Overview
Teacher Policy Override lets teachers temporarily adjust web filtering policies for their class directly from KyberClassroom. Teachers can allow or block specific websites for the duration of a lesson — overriding both the organization's default policy and any active bell schedule.
This gives teachers immediate, granular control without needing to contact IT.
Prerequisites
- Teacher must have a KyberClassroom account linked to their school's KyberGate organization
- At least one class roster set up in KyberClassroom (via Google Classroom sync, Clever, or manual entry)
- Students must be on managed devices connected to KyberGate
How the Priority Chain Works
KyberGate evaluates policies in this order (highest priority first):
- Teacher Override — if a teacher has an active override for a student's class, it takes precedence
- Bell Schedule — if no teacher override is active, the current bell schedule period policy applies
- Organization Policy — if no bell schedule is active, the org's default policy applies
This means a teacher can allow a site that the bell schedule would normally block, or block a site that the org policy would normally allow — but only for their class, and only for a set duration.
Steps
Step 1: Open KyberClassroom
Go to teachers.kybergate.com and log in with your teacher account. Select your active class from the class list.
Step 2: View Current Policy
The top of the class view shows the current filtering policy affecting your students. You will see which policy level is active (Strict, Relaxed, or Open) and whether it is set by a bell schedule or the org default.
Step 3: Allow a Domain
To allow a blocked website for your class:
- Click the Allow Domain button in the toolbar
- Enter the domain (e.g., "youtube.com" or "kahoot.it")
- Choose a duration: 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, until end of period, or custom
- Click Allow
The domain is immediately unblocked for all students in your class roster. Other classes are not affected.
Step 4: Block a Domain
To block a website that is currently allowed:
- Click the Block Domain button
- Enter the domain you want to block
- Choose a duration
- Click Block
This is useful when a site is technically allowed by policy but is distracting students during a specific lesson.
Step 5: Monitor Override Status
Active overrides appear as colored badges in the class toolbar:
- Green badge — allowed domains
- Red badge — blocked domains
- Each badge shows the remaining time
You can click any badge to remove the override early or extend its duration.
Step 6: Override Expires Automatically
When the duration ends, the override is removed and the normal policy chain resumes. No action is needed from the teacher. If the class period ends before the override duration, the override is also automatically cleared.
Tips
- Overrides are scoped to your class roster only — other teachers' classes are unaffected
- You can have multiple active overrides at the same time (e.g., allow YouTube and block TikTok)
- If you need to allow or block a domain for all classes, ask your IT admin to update the organization policy instead
- Commonly used overrides can be saved as "Quick Actions" for one-click activation
- Override history is logged and visible to IT admins for accountability and troubleshooting
- Teachers cannot override safety-critical blocks (adult content, malware) — only category and domain-level filtering
FAQ
Q: Can I override policies for individual students instead of the whole class? A: Currently, overrides apply to the entire class roster. For individual student exceptions, contact your IT administrator.
Q: What happens if two teachers override the same student? A: If a student is in multiple active classes with conflicting overrides, the most permissive override wins. For example, if one teacher allows YouTube and another blocks it, YouTube will be allowed for that student.
Q: Do overrides work during testing/lockdown mode? A: No. If a student's device is in Focus Mode or a lockdown policy is active, teacher overrides are suspended until the lockdown is lifted.
Q: Can IT admins see my overrides? A: Yes. Override history is logged in the admin dashboard under Activity → Teacher Overrides. This is for accountability and troubleshooting, not surveillance.