Take In-Person Attendance in Poll Everywhere

Quick Links: | Prerequisites | Instructions | Troubleshooting | Next Steps |

Introduction

Poll Everywhere location check-in can be used to record attendance during in-person class meetings by confirming that a student's device is within an instructor-defined area when the student participates in a live activity. The location check occurs when the student checks in; Poll Everywhere records whether the check-in was successful and discards the device's precise coordinates after the check. Before using location check-in for graded attendance, explain the process and attendance policy to students and test it in the actual teaching space. Maintain an alternative attendance process for approved accommodations and situations where a student cannot complete the location check.

Prerequisites

Prerequisites

Before taking attendance with location check-in:

1. Sign in to Poll Everywhere with your instructor account.
2. Tell students that attendance uses a one-time location check and that their browser will ask for permission to access their device location.
3. Explain which Poll Everywhere activities count toward attendance and how attendance percentages will be calculated.
4. Explain how students should report a failed check-in or request an attendance exception.
5. Test location check-in in the actual teaching space before using the results for a grade.
6. Establish a manual or alternative attendance process for approved accommodations, unavailable devices, drained batteries, or location-service failures.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Configure and Take In-Person Attendance

The process has three parts: configure the permitted check-in area, take attendance during class, and review the attendance results after class.

Configure location check-in

To configure location check-in for in-person attendance, do the following:

1. Sign in to Poll Everywhere.
2. Select your Profile icon, then select Attendance. Alternatively, from the Attendance Management card on the My Activities page, select Settings.
3. Under Geolocation, turn on Allow the location of your activities to be restricted to the areas you select.
4. Add each teaching location where students are permitted to check in. Poll Everywhere allows up to 10 locations to be created or edited.
5. Set a generous check-in area when first configuring a location. A building-sized area is generally more reliable than a boundary limited to a single classroom.
6. Save the location.
7. Test the location from the teaching space using a mobile device before relying on it for attendance.

Interior classrooms, concrete construction, and weak GPS or cellular signals can make room-level location boundaries unreliable. Begin with a broader area and make adjustments only after testing.

Take attendance during class

To take attendance with location check-in, do the following:

1. Activate and present the Poll Everywhere activity that will be used for attendance.
2. Ask students to open your Poll Everywhere response page, such as pollev.com/yourusername.
3. Ask students to allow location access when their browser prompts them.
4. Have students check in while they are within the approved teaching area.
5. Have students submit a response to the live Poll Everywhere activity. The student's attendance is captured when the location check and activity participation occur.
6. Ask students who receive a failed check-in to notify you while they are still in the teaching area so the issue can be reviewed immediately.

When possible, encourage students to use a smartphone or GPS-enabled tablet. These devices generally provide more reliable location information than laptops.

Review attendance results

To review attendance after class, do the following:

1. In Poll Everywhere, open Attendance.
2. Review the attendance results for the class session.
3. Review students whose check-in is marked Not verified.
4. Consider the student's explanation and any documented technical or accessibility issue.
5. Manually approve or reject the check-in as appropriate under your established attendance policy.

Attendance percentages are based on the activity questions included in the attendance report. For example, if two questions are included in the report and a student responds to one, the report shows 50% attendance. Decide which activities count toward attendance before class and communicate that approach in your course attendance policy.

Location verification should be used for in-person class meetings. Do not use location verification as the attendance method for remote or fully online class sessions.

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting

If a student cannot complete location check-in, ask them to troubleshoot while they are still in the teaching area.

1. Have the student use a smartphone or GPS-enabled tablet instead of a laptop, if one is available.
2. Have the student confirm that location services are enabled on the device and that location access is allowed for the browser.
3. If the reported location is inaccurate, have the student temporarily disconnect from Wi-Fi and try again. A GPS-enabled device can provide location information without an active cellular data connection.
4. If the student uses a VPN or iCloud Private Relay, have them temporarily disable it and try the check-in again.
5. If the check-in still fails, document the issue and use the alternative attendance process established for the course.

Do not treat a failed location check as the sole determination of whether a student attended class. Device problems, location-service limitations, building conditions, and accessibility needs can prevent an otherwise present student from completing location verification.

Be transparent with students about when location check-in occurs, how it is used for attendance, and how they can request help or an exception.