Today we will be looking at the privacy polices of the following applications/websites that students use in our classrooms. It is important to know the privacy polices ahead of time and to find out what information they are collecting and what they are doing with it. It is always important to have our students safety in mind when we plan technology to use with our students. We will be looking at Animoto, Prezi, Kahoot, Pear Deck, and Quizlet today.

Animoto: This site is used to create videos. Students have to be at least 13 years or older to use. If someone wants to use Animoto for promotional purposes then they have to be 18 years or older. When students register they collect information such as their names (first and last), their email, any billing information that they may use (credit card), product wishlist, and time zone. Animoto does not share personal information with 3rd parties unless that user agrees to have their information shared with 3rd parties.

Prezi: This is a site used to create presentations. You must be at least 13 years old to sign up to use the site. However, if you are between the ages of 13-18 you must have help from a legal guardian to give written permission to use this site. This site collects information such as name, email and/or phone number, title and a password. They also collect payment information if you choose to upgrade your account to the premium features. They also conduct surveys and gather support evidence to help make the site better for their users. The only information that they may share is the information gathered from the surveys and support evidence, but they are not allowed to reveal the identities of the users who filled out the surveys. Which helps to make the surveys more anonymous.

Kahoot: This is a site that is a great tool to play a review game with students. This is a great way to review with small groups of students or whole class. Teachers have to make up their own or find the review game that they want to use. You have to be 13 years old to use. However, if you have students that are under the age of 13 they only ask for your students email address. The students usually do not have to put in personal information they are usually only putting in the game code. This site is collecting most of their information from the teachers who make up the games. This site uses your information to complete purchases if you pay for something (most of the items on this site are free), send you information, and fulfill requests if you need something. There is no third party sharing with your information or your students information.

Pear Deck: This is a Google Slides add-on that allows you to create an interactive presentation with your students. The students have to have a gmail account and have the access code which will be given at the beginning of each presentation in order to access the presentation on their computers, laptops, tablets, cell phones, etc. the presentation shows up on their screens and you as the teacher can control the slide show they can only view the slide that you are on. You can also include interactive slides for them to answer through out the presentation they can answer questions, draw pictures, etc. Their answers appear anonymously on the Smartboard, but you can go back later and see what each student’s response was. Pear Deck may collect the following information while you are using their program: email address, name, your picture on your Google profile if you have one. If they collect information about you it is in order to help improve the program. They do partner with third party programs such as cookies in order to collect information to improve their program. You do have to pay for the premium features after the free trial runs out if you choose to keep using the premium features of Pear Deck.

Quizlet: This is a site and an app that allows students to make their own interactive flashcards. Teachers can also make up their own flashcards to share with their students. Students can play various games, study tests, and so on to learn the material. It is mostly used in my classroom to study new vocabulary. You need to be 13 years old or older in order to access the all the features that Quizlet has to offer. However if you are under the age of 13 you can still have an account but it will have child safety features on it which will not allow students to access all of the features of Quizlet. If you create an account it collects the following information: username that you make up and your email address. Quizlet does not take your information and send it to third parties your information remains private, except for your username this is public whenever you choose to share your flashcards. They also conduct surveys periodically in order to make the site/app better for their users.

As I reflect on these policies I have come to the conclusion that I would still use these websites/apps. These are great tools that are very beneficial for my students. They are secure and ensure personal protection for myself and my students. The one that is the most appealing to me is Pear Deck because I have to be able to access my students in short amounts of time and they love using Pear Deck and they don’t even know that they are being assessed which means that I am getting more genuine responses from them. I am in a 7th grade classroom right now and they love using Pear Deck. We also use Quizlet, quite often. I want to try to use Kahoot, Animoto, and Prezi in the future with them as well.