Recently we released a large update for AccuClass. In the update we introduced an enhanced UI, a few new attendance tracking methods, and several under-the-hood improvements! To help you make the most of the new update we’ve compiled a list of the new features for you to take advantage of!
Logo
Now you can personalize your AccuClass interface even more by adding your institution’s logo to your account! This logo will appear in the top right corner of your AccuClass account as well as on the mobile app.
Student Access
Students can now download and login on the AccuClass mobile app. By logging into the app, they can sign themselves into classes (if enabled by an admin/instructor) as well as check their attendance in their classes.
Announcements
You can now make announcements through the AccuClass app. To use this feature, simply setup an announcement through the AccuClass website and when the announcement is sent it will notify anyone logged into the mobile app. Announcements can be scheduled and can be sent to all students, to specific students, or to all students enrolled in a particular class.
Attendance Statuses and Rules per Class
This is an option that we had a lot of requests for on the AccuClass User Voice website. Now the attendance status settings you’re familiar with can be applied per class! Originally these selection rules that determine if a student is early or late and the custom attendance statuses were only able to be set universally for all classes.
However with this update you are able to make these settings specific to each class.
And any class that does not specify these settings will simple use the normal account settings.
Proximity Sign In
Proximity sign in is one of the new attendance tracking methods introduced with this update! If you are not familiar with this technology it utilizes the widely available Bluetooth technology built into most handheld devices. This allows Instructors to be able to turn their mobile device into a beacon allowing students to sign in when they enter the classroom. Students who have downloaded the mobile app and have Bluetooth activated will automatically get a notification that allows them to sign into the class when they are within range of the beacon device.
Students can use QR code to Sign-In/Out
We have always allowed Admins or Instructors to print a QR code for students to be scanned into a class using their own ID number. This new option is completely opposite – the Student will now scan a QR that is displayed on a computer or device screen. When students scan the QR code using the AccuClass mobile app it will automatically sign them in or out of the class. The QR codes will automatically refresh after a certain amount of time to prevent any cheating.
Voice Recording for Name Pronunciations
Students are now able to record their voice through the AccuClass mobile app. Students will be able to record themselves saying their name. Instructors will be able to listen to this recording in the mobile app while doing roll call, or through student profiles on the website.
Preferred Names
Students will now be able to enter their preferred name through the AccuClass mobile app. Their preferred name will be displayed along with their real name in their profile.
Improved Attendance Sheet
Administrators and Instructors viewing the Attendance Sheet will notice some clarity enhancements. Hovering over a slot in the sheet will change the color and show a tooltip with the name and date of the entry. Clicking on the slot will also now take you to the corresponding attendance log. These changes will help when viewing complex attendance sheets.
SAML/Shibboleth Single Sign-On (SSO)
This new feature now allows your Students and Staff to login to AccuClass without having to remember a seperate set of Login credentials then what they normally use to login to their online portal. This will make some of the new features above easier to implement such as having students mark themselves as present by scanning a QR code in the class, etc.
This partial integration also paves the path for future improvements that would fully integrate and pull the latest student, course, and enrollment, etc. data so that you never have to run manual or even scheduled imports again.
Other Improvements
- Admins and Instructors can now quickly edit the class schedule without having to edit the entire class details.
- The date formats are now localized based on the browser’s date and time settings. For example, if you are in the United States it will display as MM-DD-YYYY, but if you are in the United Kingdom it will display DD-MM-YYYY.
- Admins can now review or remove student profile photos now that the students can upload a photo through the mobile app.
- Admins can quickly create Instructors from the class edit screen if they don’t already exist. Previously you would have to save the class, next create the instructor, and then go back into the class edit screen to assign them to the class.
As you can see we always have more value to add to our software typically from the insights of you, our users, if you have any great ideas for improvements to AccuClass please send them to our feedback website https://accuclass.uservoice.com so we can keep track of them, see what ideas are popular, and more for future updates.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us at 888-249-7227 or email us at accuclass@engineerica.com!