In response to teacher requests over the years, there are a number of different ways to add student sub-accounts to your virtual classroom at Innovation.
Self-Registration
It’s best to just have students register themselves in your virtual classroom. There is a link provided on the Students tab in your teacher dashboard. The links are on the left.
One link is generic, allowing students to create sub-accounts using a password or using Google Sign-in.
One link is specific to Google Sign-in. Send this one if no one is using username-password. You can always switch later if you want.
Import Student Roster from Google Classroom
If you are integrating Innovation tasks into your Google Classroom, you can import the rosters.
Adding Students Manually
Teachers can just add students manually using the Add Student app. The app will create a unique username from the student’s first and last names. You can optionally assign students to a class. More about enrollment below…
Adding Students via Spreadsheet
Teachers can upload a spreadsheet of student data and let Innovation create the accounts from there. Teachers who do this must use the XLSX template provided.
Expiration Dates on Student Accounts: Commercial Licenses versus Free Licenses
Teachers who have a commercial license to Innovation can manage expiration dates on student accounts. This is useful, for example, if you are working for a tutoring service and you are charging students to access your virtual classroom for a certain period of time.
Teachers with Free Licenses do not have expiration dates on student accounts and need to manage them manually.
When a new student is added for commercial accounts, it is by default created for two days at first. Teachers need to add time. Manage student account expiration dates in Students :: Student Account Expiry.
How Students Access Innovation
There are three ways students can log in to Innovation:
- Google Sign-in
- PIN + Virtual Room Number
- Virtual room number + username + password
Google Sign-in
If you are using Google classroom and plan to integrate Innovation tasks into that platform, this is your best choice. Students will already have Google accounts and they can sign in without remembering an extra password.
PIN
Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) are for students under 13 because students must be 13 or older to use the Google Signin or username-password methods. But you can use this for any of your students. Teachers need to activate the PIN system and can optionally allow access this way only from certain IP addresses. For example, I have set this up so that my students could only use the PIN from my school.
Username + Password
The traditional way to log in also still exists at Innovation. Students need to know your virtual classroom number, their username assigned on account creation, and a password. The teacher controls the passwords.
The Quick Login Link
If a student cannot log in because they have forgotten their password, you cans end them a quick login link. This link will automatically log students in without a password, Google authentication, or PIN. It only works once and the link is only good for two hours.
Manage Course Enrollment
Teachers can now restrict access for students to certain courses in their virtual classroom at Innovation. By default, enrollment is “open”, meaning students can freely access any course.
For teachers who need to restrict access by students to a certain course, there is an app to manage enrollment. Access the app from Students :: Student Accounts Management :: Manage Course Enrollment. From here, follow instructions to restrict enrollment and then assign students to a class.
Commercial licensees will find this useful if they are charging for access to a course and need to prevent free access to courses for which students have not paid.