Student LiveChat Management

The OpenEduCat Student LiveChat module provides real-time, instant communication between students (or parents) and faculty members. It bridges academic inquiries, instant messaging, and direct faculty support through an integrated web portal interface and a feature-rich backend Discuss client.

Key Capabilities

  • Portal LiveChat Request Form :- Enables students and parents to initiate live chat requests by selecting specific teaching staff or faculty members.

  • Student Web Chat Room :- Dedicated portal messaging workspace equipped with real-time text chat, file attachments, and audio/video call controls.

  • Faculty Approval Workflow :- Equips faculty members with interactive header actions (Approve, Reject, Close, Re-open) directly inside the Discuss application.

  • Real-time Status Synchronization :- Dynamic state tracking across channel creation (Request Send), approval (Approve), session termination (Close), and rejection (Reject).

  • Student Partner Search & Member Invitations :- Allows faculty and administrators to search active student partner records and invite them into chat channels.

  • Audio & Video Call Support :- Integrated Real-Time Communication (RTC) capabilities for instant voice and video meetings.

Student & Parent Portal Workflow

Initiating a LiveChat Session

  1. Log into the OpenEduCat Student Portal or Parent Portal.

  2. On the main portal dashboard, locate the LiveChat card. The card displays a live counter showing active and historical livechat conversations.

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  1. Click on the LiveChat card or click Create Livechat.

  2. In the Livechat Request Form, select the target Teaching Staff / Faculty member from the dropdown menu.

  3. Click SUBMIT to send the live chat request.

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  1. Upon submission, a dedicated live chat channel is generated in Request Send status, awaiting faculty approval.

Tracking & Accessing Student Chat Room

Students and parents can review all submitted live chat requests on the LiveChat list page.

  • State Column :- Displays the current lifecycle status (Request Send, Approve, Close, or Reject).

  • View Icon (Eye) :- Appears once a request is approved, providing direct single-click access to the live messaging chat room.

Inside the Student Chat Room, students can:

  • Exchange real-time text messages, emojis, and file attachments with the assigned faculty member.

  • Start instant audio or video calls using the top-bar RTC meeting controls.

  • View channel details and active member status.

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Faculty & Discuss Application Workflow

Backend LiveChat Workspace

Faculty members and administrators manage all student live chat interactions directly from the backend Discuss module.

  1. Log into the OpenEduCat backend as a faculty member or administrator.

  2. Open the Discuss application.

  3. Live chat channels initiated by students are listed under the STUDENT LIVECHAT section in the left sidebar menu.

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Faculty Action Buttons & Lifecycle States

When a faculty member opens a student live chat channel, the top header toolbar displays interactive state management action buttons:

  • Approve (Green Button) :- Accepts a pending student request in Request Send state, enabling active bidirectional communication.

  • Reject (Red Button) :- Declines a pending live chat request in Request Send state.

  • Close (Red Button) :- Concludes an active live chat session in Approve state when the query is resolved.

  • Re-open (Green Button) :- Reactivates a previously closed live chat channel, restoring its state to Approve.

LiveChat Controls & Tools Guidance

The Discuss application provides comprehensive communication and management tools accessible directly from the chat header toolbar and the sidebar channel context menu (...).

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  • State Action Buttons (Approve / Reject / Close / Re-open) :- Workflow buttons used by faculty members to manage the live chat request lifecycle (Approve request, Decline, Close session, or Re-open).

  • Start Video Call (Green Camera Icon) :- Launches an instant, high-definition video conference meeting directly inside the channel workspace or from the sidebar menu.

  • Start Call (Green Phone Icon) :- Launches an audio-only voice call with the channel participants.

  • Notification Settings (Bell Icon) :- Configures notification alerts for the conversation (All Messages, Mentions Only, or Mute Channel).

  • Invite People (User+ Icon) :- Opens an interactive pop-up dialog to search for and invite additional faculty members or active student partner records into the chat.

  • Search in Conversation (Magnifying Glass Icon) :- Opens an in-thread search bar to quickly locate text, keywords, or past messages within the conversation history.

  • Attachments (Paperclip Icon) :- Opens the channel media panel, displaying all uploaded documents, PDFs, images, and files shared during the chat.

  • Pinned Messages (Pushpin Icon) :- Displays bookmarked or pinned messages for quick access to critical announcements.

  • Member List Toggle (Two Users Icon) :- Opens or hides the right-side member panel, showing all active online and offline participants in the conversation.

  • Channel Information (Info Icon) & Advanced Settings :- Accesses channel metadata, topic description, security permissions, and channel privacy parameters.

  • In Progress / Status Indicator :- Manages or displays current active call and channel status.

  • Leave Channel (Red Action) :- Exit or remove yourself from the selected live chat channel.