Starting and Joining a Class

There are two main types of groups in Backdrop: Student Only, and Classroom Monitoring.

Student Only: All groups are Student Only if Classroom Monitoring is disable. Groups larger than 75 students are also Student Only. Student only groups are helpful for getting students into the program for the creation of custom groups, and for organizing safeguarding features.

Classroom Monitoring: When a subscription to Classroom is active, any group that contains 75 or fewer students will have a "Start Class" button present. 

You will see two statuses when it comes to viewing students in an active session. "Start Class" or "Join Class".

Start Class:  There is no active class session in place. You will be only viewer of the student devices and all policies you apply will clear when you end class.

Join Class: Indicates an active session is underway. You ca join to view the students and even use Classroom tools but be aware another teacher may have active policies in place. If you are just visiting the class, it's best to the hit the back button in your browsers rather than stop the class. Stopping the class will clear all applied policies, including ones the other viewer has applied. 

The purpose of Join Class is to alert users that an active session is underway and to use care when applying Classroom tools. 

To start or join a class, follow the steps below:

• Log in to Impero Backdrop.
• Click on 'Student Groups' from the main menu.

• If you have less than 30 Groups, you will see the "Start Class"/"Join Class" button embedded on your class tile.

• To begin a class, select "Start Class"/"Join Class" from here
• If you have more than 30 Groups, you will see a condensed view and there will not be a "Start Class" button on the tile.

• To start a class, select the group of students you wish to view by clicking on the group name.

• Click on the 'Start Class' or 'Join Class' button.

Devices associated with students in the selected group are displayed within the classroom manager screen.

Screen Sharing Permissions

In order to support the viewing of screens in real-time within Impero classroom the device clients for Chrome, Android and iOS have a screen sharing permission. It is necessary that this permission is accepted for the Impero Classroom user to view all of the students' device, including applications and downloads.

ChromeOS Screen Sharing Note

The ChromeOS client only allows for the sharing of the screen with Impero once the child has accepted the screen sharing permission dialog. Accepting the permission allows the ChromeOS screen to display the entire device including open applications and downloads. On ChromeOS the permission is triggered when using the "Start Class" action. Once accepted all teachers who have access to the child can view the screen. If the child refuses the permission it is requested again until they accept it and only the active tab is displayed in Classroom. The child is asked to share the screen each time they login to Impero.

iOS Screen Sharing Note

 
The iOS platform only allows for the sharing of the screen with Impero once the end-user has accepted the record screen permission. The permission is displayed when a teacher tires to view the iOS device in Impero. Accepting the permission allows the iOS screen to be displayed in the classroom. On the iOS platform, the permission is triggered by the first user that views the device and once accepted all other teachers can view the screen until the app is closed. If the end-user refuses the permission, the iOS device does not display its screen but all actions in are still supported such as lock screen and send message.

Once the user has accepted or refused the permission, iOS retains the choice until the application is closed and restarted. The user will then be asked permission again when the next teacher tries to view the device. 

Android 7, 8 and 9 Screen Sharing Note

The Android platform only allows for the sharing of the screen with Impero classroom once the end-user has accepted the “screen capturing” dialog that will appear when a teacher tires to view the Android device in Impero classroom. Accepting the permission will allow for the Android screen to be displayed in the classroom. On the Android platform the permission is triggered by every user that views the device so the permission dialog has a “don’t ask again” option. Once selected the Android client will automatically accept or deny the permission request based on the selection made. If the end user refuses the permission, the Android device does not display its screen in the classroom but all actions in classroom are still supported such as lock screen and send message.

Once the user has accepted or refused the permission with the “don’t ask again” option selected, Android retains the choice until that application is closed and restarted. The user is then asked permission again when the next classroom user tries to view the device. If the end-user does not select the “don’t ask again” option, then they are asked the screen sharing permission every time a classroom user views the device.

Android 10 Screen Sharing Note

 
The Android platform only allows for the sharing of the screen with Impero classroom once the end-user has accepted the casting/recording permission. The permission is displayed when a teacher tires to view the Android device in Impero. Accepting the permission allows for the Android screen to be displayed in the classroom. On the Android platform the permission is triggered by the first user that views the device and once accepted all other teachers can view the screen until the app is closed or all teachers stop viewing the device. If the end-user refuses the permission, the Android device does not display its screen but all actions in are still be supported such as lock screen and send message.

Once the user has accepted or refused the permission, Android retains the choice until the application is closed and restarted or all teachers stop viewing the device.