Welcome back to the Beanstack Blog's Product Spotlight series! In this space, we provide the latest updates on new features and offer insights into how our tools can support your reading goals. Whether you are already using Beanstack or looking to create a reading culture in your community, this series is for you. Keep reading to learn more about our Reading Integrity Suite—particularly our new Take a Closer Look system!
Cultivating a Joy for Reading While Promoting Honest Logging
Our unique suite of reading integrity features takes a creative approach to accountability—one that doesn’t use quizzes or require extensive review or grading by educators. We’ve drawn on our expertise, data, and industry research to create a set of tools that help schools ensure honest logging while preserving students' reading independence.
The Reading Integrity Suite includes:
- Take a Closer Look system - flags entries that could indicate fraudulent logs
- Student Verification and Freezing - celebrates voracious readers and freezes access for students logging dishonestly
- Reading Integrity Settings - customizable logging limits and warnings
New: Take a Closer Look System
Our newest reading integrity feature flags entries that could indicate dishonest logging, so you can quickly identify and address issues. The system identifies possible fraudulent logging by analyzing characteristics such as unusually short titles, logs that exceed a school’s predefined limits, and exceptionally long or gibberish titles that lack a valid ISBN.
Once they take a closer look, administrators can remove a flag, edit a log, or delete it entirely. These actions can be completed in bulk if necessary. We know that talking to your students is the best way to combat fraudulent logging. Our simple yet effective system provides clear, actionable insights, allowing you to focus your energy on students rather than combing through data.
Existing Reading Integrity Features
Each community is unique, so our built-in reading integrity tools offer multiple levels of verification and validation to suit every school’s specific needs. Read on for more about our existing reading integrity features.
Verification and Freezing
Our Verification and Freezing feature helps to manage student participation and maintain reading integrity. Verifying a reader allows voracious readers to exceed school logging limits, while Freezing a reader's account helps you address issues with dishonest logging.
- Verifying a Reader: Admins can confirm that a student's logging activity is honest and allow them to log above a school’s logging limits. When verified, a blue checkmark is displayed next to the student's name in Beanstack—this is a great way to celebrate your most active readers!
- Freezing a Reader: Freezing a reader’s account temporarily restricts their access to Beanstack for 10 days. During the freeze period, students will see a message explaining that their account has been frozen and they cannot log reading at this time. Admins can unfreeze an account at any time.
Logging Limits
Adding logging limits and warnings to your site is the simplest way to promote honest logging. Each school sets its own limits, and students are required to promise that their reading is honest when they log above that threshold. Other logging limits include requiring a book title when students log and restricting logging to the past 90 days.
Get Started
The Reading Integrity Suite is now available on all existing school sites. If you’re not a Beanstack client, contact our team today for a custom demo.