Teaching · For Teachers

Write the confidentiality plan before the first interview.

Say what the study collects, how identifiable it is, where each file will live and how results will be reported. The builder writes the plan as numbered statements and flags the weak spots.

Start a protocolWhat you get
$12one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $12

Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the For Teachers toolkit, $79 for 84 items.

The protocol builder

One protocol per study. The example study is made up.

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What you get

Teaching · For Teachers$12 · included with Classroom and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
The confidentiality section of a study protocol, written as numbered statements, with the fixes to make before collecting data.
Who it is for
Teacher-researchers, graduate students in education and school research or evaluation staff.
Format
Browser builder. One saved protocol per study; printed with its statements or as a blank form; CSV of the storage rows; export and import a file.
Access
$12 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Also in the For Teachers toolkit ($79) and the Teaching Suite pass ($199), and 1 more bundle. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The For Teachers space in Caveat Teaching.
Support
Questions about an order, access or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.
P-01P-02P-03code keythe codes travel; the key stays put
Drawn for this page. In a coded study the working files carry only codes; the key that links codes to people is kept apart, with its own access.

How to use it

  1. Fill it in while you write the ethics application.
  2. List every copy of the data, including recordings on a phone.
  3. Use roles, not names, for who can open each file.
  4. Paste the numbered statements into the protocol and adjust the wording to your board’s template.
  5. Update it if anything changes once the study starts.

Start a protocol

What the protocol covers

Anonymous or coded

Anonymous means no identifiers are collected at all. Most school studies are coded: a key links codes to people, and confidentiality depends on keeping that key apart.

Small groups

A table that reports three students in a subgroup can single them out. Set a smallest group size before you see the results, and combine or leave out smaller groups.

What it is not

The builder does not replace your ethics board, district research office or state rules. It gives you a clear first draft to bring to them.

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (the Common Rule), 45 CFR 46, including 46.111(a)(7) on privacy and confidentiality.
  2. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 34 CFR Part 99, including 99.31 (exceptions such as studies for or on behalf of schools).
  3. U.S. Department of Education, Privacy Technical Assistance Center. Data De-identification: An Overview of Basic Terms, and Frequently Asked Questions on Disclosure Avoidance.
  4. American Educational Research Association. Code of Ethics, 2011, standards on confidentiality.
  5. U.S. Department of Education, Student Privacy Policy Office. Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) guidance on surveys.

The example study, roles and storage places are made up. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.