This is School
Product by This is School
Facts checked: Not yet checked
Our take (not a Learning Standard rating). This label applies to learning-science judgments throughout this overview.
Our take (not a Learning Standard rating)
Because The Learning Standard has not yet evaluated This is School, we cannot definitively verify its learning outcomes. However, its use of unscripted peer videos and interactive assessments aligns with established principles of multimedia learning and social modeling, though the effectiveness of its gamification requires further scrutiny.
Pros
- Features unscripted videos of actual students explaining concepts, which leverages peer modeling to reduce cognitive load.
- Integrates mastery-based learning principles by requiring students to demonstrate competency before advancing.
- Incorporates multimodal instruction by combining visual, auditory, and interactive assessment elements during video playback.
- Supports diverse learning needs across multiple subjects like STEM and languages through personalized learning paths.
Cons
- Relies heavily on video-based instruction, which can lead to passive consumption if interactive elements are bypassed.
- Gamification features may distract from core learning objectives by emphasizing points over genuine comprehension.
- Lacks transparent data on how effectively its personalized learning algorithms adapt to repeated student errors.
- The institutional pricing model creates barriers for individual parents seeking supplemental tools for use at home.
What Do We Know About This is School?
This is School is an interactive video platform that shows potential for effective learning through peer-led instruction, though it is still pending a full evaluation by The Learning Standard. The platform replaces traditional teacher-led lectures with unscripted videos of students explaining concepts in subjects like science, geography, and languages. This approach grounds the material in social learning theory, as middle and high school students often engage more deeply with peer modeling. For your child, this means they will watch relatable videos and answer interactive assessment questions designed to verify their understanding. The integration of questions directly into the video flow forces retrieval practice, requiring your child to actively recall information rather than passively watch a screen. However, parents should monitor how their child interacts with the gamified elements of the platform. Often, points and leaderboards encourage rushing through material rather than focusing on mastery. Because this tool is primarily sold directly to schools at $6 per student, you will likely encounter it as a required classroom supplement rather than a standalone app you purchase for home use.
How Does This is School Work?
This is School uses a mastery-based progression model built around interactive multimedia instruction. The platform presents students with short, unscripted videos of their peers explaining academic concepts in STEM, humanities, and languages. During and after these videos, the system pauses to administer interactive assessments that test immediate comprehension. This forces active processing of the material, a core requirement of effective multimedia learning. If a student answers incorrectly, the platform uses personalized learning algorithms to adjust the difficulty and provide targeted practice until competency is achieved. Gamification elements, such as earning points for correct answers, are layered over the core curriculum to drive sustained engagement. By integrating assessment directly into the instructional delivery, the platform prevents students from passively skimming the content and ensures they achieve a baseline level of understanding before moving on to more complex topics.
Strengths and tradeoffs of This is School
The biggest strength of This is School is its use of peer modeling to deliver content, while its biggest weakness is the potential for gamification to overshadow deep cognitive processing. Peer-led video instruction capitalizes on social cognitive theory, making complex subjects like physics and foreign languages more approachable for adolescents. When students see peers explaining concepts, it builds self-efficacy and reduces the perceived difficulty of the material. Additionally, the platform employs embedded retrieval practice by inserting assessment questions directly into the video flow. This interrupts the forgetting curve and forces learners to recall information immediately. On the downside, the platform relies heavily on gamified reward systems to maintain engagement. Learning science shows that extrinsic motivators like points and badges can sometimes decrease intrinsic motivation and encourage students to guess answers rapidly just to earn rewards. Furthermore, because the platform attempts to cover a massive range of subjects from ESL to biology, the depth of personalized feedback may vary significantly between disciplines. The Learning Standard is currently evaluating whether the corrective feedback provided is robust enough to correct deep-seated misconceptions.
Who Might Benefit From This is School?
This is School is best for middle and high school students who struggle with traditional teacher-led lectures and benefit from peer-to-peer explanations. Because it targets grades 6 through 12, the content is specifically tailored to adolescent social dynamics and cognitive development. It is an excellent fit for classrooms implementing flipped learning models, where students consume instructional videos independently and use class time for application. Parents will find it most useful as a school-provided intervention for students who need multimedia engagement and frequent, low-stakes testing to retain complex information.
Data Transparency
Does Not Meet Data Transparency Standard
This is School does not meet our data transparency standard. Its privacy policy does not document basic protections, including a statement that it does not sell data, a commitment against targeted advertising and contractual limits on service providers.
6 of 35 checks passed
Evaluated September 2026
Data Protection →Level 1 · Basic protections
Does not sell data or target ads at students, limits sharing, and lets parents see and delete their child's data.
Not documented: a statement that it does not sell data, a commitment against targeted advertising, contractual limits on service providers, parents' right to see their child's data, parents' right to delete their child's data, account deletion
Level 2 · Parent control (meets the standard)
Families can get their data out, know who processes it, and know how long it is kept.
Not documented: users' right to access their data, data export, a data retention timeline, self-service deletion
Level 3 · Direct data access
Families or schools can pull their own data through an API, in a stated format.
Not documented: an API for retrieving their own data, a named export format
View all 35 checks
Parent Access2/8
Does the policy mention parents specifically?
The policy does not mention parents.
Can parents view their child's data?
The policy does not give parents any right to view their child's data.
Can parents modify their child's data?
The policy does not give parents any right to modify their child's data.
Can parents delete their child's account?
The policy does not give parents any right to delete their child's data or account.
Is there a dedicated Children's Privacy section?
The policy has no section with its own heading about children's privacy or COPPA.
Does it reference COPPA compliance?
“TIS has appointed two Data Protection Managers who will deal with all requests and enquiries concerning TIS's uses of School Personal Data and endeavour to make sure that all School Personal Data is processed in compliance with regulations such as the GDPR, FERPA, COPPA etc.”
Does it reference FERPA compliance?
“TIS has appointed two Data Protection Managers who will deal with all requests and enquiries concerning TIS's uses of School Personal Data and endeavour to make sure that all School Personal Data is processed in compliance with regulations such as the GDPR, FERPA, COPPA etc.”
Is parental consent required for child accounts?
The policy does not address parental consent.
Data Portability0/5
Can users access their personal data?
The policy directs general requests to its Data Protection Managers but does not give users a right to access their data.
Can users download/export their data?
The policy does not address data download or export.
Is there a self-service data access tool?
The policy does not describe a self-service data access tool.
Is a specific data format mentioned for export?
The policy does not mention any export format.
Is there an API for data access?
The policy does not mention an API for data access.
Data Minimization2/6
Is data collection itemized?
“Names or aliases, email addresses or usernames and passwords (cryptographically hashed) of students.”
Can the app be used without a real name?
The policy says it processes students' names or aliases, which the school provides.
Can the app be used without an email?
The policy says it processes students' email addresses or usernames, which the school provides.
Does it state collection is limited to what is necessary?
“We only process the absolute minimum of Personal Data to provide the Services.”
Is IP address anonymized or truncated?
The policy does not address IP address anonymization.
Is location tracking explicitly excluded?
The policy does not address location tracking.
Third-Party Protection2/7
Does it explicitly state no selling of data?
The policy says it does not share personal data with third parties but never explicitly says it does not sell data.
Are third-party providers named?
“Some Personal Data may be hosted on third-party software services such as AWS (where we host the website), Xero (where we process accounts) and Campaign Monitor (from where we send out our newsletter).”
Are providers contractually restricted?
The policy only notes that its providers have publicly available data protection statements and does not describe any contractual restrictions.
No-targeted-advertising commitment?
The policy does not address targeted advertising.
Is AI/ML data sharing addressed?
The policy does not address AI or machine learning.
Child-specific sharing restriction?
“TIS is given this Personal Data by the School via its teachers and IT staff. We do not share Personal Data (either Student or Teacher) with any third parties.”
Cookies/tracking limited or opt-out?
The policy does not address cookies or tracking.
Deletion & Retention0/5
Can users delete their account?
The policy does not give users a way to request deletion of their account or data.
Self-service deletion mechanism?
The policy does not describe a self-service deletion mechanism.
Specific data retention timeline?
The policy only says data is kept as long as necessary to perform the contract, with no specific timeline.
Auto-deletion of inactive accounts?
The policy does not address automatic deletion of inactive accounts.
Post-deletion handling described?
The policy says data no longer needed is securely deleted but does not describe what happens after deletion, such as to backups.
Advertising0/4
Advertising model explicitly disclosed?
The policy does not address advertising.
Free from third-party advertisements?
The policy does not address third-party advertising.
Children excluded from ad targeting?
The policy does not address ad targeting of children.
Ad-free option available?
The policy does not address advertising or an ad-free option.
What This Means
The policy review did not meet our data transparency standard. The checks above show the documented findings and unknowns. A missing statement does not establish how the app handles data in practice.
About this evaluation: Based on automated analysis of Data Protection against 35 policy-disclosure questions, including questions adapted from the Common Sense Privacy Program's published evaluation questions. TLS is not affiliated with Common Sense Media, and this is not a Common Sense rating. Quoted text is copied from the policy; unquoted notes are our summary. Results describe what the policy documents, not the company's actual practices. Privacy policies can change: this review reflects the version we analyzed and does not determine legal compliance.
Sources and review method
TLS combines product information and editorial analysis to explain how This is School works, its tradeoffs, and the questions to ask before choosing it. Product features, an instructional rationale and evidence of learning outcomes are different kinds of information.
Formal Learning Standard assessment: not yet completed. Data Transparency findings are reported separately and do not establish learning effectiveness. Read our methodology.
Frequently Asked Questions About This is School
Is This is School free?
No. This is School is not free for individual users. The platform uses an institutional pricing model that starts at $6 per student. It is primarily purchased by school districts and teachers to be used as a classroom resource.
Is This is School good for middle and high schoolers?
Yes. The platform is specifically designed for students in grades 6 through 12. Its core instructional method relies on unscripted videos of students in this exact age bracket, leveraging peer modeling to make complex academic concepts highly relatable for adolescents.
What does This is School teach?
This is School provides curriculum resources across a broad range of subjects including Languages, ESL, Geography, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. The content is aligned with secondary school standards and focuses on building core competencies in these disciplines.
How does This is School compare to Khan Academy?
While both platforms offer video-based instruction for secondary students, Khan Academy relies on traditional, expert-led whiteboard lectures. This is School uses unscripted videos of actual students explaining concepts, prioritizing peer-to-peer social learning and heavily integrated interactive gamification.
Has The Learning Standard evaluated This is School?
TLS has not yet completed a Learning Standard evaluation of how well This is School teaches. Its privacy policy has been reviewed for Data Transparency and does not yet document the basic protections (Level 1).
Is This is School COPPA compliant?
The reviewed privacy policy references COPPA. A policy reference alone does not establish COPPA compliance. Policy review note: The policy names COPPA as a regulation it works to comply with.
Is This is School FERPA compliant?
The reviewed privacy policy references FERPA. A policy reference alone does not establish FERPA compliance. Policy review note: The policy names FERPA as a regulation it works to comply with.
Does This is School have a children's privacy policy?
No dedicated children's privacy section was found in the reviewed policy. Policy review note: The policy has no section with its own heading about children's privacy or COPPA.
Does This is School sell student data?
A statement ruling out data selling was not found in the reviewed policy. This does not establish that the app sells student data. Policy review note: The policy says it does not share personal data with third parties but never explicitly says it does not sell data.
Can you delete your data from This is School?
Account deletion was not documented in the reviewed privacy policy. This does not establish whether deletion is available. Policy review note: The policy does not give users a way to request deletion of their account or data.
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- Pricing
- Pricing starts at $6 per student.
- Platforms
- Web Browser, Windows (Microsoft), macOS (Apple), Chrome OS (Google)
- Grade Levels
- 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade, 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade
- Website
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