Meeting Students in a Secure Location

Creating a secure digital learning environment for students and teachers is the core of G Suite for Education and G Suite Enterprise for Education (GSEfE).  Using a combination of Google Classroom plus Google Meet, teachers can provide a protected location for digital class meetings. 

Even though there are several methods to access a Google Meeting as well as reasons to choose other ways, the most secure path for a particular group of students is to go through Google Classroom to enter the meeting.  Since both Google Classroom and Google Meet are free for all G Suite for Education users, choosing a consistent, secure location to join a classroom meeting is the most important way to start. 

FAQ about using Google Classroom to access Google Meet:

1. How many Google Classrooms can one teacher create?
   Your type of account will dictate your limits.  However, most teachers never come close to meeting Google Classroom limitations.  
2. Can my students start a Google Meeting without me in Google Classroom? 
   No. The teacher has complete control for Google Meetings on/off within Google Classroom.
3. Can my students stay in the Google Meeting without me?
   If the teacher is the last participant to leave a Google Meeting in Google Classroom, the virutral door closes and students cannot re-enter even if the link is displayed.  
4. Can students join a Google Meeting in a Google Classroom if they are not members of this meeting? 
   No. Students who are not members of a particular Google Classroom cannot join a Google Meeting in that Google Classroom.
5. What if a student in one Google Classroom shares the code with another student who is not enrolled in that Google Classroom, but is in our district? 
   The student trying to join will get a message stating that they are not able to join.   
6. What if a student shares the code on social media
   Anyone not in both your district domain and enrolled in your Google Classroom in which this Google Meeting is taking place will get a message saying they are not able to join.   
7. What if I teach multiple sections of a topic, but want to save time by hosting one study session instead of separate ones?
   Create one Google Classroom for study sessions.  All of your students can join this Google Classroom during the times you have a study session.  Simply control the Google Meet by turning the link on when a study session is on the calendar and off when it is not.  In this study session course, you can use Announcements to communicate upcoming dates.  This will help students find the location of your study sessions.  
8. Do the security features mentioned above work for all G Suite for Education accounts?
   Yes.
9. My district has G Suite Enterprise for Education (GSEfE).  Do the premium features, such as Polls and Breakout Rooms, work when I go through Google Classroom to start a Google Meet?
   Yes.  If you are a GSEfE district and logged into your district account, you will always have access to all premium features no matter how you start a Google Meeting. 
10. How do I get started? 
    Watch this three-minute video excerpt from the Kincaid IT Course, Managing a Virtual Class Meeting https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cYlvFU8S14. To learn more about this mini course or any of our online, self-paced instructional technology classes, visit our webpage.