Volume 1, Issue 3 | September 20, 2023
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District Tech Coaches:
Erin Fulton (K-5)
Alex Oris (6-12)
In this Issue:
Youtube Unblocker- Create a Playlist
Tech Tip of the Week- Guest Network
Lightspeed Filter is new to all of us. NEOnet provided Lightspeed instead of Securly as our content filter, and we are learning every day. We are continually working through blocking sites that we had previously blocked with Securly, and unblocking sites and videos that you need for instruction.
In the last newsletter, we talked about requesting site access through IncidentIQ, which is the fastest way to have the tech department review the site or video and block (or unblock) it based on your request.
However, in the sections below, we have some recommendations and workarounds that you may find useful. Especially with Youtube videos, since being marked as "Watchable by cftigers.org" doesn't necessarily mean that Lightspeed will allow students to see the video:
Youtube Unblocker
Create a Playlist to Unblock the Videos You Need
Create a Playlist to Unblock the Videos You Need
One way we have suggested getting Youtube Videos unblocked for students with our new Lightspeed Filter is to create a ticket in IncidentIQ. While that still works, we believe we have uncovered a quicker, and more efficient way for teachers to unblock it themselves. Watch the video , which explains the following steps:
Create a playlist on Youtube, and set it to "Unlisted". This allows anyone with the link to access it but doesn't make it public. You can name it something generic like "Instructional Videos" or "Videos for Students."
MOST IMPORTANT: Share your Playlist link with us here, so we can use it to unblock it's videos for your students.
Add any videos you need unblocked for students to it. You can do that now, or add to it throughout the year as you find more videos. Here's how to add more videos to your playlist.
When sharing videos with students, you have to share the video link from the playlist, and not direct video link.
Notes:
To be clear, there are three different links we are talking about:
A Youtube video link is the direct link to the video- Blocked Video
A Playlist link is the direct link the to Youtube Playlist- Unblocked Set of Video
A Video link from the Playlist is a the direct link to the video in your Playlist- Unblocked Video in Your List
This only unblocks the video for students using your Playlist link. If another teacher wants to use the video, they'll have to use your link or add it to their own Playlist.
If you want to be more organized and make a Playlist for each subject, class, unit, or chapter that you teach, you'd have to share EACH of those Playlist links with us.
When you share your Playlist link to us like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cR_1Qi-tP4&list=PLRfhnhSXvpqMnr3Zmgtw7r1IpkSjjEyuM
We add the following to the Custom Allow List as a wildcard: *list=PLRfhnhSXvpqMnr3Zmgtw7r1IpkSjjEyuM*
Something you'll notice when sharing a video from your Playlist with your students, is that all of the videos will have that same ending wild card ending.
Tech Tip of the Week
Guest Network
There are many personal devices being used throughout the district. Most are owned by students, but there are also a large number owned by staff. Many are using CFALLS-10, which is currently our high-volume Chromebook network. But, in the coming months, our network configurations are set to change. To minimize disruption, please make sure any personal devices are using our CF-Guest network. To join, enter the password "BlackTigers."
Also, any district Chromebooks that go offline, can be re-added using the CF-Guest network. Once they are back online, they will default to the correct network.
Click here to print a copy for your room.
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