Highlights optional features Follow

In this article:

• Optional features overview
• Pause Screens feature
• Disable screenshots
• Provide reasons for closing tabs

Optional features overview

In Hāpara Highlights, there are a few features that are either optional to turn on or have options you can add based on your team’s preference. Whether or not you choose these options will depend on the needs of your teachers and the pedagogical beliefs of your school or district. Therefore, we recommend discussing these features with your instructional leadership team.

Pause Screens feature

When the Pause Screens feature is enabled, teachers are able to lock the browser screens for their entire class or individual students.

During the time Pause Screens is activated, students see the message below and are not able to navigate to any websites. 

For more on how teachers activate this feature and what they see, check out our article How to pause students' screens.

How to enable Pause Screens

In the Hāpara Admin console:

1. Navigate to Modules. You should be taken to the Highlights Settings page.
2. Scroll to the bottom of the page to the Optional Features section. 
3. Select Enable Pause Screens in Highlights. 
4. You will need to set a maximum amount of time teachers can pause screens — 5, 10 or 15 minutes. 
5. Click Save changes at the bottom.

Disable screenshots

In the Highlights Current Screens tab or when taking Snaps from the Activity Viewer, teachers can see screenshots of what students are viewing online. 

In some instances, especially when students are learning remotely, you may want teachers to be able to monitor browsing but not view exactly what appears on students' screens. 

How to disable screenshots

To disable Current Screens and Snaps, in the Hāpara Admin console:

1. Navigate to Modules. You will be taken to the Highlights Settings page.
2. Scroll down to the Bandwidth Control section. 
3. In the Screenshots section, deselect both Enable screenshots and Enable ongoing screenshots. 

This will remove the Current Screens and Snaps tabs in Highlights. 

Teachers can continue to use all other Highlights features, including Browser Tabs and the Activity Viewer to see which websites students are accessing.

Provide reasons for closing tabs

In Highlights, teachers can close students' tabs at any time to help keep them on their learning path. When teachers close a tab, they will be asked to provide a reason for closing it. This feature encourages teachers to be more thoughtful about why they are closing tabs. It also provides students with more context as to why their tab is being closed so that they’ll be less likely to repeat the off-task behavior.

In your settings, you can set up the reasons that teachers will see and tailor those reasons to your school or district’s preference.  

How to add your own reasons for closing tabs

1. When you view the Hāpara Admin Console settings for the first time, you’ll see the Reasons for closing students’ tab section.
2. One reason has already been added for you. 
3. You can keep that reason or delete it and type in a new one.
4. You also have the option of typing up to three other reasons.  

Note: You must include at least one reason.

When a teacher closes a student’s tab, they will be prompted to select from the reason(s) you set up.

Students will then see the reason in place of the website they were previously viewing.