (which is the Output then edited by any human review by the teacher) once the thank-you note is sent by the teacher within the platform for as long as the school directs ClassDojo in order to provide the service, enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. The Output and final thank-you notes are deleted upon direction by the teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Storage – All data is stored within the United States. Security – All inputs and outputs are encrypted in transit and at rest. |
| Report Card Comment Writer This tool helps teachers write insightful, constructive comments on student report cards, personalized to reflect each student's performance. The teacher reviews and edits the suggestions before sending. All suggestions are aligned with ClassDojo’s and individual teacher’s communication standards. |
– Student performance themes: Information provided by the teacher (text only, no photos). This may contain student personal information ClassDojo- provided Prompt which will not contain any user information (e.g. “Generate a comment for a report card using notes provided by the teacher.”* and will include communication standards to align with)) |
– AI-generated report card comments: Tailored to individual student achievements and areas for improvement, for review and use by the teacher. This Output may contain student personal information (text only, no photos) | – Input collected from teachers – Output disclosed to teachers, then once reviewed and approved by the teacher, sent at the direction of the teacher to students and parents on report cards). |
– Text Inputs about student performance and Prompts are securely transmitted by ClassDojo to OpenAI for processing. | Retention Period Inputs and Prompts (Teacher-provided text, context, and ClassDojo instructions) • Open AI : Retained only transiently to provide the service (e.g. the active session) and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Retained for usage by the teacher, to enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. Deleted upon direction by teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Outputs (AI generated text suggestions): • Open AI: Retained only transiently to provide the service and for trust and safety purposes then deleted immediately upon creation of Outputs. • ClassDojo: Stores the Output and the final comment (which is the Output then edited by any human review by the teacher) once sent by the teacher, for as long as the school directs ClassDojo in order to provide the service, enforce our policies, or to keep our community secure. The Output and final thank-you notes are deleted upon direction by the teacher or school, or upon termination of the contract, unless we are required by law to retain. Storage – All data is stored within the United States. Security – All inputs and outputs are encrypted in transit and at rest. |
The processing/Prompts and Outputs listed are merely summaries of instructions provided and the examples of the resulting Outputs.
How ClassDojo Uses the Data to Provide the AI Features
ClassDojo teachers will provide into the ClassDojo AI provided tool, text only Inputs or content which may contain student personal information. Additionally, ClassDojo will provide a set of instructions or “Prompts”. ClassDojo will then send both the Input and Prompts to an integrated LLM service provider, OpenAI, to perform certain AI related functions upon the Input in order to produce AI-generated responses on the Input called “Output”. To protect the privacy of users, ClassDojo does not otherwise share any direct identifiers of students to the LLM (except to the extent that any direct identifiers are included within the teacher provided Input).
Data obtained from the Inputs, Prompts and Outputs may be accessed, processed and used by ClassDojo to provide, improve and maintain the Service, perform internal analysis (including to provide metrics and data logs or activity records needed for measuring up/down time and, debugging the tools), and keep our platform safe and secure. For example, the Inputs and Prompts will be sent to OpenAI to create the Outputs listed above.
For more information on the “Input” and “Prompts” used to generate the AI insights, the information shared with OpenAI, and ClassDojo’s use of AI, please see our table above. ClassDojo does not use any personal information contained in any Inputs, Prompts, or Output to train any of ClassDojo’s artificial intelligence models. Additionally, ClassDojo does not allow OpenAI or any other LLM or AI third-party service provider it may utilize to use any information (personal information or de-identified) to train, improve or develop their artificial intelligence models. This commitment includes the information contained in the chart above, such as the teacher provided Inputs, used to produce the AI Outputs.
Your child's data (or you if you are a teacher) used to provide the “Inputs” (eg: name, school, role, etc) may be transiently retained by OpenAI to provide the Service to ClassDojo. ClassDojo has entered into a specific contract with OpenAI for “zero data retention” beyond this transient retention for the ClassDojo provided AI-tools mentioned above. This means that the Prompts, Input and Output (a) will not be logged for human review by OpenAI and (b) will not be saved to disk or retained by OpenAI. Note, however, that OpenAI may perform automated screening of the Inputs and Prompts for safety purposes (the “Safety Classifiers”), which shall consist solely of metadata (including classifier types, dates, counts and confidence scores) and shall not include any Inputs, Prompts or Output itself (including summarizations of Prompts, Inputs or Outputs) or any portion thereof. OpenAI may retain Safety Classifiers.
How We Work With Trusted Service Providers To Offer AI-Enhanced Tutoring Services
To deliver these new AI-enhanced features on the ClassDojo platform, ClassDojo works with trusted service providers OpenAI. In engaging with these third party service providers, ClassDojo remains committed to upholding our values of transparency, accountability, fairness, and safety in the use of user data in AI technology.
Figure 1 below details how ClassDojo works with our trusted service providers to provide the AI tools services:
How Can Parents Opt Out ?
Your child's school may have acted as your agent and consented on your behalf to allow your child access to the ClassDojo service as is allowed under COPPA - commonly referred to as "school consent." Please read more about this in our FAQ. If so, and your child’s teacher is allowing your child to use ClassDojo, please contact your child's teacher to opt out of having their school or teacher use any of your child’s Student Data as Input within the AI features.
Limitations of ClassDojo AI
While these AI tools mentioned above are designed to support and enrich learning, it is crucial to recognize that the AI-generated content and solutions provided by our platform are not perfect and are based on and limited to the data the AI has been trained on. As a result, there may be instances where the AI’s outputs might not fully grasp the nuances of a new or complex problem, leading to potential inaccuracies, incorrect or misleading information, or misinterpretations.
Given the reliance on AI to tailor educational content and provide immediate assistance, we recommend our teachers (and other users) critically assess the AI’s guidance and verify its accuracy, especially when it pertains to complex subjects or advanced topics, and have provided the ability for teachers to provide human input on the various AI insights or “Outputs” prior to sharing with students and families. ClassDojo is committed to reducing the limitations of AI by focusing on responsible AI development. This includes ensuring that our AI-powered classroom features are built with privacy, security, inclusion, trust, and safety at their core. Our approach to integrating AI into educational tools reflects our dedication to providing a supportive, effective, and respectful learning environment for all users.
How To Contact Us
Should you have any questions about ClassDojo’s use of AI, our privacy or safety practices in the handling of your data, or for any other purpose, please contact us by email at privacy@classdojo.com.
You may also write to us at the following address:
Attn: Chief Privacy Officer
ClassDojo
735 Tehama Street
San Francisco, California, 94103
United States of America.