If an instructor wants to use Vivipod, your team may need to review student privacy, accessibility, account access, and how it fits the LMS. The documents and setup details below are a place to start.
You can try one activity with staff or a class before deciding whether to use it more widely.
Table of Contents
What to 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 |
| Breach notification | If we become aware of a breach involving your institution's data, we notify your designated contact within 72 hours, with what happened, what was involved, and what to do. | Privacy policy, section 9 |
| LMS fit | Add a Space to Canvas Course Navigation, 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. You do not need to create student accounts or install an app. On devices you manage, you can limit sign-in to school Google accounts and turn email sign-in off. | Student join and post, Institution controls |
| Institution controls | Keep students from creating Spaces, and let them join only Spaces one of your staff helps run, such as a dual-enrollment class with a district teacher as co-admin. Included with school and district plans; we set them up with you. | Institution controls |
| 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 |
| Accessibility | Students can respond with audio, screen sharing, or drawing. Instructors can enable captions for each Topic on Plus. We work toward WCAG 2.2 Level AA with automated checks and keyboard and screen reader testing. | Accessible participation, Conformance report (VPAT®) |
| Moderation and control | Review Posts before sharing them, approve membership in Private Spaces, and remove members when needed. | Manage members |
| Cost | Instructors can start on the free plan. Plus adds longer recordings, captions and transcripts, and more Spaces; only the Space owner needs it. School, district, and department plans, which include institution controls, are arranged by email. | Pricing |
Accessible participation
Students can respond with audio, screen sharing, or drawing when the task does not require them to appear on camera. Choose the format for what you need them to show or explain.
We work toward the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at Levels A and AA. We check keyboard navigation, visible focus, light and dark themes, narrow screens, text spacing, and control sizes on every product change. We also test core activities with screen readers. Our accessibility statement explains the testing and remaining barriers.
Captions and transcripts are part of Plus. An instructor enables them for each Topic. Only the account that owns the Space needs Plus; students do not need their own subscription.
In a Topic with captions enabled, the first Space member to press CC starts generation, which usually takes about ten seconds. Once ready, captions are available to anyone who can view the post. Speech recognition runs inside Vivipod's own infrastructure, so generating captions does not send recordings to an additional provider. See how to enable captions and transcripts.
Captions are machine-generated and can contain errors, especially with poor audio, background noise, unusual names, or specialist vocabulary. In our review, a sample of clear classroom speech was transcribed accurately. Captions cannot yet be edited in Vivipod. When students depend on captions, check their accuracy for the recordings you share and contact us if something makes them hard to follow.
Read the conformance report
Our Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) uses the VPAT® 2.5Rev WCAG Edition format. It lists each criterion, what we tested, and where support is incomplete.
The report includes automated checks and a manual review from September 2026. We tested keyboard use and screen readers: VoiceOver on macOS, iPhone, and iPad, and TalkBack on Android. The review covered signing in, using the dashboard, recording and posting a response, and viewing a Post. We fixed the defects found in that review before publication.
We prepared the report as a self-assessment. It has not been independently audited. Audio description is not supported and captions cannot yet be edited. The report covers the Vivipod web application rather than the public information pages. If you need another format, email support@vivipod.com and let us know what works for you.
The shorter version, with how to report a barrier, is the accessibility statement.
Try a course pilot
Start with an activity small enough to review before the end of 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.
- Review what happened. Did students explain their choices, leave useful replies, and return to answer questions? Compare that with the activity you used before.
- Invite colleagues to try it. They can start on the free plan with their own Space. When a department wants shared administration, captions, or longer recordings, email support@vivipod.com.
A fifteen-minute staff demo
Try this in a workshop so colleagues can see the student and instructor steps.
- 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 in the Post author's account. Comments and feedback.
The tutorial series covers each step with screenshots, and the Learn hub has the assessment and course-design guides for planning the activity.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an institution plan?
Yes. Instructors start free. School, district, and department plans cover every teacher on your email domain, and include institution controls and signed agreements where your state or district requires one. They 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 we limit what students can do across Vivipod?
Yes. On devices you manage, you can keep sign-in on school Google accounts and turn email sign-in off. We can also set your district up so students can't create Spaces and can join only Spaces one of your staff co-runs. Institution controls shows each one.
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.
Do you have a VPAT or ACR?
Yes. A completed VPAT® is called an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR). Our Accessibility Conformance Report is published in the VPAT® 2.5Rev WCAG Edition format and covers every Level A and AA success criterion, with the evaluation method behind each response. The accessibility statement is the shorter summary. If you need the report in another format, email support@vivipod.com.
Where do the comparison pages fit?
The comparisons explain when to use Vivipod, an LMS discussion board, VoiceThread, Padlet, or Screencastify Submit for a particular assignment.
Try it with a class
Try a free Space with one class. Invite students to share their ideas, ask what helped them participate, and use their feedback to shape the next activity. If your team needs help with privacy, accessibility, or setup, email us.