What Does Browser Tabs Show Me?
The Browser Tabs window in Hapara Highlights shows you what students are doing during an online lesson in near-real time. Browser Tabs gives you visibility into students’ online activity so you can guide and encourage students.
Browser Tabs also allows you to create a safe and supportive online learning environment, while supporting student autonomy. You’ll be able to help students meet their learning goals, while teaching them digital responsibility and positive decision-making.
To view Browser Tabs:
1. Log in through app.hapara.com.
2. Select your class.
3. Click Highlights at the top of your page.
4. Browsers Tabs is the first page you'll see when you start a Highlights session.
Student Tiles
When you visit Browsers Tabs, it will show you Student Tiles.
Each of your students has a Student Tile. It contains a list of the most recent sites the student has open in Google Chrome.
Website Listed in Bold
The website listed in bold is the site the student is currently viewing. This allows you to quickly see whether or not students are on the correct website.
Viewing the Site on your Device
Click on any of the websites listed to open the site yourself in a new window. Viewing a website will help you understand if a student is distracted, researching a lesson topic more deeply or confused about the assignment. This can help guide any digital citizenship conversations you have with the student.
Closing a Tab
If a student is distracted, you can close and/or block a website for them quickly and discreetly.
You will have the options to close the website or block the URL for the individual student or the whole class.
When selecting Close for the Student, you'll be prompted to provide a reason so they understand why you closed their browsing tab.
1. Click X to close a website on a students device.
2. Select a reason for closing the tab.
3. This reason will appear on the student's screen in place of the website.
If you select the option to Block for this Student or Block for the Class, you'll see a box appear. This will list the URL to block. You'll also see the box to enter the period of time you would like the URL blocked for.
This will then start a filter session for the student/class and students will not be able to access the URL for the time duration set.
Students will see a message on their screen to let them know how long the site is being blocked for and which teacher blocked the page.
Browser Tabs Options
There are also options for customizing your view of Student Tiles in Browser Tabs. Some options in the top right-hand part of your screen include:
- Increasing or decreasing the number of websites in each Student Tile
- Sorting by group
- Sorting by how long students have been online
- Making the Student Tile sizes compact so you can show more of them on your screen.
Other Highlights Actions
Browser Tabs also gives you access to the buttons you see in other Highlights tabs:
Guide Browsing – Based on student activity in their Student Tiles, it could be helpful to start a guided browsing session to keep a student on track.
Announce – If you see that a student or group is making positive online choices, send them a supportive message.
Share Links – If you see that a student needs help finding a resource or they moved quickly through a lesson, you can send them additional resource links.
Best Practices for Using Browser Tabs
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1. Visit the website yourself. |
If you’re monitoring student activity in Browser Tabs and you see something that’s off, your first step should be to visit the website in question to investigate further. Each Student Tile in Browser Tabs has a list of the websites that the student has recently visited. You can visit any of them simply by clicking on the title in the list. Actually visiting the website will give you a lot more information about what the student is doing. |
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2. Send an announcement. |
Once you have a better idea of what the student is looking at online, reach out to them using the Announce feature. If the student misunderstood the assignment, you could write: “It looks like you’re on the wrong website. Do you need some help?” If the student needs to be refocused, an example message could be: “Hey James, those cats are really cute. However, it’s time to get started on your assignment. Please let me know if you need some help.” There are two ways to send a message to a student:
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3. Share a link. |
Next, you could share a link with the student to help redirect them
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4. Guide the student's browsing. |
Guide Browsing comes in handy if students need more support or you need to focus their attention. If you want students to work on a warm-up at the beginning of class while you take care of other tasks, you can set up a Focus Session. This keeps students focused on the websites for the warm-up. Or suppose James still hasn’t heeded your advice to stop watching cute cat videos and get back to the assignment. Since you know that website is a big distraction, you can set up a Filter Session to restrict access to that website. To start a guided browsing session:
You can also go to the student's Student Tile and click on the drop-down menu to find the options. |
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5. Send a follow-up email to the student. |
You can also send formative feedback to students via Email. This is a great way to congratulate a student on a job well done, which can help them continue making responsible choices. Or you can ask them to reflect on a browsing choice and think about why they were distracted. To send a follow-up email:
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| 6. Conference/reflect with the student about their online activity. | It’s important to talk face-to-face with students no matter how digital we’ve gotten in the world. Take a few minutes to speak with the student one-on-one about their online activity — good or bad. Show them the screenshots you’ve taken of their online activity and examples (with student names marked out) of what good digital citizenship looks like. |
What is the Activity Viewer?
Hapara Highlight's Activity Viewer provides teachers with a window into what students are doing online. With the insight it gives you, you can provide formative feedback quickly and discreetly, while encouraging digital citizenship.
The Activity Viewer also helps you take a proactive approach to classroom management. With the information you find in this Highlights tab, you can congratulate a student, redirect a student, or help a student who might be confused about an activity. You can also set up guided practice for the student using the Guide Browsing feature.
How to view the Activity Viewer:
1. Log in through app.hapara.com.
2. Select your class.
3. Click Highlights at the top of your page.
4. Click Activity Viewer.
Activity Viewer Features
The Activity Viewer includes several features that help with formative feedback and digital citizenship. Click on any website listed in the following windows to view it yourself.
Class Activity
The Class Activity window shows you a list of websites students are currently viewing, previously viewed, or have never viewed.
1. Click on any website to see a breakdown of each student's activity.
2. View the color-coded categories:
- Students who are currently active on the site – Blue
- Students who were previously active on the site – Orange
- Students who have never been active on the site – Gray
3. Hover over any of the websites listed. Then click on the Camera Icon to take a Snap.
Unique Activity
The Unique Activity window shows a list of websites that have been visited by only one student. This helps you quickly see if a student needs to be redirected back onto another website or needs help with an online activity.
1. Click on a Website Name to view it yourself.
2. Hover over any of the websites listed. Then click on the Camera Icon to take a Snap.
3. You can also click the X next to a website name to close the tab. Or you can block the student's tab for a period of time.
If you close the tab, you'll be promoted to give a reason for closing the tab. This reason will appear on the student's screen, helping them understand how to make more positive decisions in the future.
Collaboration
The Collaboration window shows you websites (including Google Docs) that have been visited by more than one student. With this feature, you can see if students are collaborating during a group assignment or project. When you click on a website, you'll see a list of the students visiting the website.
1. Click on a website to view the names of the students who are on the same website.
2. View the color-coded bars for a brief overview of who is currently collaborating, who was previously collaborating, or who has never collaborated.
3. Hover over any of the websites listed. Then click on the Camera Icon to take a Snap.
Snaps
The Snaps feature in the Activity Viewer saves a screenshot of a student's online activity along with details such as when and how long the student was on a website.
With this feature, you can also send a student a Snap with a positive note or feedback about digital citizenship.
To use Snaps:
1. Click the Camera Icon next to any of the website activities listed to take a Snap.
2. Click the Snaps tab to view the Snap. It will be stored there for seven days.
3. Click on the Snap to open a larger view with more information.
4. Click Send Learner(s) Feedback to share formative feedback about the Snap.
5. Click Email Me a Copy if you'd like to keep a copy for longer than seven days.
Other Highlights Actions
The Activity Viewer also gives you access to the buttons you see in other Highlights tabs:
Guide Browsing – Based on student activity, it could be helpful to start a guided browsing session to keep students on track.
Announce – If you see that a student or group is making positive online choices, send them a supportive message.
Share Links – If you see that a student needs help finding a resource or that they moved quickly through a lesson, you can send them additional resource links.
Activity Viewer Quick Guide
| Feature | How it Works | Common Uses | Why it's Helpful |
| Class Activity Window |
The Class Activity Window shows you a list of all the websites that students in your class have visited. Class Activity also displays color-coded bars to give you a brief overview of who is currently active on the site, who was previously active and who has never opened the site. Also, by clicking on any of the rows, you can view a list of students. Hover over any of the rows and then click on the camera icon to take a Snap. |
For example, let’s say you asked students to read a National Geographic Kids article online. In the Class Activity Window, you can check to see who is currently active on the website and looking at the news article. You can also see who was previously active, indicating they most likely completed that task. You can also check to see who hasn’t started. |
Class Activity provides you with information to take next steps: congratulate a student for on-task behavior, redirect a student who is off-task or help a student who might be confused about the assignment. |
| Unique Activity Window |
The Unique Activity Window displays a list of websites that only one student is visiting. The moment that the student closes that tab in their browser, it will disappear from the Unique Activity list. You can also click the X on the right-hand side to close or block any of the tabs displayed in the list. |
For example, if a student isn’t on the National Geographic Kids website (this could be for a variety of reasons), you can quickly see this in Unique Activity. Then you can send a message to the student to start a digital citizenship conversation or help the student with the assignment. |
The Unique Activity Window shows you the name of the student visiting each unique website address and how long ago they opened it. In near-real time, you get visibility into who needs extra support. It also allows you to redirect students in a quick, non-disruptive way. |
| Collaboration Window |
The Collaboration Window shows all websites (including Google Drive files) that two or more students currently have open. You can also click on a website to view the names of the students who are on the same website. Plus, Collaboration displays color-coded bars for a brief overview of who is currently collaborating, who was previously collaborating or who has never collaborated. You can also take a Snap of student collaboration by hovering over any of the websites and clicking the camera icon. |
In the Collaboration Window, you can see who is collaborating on a group project. Let’s say you’ve assigned each group to work together in a Google Doc. By looking at the Collaboration window you can see who is working on the Google Doc together and who isn’t. Then you can redirect group members who aren’t collaborating. |
The Collaboration Window shows you:
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What does Current Screens Show Me?
The Current Screens window in Hapara Highlights shows your students’ online activity in near-real time. In one convenient place, you’ll quickly see what students are looking at on their screens during an online lesson.
With Current Screens, you can build stronger collaborative relationships with your students and strengthen their learning process. For instance, you can document examples of good work or positive online behavior during a lesson. You can also use Current Screens to share meaningful formative feedback with students and help them reflect.
How to view current screens:
1. Log in through app.hapara.com.
2. Select your class.
3. Click Highlights at the top of your page.
4. Click Current Screens.
Screenshots of Current Activity
In Current Screens, you'll see an actual screenshot of each student's screen in their Student Tiles. This will update in near-real time.
How to view the current activity details:
1. Click on the screenshot to see a larger version of the screenshot.
2. You'll also see a list of three tabs the student recently opened. The website in bold is the one the student is currently viewing.
3. Click Take a Snap to save the screenshot with helpful information.
You can later find it in the Snaps tab and send it with feedback to the student. You can also email it directly from the window so you can store it for a parent conference or include it as IEP evidence, for example.
Current Screens Options
Other options in the Student Tile drop-down menu include:
- View screen
- Share links
- Start focus session
- Start filter session
- Freeze tabs
- Pause screen
- Edit groups
In the Current Screens tab you can also:
- Filter Student Tiles by group
- Sort Student Tiles by how long students have been online
- Sort by student name
- Make the Student Tile sizes compact so you can show more of them on your screen
Freeze Tabs and Pause Screens
Current Screens also offers two features to help focus students in the moment.
Freeze Tabs
This feature allows you to instantly freeze student's browser tabs on what they currently have open. If they try to navigate to another website, it will redirect to the tab they had open when you started the Freeze Tabs session. This is helpful if you need students to complete an activity or work on an assessment without navigating to other websites.
Pause Screens
When you turn on Pause Screens, it will pause every student's screen in your class. Instead of the content they were previously viewing, they'll see a message that their teacher has paused their screen. This is helpful when you quickly need the class' full attention for an announcement or to explain a concept.
Other Highlights Actions
Current Screens also gives you access to the buttons you see in other Highlights tabs:
Guide Browsing – When looking at Current Screens, a few students may need support staying on track. You can then set up a guided browsing session for them.
Announce – Based on the screenshots, you can send a positive message to a student, group, or the class.
Share Links – In Current Screens, you also might notice that a student or group needs help finding a resource. You can quickly send them the resource link.
Strategies for Using Current Screens
| Current Screens Step | How it Helps Instruction and Learning |
| 1. View the screenshot and take a Snap. |
Current Screens gives you near-real-time visibility into what students are doing online. It also provides you with tools to document examples of good work, work that needs to be built upon, positive online behavior and areas where the student can be pushed to improve. By taking a Snap of a student’s current activity, you can provide meaningful, formative feedback. |
| 2. Send the student feedback |
When you click on the Snap in the Snaps tab, you can send the screenshot to the student with feedback. This is a good opportunity to give them feedback on their online activity using specific, concrete examples. You can provide formative feedback that reinforces positive online activity and helps students get back on track when their activity strays. |
| 3. Guide the student's browsing |
Guide Browsing is a way to scaffold an online lesson to show the student what responsible browsing is. This directs students towards browsing responsibly. The Guide Browsing feature has two options:
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| 4. Share links to show examples of good resources. | Clicking Share Links to send websites to students walks them through responsible browsing activity and encourages digital citizenship. |
| 5. Send announcements to students | Clicking Announce and sending a quick announcement to students about what they are viewing online helps them correct their behaviors or better understand the assignment. |
Sample Student Reflection Questions to use with Current Screens
Research shows that teacher and student collaboration leads to significant academic and social gains in the classroom. Using Current Screens is just one of the ways that teachers and students can build stronger collaborative relationships.
By clicking on a Current Screens image, taking a Snap and sending it with feedback to the student, teachers can provide meaningful feedback rather than relying solely on error correction.
When you send Snaps with feedback to a student, you can also ask them to reflect on their process. The following questions can help your class reflect:
- How did my effort affect the outcome of this project?
- What are some examples of things I did well based on the screenshots my teacher provided?
- What are some examples of things I could improve based on the screenshots my teacher has provided?
Please follow the link below to view the Hapara Support Browser Tabs Article
Please follow the link below to view the Hapara Support Activity Viewer Article
Please follow the link below to view the Hapara Support Current Screens Article