Google Classroom Sync Issues Fixed
2/15/2021
Our problem with Google Classroom syncing was caused by an issue inside the Google API. We recently received a message from a Google employee through their issue tracker. They made some fixes and wanted to know if we’re still seeing the problem. In our testing, we found that all grade changes in Google Classroom were again reported to TeacherEase (none were lost as before). Our push notification volume has returned to previous levels. Customers are no longer reporting issues with unsynced scores. So while it’s possible the issue still exists in limited situations, it looks like Google resolved the problem. Woot!
Simultaneously, we released code that also would’ve fixed the sync issue. We built an automatic requery process to sync scores over a longer timeframe. While we won’t actually run it (since it’s not needed with Google’s fix), we’ll be better prepared if the situation ever happens again. While it’s a shame to spend development time on features that won’t be used, given the uncertainty in Google providing a timely solution, we felt it was important to resolve this issue for customers. We feel it’s part of being a responsible solution provider.
We have another project or two planned for Google Classroom. We’re going to sync the “missing” status from Classroom automatically into TeacherEase. Many teachers manually enter “missing” into TeacherEase today, and this would be a nice time savings. We also built new message logging into the system, and may offer a new techie details page to help users understand the communication between the two systems.
As always, thanks for your patience. We appreciate your support and apologize for the inconvenience this caused. Considering the large number of users affected, it’s nice to be looking at it through the rear view mirror...
The Common Goal Team
