Vivipod reaches an institution the way most teaching tools do. One instructor tries an activity in one course. Students post, the instructor repeats it, and a colleague asks what they used. Then a teaching center or academic technology team is asked whether it belongs in the toolkit.
This page is for that review. It lists the questions that come up and points to the page that answers each one, so the answer is the same one an instructor would find.
Table of Contents
Questions That Come Up in Review
| Question | Short answer | Where it is answered |
|---|---|---|
| Student privacy | No ads, no selling student data, no targeted advertising. Designed to support FERPA. Students own their videos and can withdraw them. | Privacy policy |
| Data agreements | Vivipod signs or aligns with state and province student data privacy agreements. | DPA coverage |
| LMS fit | Vivipod does not replace the LMS. Embed a Space or Topic in Canvas, or link it from Moodle, Blackboard, Brightspace, or a syllabus. Grades stay in the LMS. | Canvas and web embeds |
| Accounts | Students sign in with an email code or Google. There is no separate student account type to provision and nothing to install. | Student join and post |
| Devices and access | Runs in the browser on desktop, mobile, and Chromebooks. Students can respond over a screen share or a drawing instead of on camera. | Recorder tools |
| Moderation and control | Per-Topic review before anything is visible, membership approval for private Spaces, member removal, and Space-level access settings. | Manage members |
| Cost | The free plan covers a real course. Plus adds longer recordings and more Spaces for one owner. Department and institution plans are arranged by email. | Pricing |
The Pilot That Works
Three steps, one term.
- One instructor, one activity. A weekly discussion Topic, a 90-second oral defense attached to a paper, or a class introduction. The higher education hub lists the guides.
- Compare the second turn. Ask whether students explained, replied, and came back, against what the text discussion board produced.
- Widen by invitation. Colleagues start on the free plan with their own Space. When a department wants shared administration or longer recordings, email support@vivipod.com.
Demo It to Your Staff in Fifteen Minutes
Instructional coaches and teaching-center staff run this in a workshop.
- Create a Space named for the workshop and one Topic: "Introduce yourself and one thing you are trying this term." Sixty seconds. Create a Space.
- Put the Space link on the screen. Everyone joins from a phone or laptop and records. Share a Space.
- Turn on comments, reply to one post at a timestamp, and show the notification arrive. Comments and feedback.
The tutorial series covers each step with screenshots, and the Learn hub has the assessment and course-design guides instructors will ask about next.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there an institution plan?
Yes. Instructors start free. Department and institution plans, shared administration, and signed agreements are arranged by email at support@vivipod.com.
Does IT need to provision accounts?
No. Students and instructors sign in with an email code or Google. Membership is managed per Space by its admins.
Can a Space be locked to enrolled students?
Yes. A Private Space requires admin approval before a member can view or post. An Open Space lets anyone with the link browse and sign in to post.
Where do the comparison pages fit?
The compare section sets Vivipod against LMS discussion boards, VoiceThread, Padlet, and Screencastify Submit by teaching workflow, and says which fits which case.
Start the Review
Send the privacy policy and DPA coverage to the reviewer, and give one instructor a free Space for the term. Everything else follows from what their students do with it.