Frequently Asked Questions about SmartClass

Get your general questions about SmartClass answered!

What is the SmartClass HUB?

SmartClass is a language teaching platform that allows teachers to create and assign interactive activities that students can complete anywhere, anytime, on any device. Types of activities you can create include: speaking, pronunciation, open text, multiple choice, fill-in-the-blanks, matching, and jumble activities. Plenty of templates to engage your students in a variety of meaningful ways!

What languages can I teach with SmartClass HUB?

SmartClass can be used to teach ANY language. We created pronunciation activities that include 120 sentences in German, French, Arabic, Mandarin (Chinese, simplified), Spanish (Mexico and Spain), and Italian, that anyone with the platform can download and use with their students. Get in touch (email webinars@robotel.com) and we will show you how to get those on your account!

Currently in our activity library, we offer content for teaching English. We created a complete series of 4 books and over 450 activities per level called Let's Talk! English. However, we are working hard to expand our content library in the near future. Stay tuned!

Is SmartClass HUB free to use?

We are offering FREE ACCESS to SmartClass for teachers and their students for 30 days. Visit Robotel Trial to learn more, register, download the software, and get started! After the free access period, the cost of the subscription is very affordable, priced at about the cost of a student workbook for each student license.

How can I try the SmartClass HUB?

We highly recommend you attend one of our webinars to learn more before you dive in. After that, visit our website for free access to the teacher platform. If you have any questions along the way, get in touch (email Erin at webinars@robotel.ca) and we’ll be happy to support you.

Do I have to create my own activities?

If you teach English, the simple answer is no. We offer complete coursework in English following the guidelines of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for languages from levels A1 through B2. We offer hundreds of activities ready and waiting to be assigned to your students. We encourage you to create your own activities as needed, of course!

If you teach a language other than English, the answer is yes! Though we’re working on adding other pre-loaded activities to our content library in other languages, those activities are not quite ready yet. That being said, you’ll begin with an empty platform that has many activity templates to help you build up content for your class. Upload PDFs, videos, audio clips, and images, or record your own audio/video directly in the SC HUB. We’re here to support you as you build up your own library of activities, so visit other articles in our Knowledge Base for assistance, check out our YouTube channel for video tutorials, or contact us at info@robotel.ca for help. You’ll soon find out that some activities take less than a minute to create!

Is the price of SmartClass HUB affordable?

Indeed! The subscription price is about the price of a student workbook. Get in touch with us (email info@robotel.com). Our goal is to make learning languages accessible to all, and we are excited to work with you to find the perfect fit for your school district.

Is SmartClass HUB an app?

Yes and no…on a mobile device, your students will download the SmartClass app. Otherwise, they will install the student software on their computer. 

Teachers download the SmartClass HUB teacher software, not an app. We’re currently working on browser-based versions to simply be accessed online in the future! 

Will SmartClass HUB work on my computer?

The teacher software needs to be installed on a computer with a Microsoft Windows operating system. If you have a Mac, you will first have to install a program such as Apple Boot Camp or Parallels Desktop to allow Windows applications to run. Our developers are working on a version of our platform to work on a Mac, however we don't have a set release date for when the Mac-compatible software will be available. 

Students can use any device. They can download our app on their phone/tablet from the Google Play or the App store, or install the student version via the installation link we can provide.

I would like to rewatch a webinar I attended. Is that possible?

Absolutely! Click on the same link you received to watch the webinar in the first place, and you should be able to replay the webinar. Contact us at webinars@robotel.com if you are having difficulty accessing the webinar you attended before. Otherwise, we welcome you to attend the same webinar or one on a different topic!

Does SmartClass support live classes?

Robotel offers 3 products for your classroom: SmartClass HUB, SmartClass LIVE, and SmartClass Content. SC LIVE (an add-on to the SC HUB), is the component you need when looking to interact with your students in real-time. SC LIVE allows you to pair up your students, record their conversations, test your students, and present to them during class time. 

My SmartClass doesn’t look like that. Why not? 

We recently gave our platform a face lift! Notice that the colors and graphics are a bit more modern, and we added some new features you’re going to love. Our new software design is similar enough to the previous SC MAD that it will still feel familiar to current users, while also simplifying the whole process. Reach out to us if you’d like to update your version, or if you have any questions about the new design.

What is the difference between the MAD and the HUB?

The SC MAD is now called the SC Hub ! Let us explain. The MAD (you may know it as the Media Activity Dashboard) describes our language platform through version 4.32 of the software. We have rebranded, however, and as of version 5.0, the HUB is our new design of the same platform you know and love. We have given our platform a modern twist to make teaching with SmartClass even easier.

What is the difference between the LAD and LIVE?

Our SC LAD is now called SmartClass LIVE! Let’s be clear: in order to make things easier for our users, we have renamed our beloved LAD to be called the LIVE. Why? Because when you use the LIVE program, you are interacting with your students in real-time. Questions? We explain this in more detail in this knowledge base article.