As a 6th grade teacher, I am always looking for new and innovative ways to motivate my students and manage their behavior. For years, I used ClassDojo as my go-to platform for implementing a Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) system in my classroom. However, I recently switched to CritterCoin and have seen a significant increase in student engagement and effort. Here's why:
One of the biggest limitations of ClassDojo is that it is not very customizable. I was restricted to using the predefined behaviors and couldn't manage reward points, furthermore I couldn't personalize them to fit my classroom culture. With CritterCoin, I can can give out custom 3D digital coins, each having different with point values and unique designs. Students are always eager to earn the latest coins. I can also use Quests created by my School's admin. Quests are workflows that help manage specific behavioral issues or reward flows. Quest nodes have functionality including the ability to get parent or teacher sign-off, send coins as rewards, send points to the student's house as a reward, or issue reward points to the student.
Another limitation of ClassDojo is that it can become stale over time. Students become accustomed to receiving points and rewards for the same behaviors, and the novelty wears off. With CritterCoin, students are constantly motivated to earn new coins and explore new ways to earn points. The 3D digital coins and House System provide a fun and engaging way to promote positive behavior, and the ability to trade and store CritterCoin NFTs adds an element of excitement and ownership.
While ClassDojo is primarily focused on managing behavior and communication between teachers and parents, CritterCoin offers a more comprehensive platform for managing PBIS. The platform includes a school-wide rewards store, parent access, and data insights. The rewards store allows students to spend their reward points, and the parent access feature allows parents to view their students' achievements and even answer daily questions that can earn their student coins. The data insights feature provides valuable data on teacher engagement, student engagement, coins earned, rewards purchased, and more.
Finally, CritterCoin is more efficient for managing PBIS than ClassDojo. The platform is designed to save teachers time when implementing PBIS and not disrupt their teaching flow. The premium feature of Scannables allows teachers to create QR codes that when scanned by a student using the CritterCoin app, awards the predetermined coin. The Houses Display option allows schools to cast a real-time Houses scoreboard to a public TV or screen, showcasing house points and highlighting students as they earn coins. This makes it easy for teachers to implement and manage PBIS without taking away from instructional time.
Overall, I have found that CritterCoin provides a more engaging, customizable, comprehensive, and efficient platform for managing PBIS in my classroom. While ClassDojo is still a popular option, I encourage other teachers to consider making the switch to CritterCoin and experience the benefits for themselves.
