Introduction
This blog explains why and how to block templates in Google Slides to ensure a streamlined presentation creation process in educational settings. Google Slides offers a variety of default templates designed to assist users in quickly designing visually appealing presentations. However, these templates might not align with the institution’s standards or specific needs, leading to inconsistency, confusion, or misuse for non-academic purposes.
By blocking default templates, administrators can promote the use of institution-approved designs that reflect branding, maintain professionalism, and ensure consistency across presentations. This blog will also explore how tools like Safe Doc can help restrict access to Google Slides templates, allowing users to work exclusively with custom layouts and approved formats.
xFanatical Safe Doc blocks Templates feature in Google Slides
Why Block Templates in Google Slides?
In schools, providing students with a creative yet structured environment is essential for fostering effective learning. While templates in Google Slides offer pre-designed layouts for creating presentations, they may unintentionally limit students' creativity, encourage shortcuts, or lead to inconsistent learning outcomes. By blocking templates, educators can ensure that students build their presentations from scratch, enhancing critical thinking and design skills.
Let’s understand the scenario through a user story:
- Problem: Ms. Carter, a high school science teacher, assigned her students a project to create presentations explaining different ecosystems. However, she noticed that many students relied heavily on Google Slides templates, with multiple groups using the same designs. This over-reliance resulted in presentations that looked polished but lacked originality and depth. Some students spent more time selecting a template than researching their topics, detracting from the learning experience.
- Solution: To address this, Ms. Carter collaborated with the school’s IT administrator to block templates in Google Slides. She encouraged her students to focus on content first, teaching them basic design principles to help create engaging slides from a blank canvas. This approach allowed students to better understand layout structure, typography, and visual hierarchy, fostering creativity and improving their technical skills.
- Result: After blocking templates, Ms. Carter observed a noticeable improvement in the quality and originality of her students’ presentations. Students demonstrated a deeper understanding of their topics and showcased unique designs that reflected their personal learning styles. The change also helped students develop valuable skills in content organization and visual communication.
By blocking templates in Google Slides, educators can encourage students to engage more deeply with their assignments, fostering creativity and critical thinking.
What is a xFanatical Safe Doc?
xFanatical Safe Doc is a comprehensive solution for maintaining a focused and secure online environment for Google Workspace admins and users. It provides robust tools to manage and restrict access to various online content, ensuring a safe and productive digital environment. xFanatical Safe Doc integrates seamlessly with Google Workspace, offering administrators the ability to customize content filtering policies according to their needs.
Remove Templates in Google Slides
Google Slides provides pre-designed templates to help users quickly create visually appealing presentations. While these templates can be beneficial, in educational settings, they may lead to uniform and uninspired submissions or encourage students to prioritize aesthetics over substance.
At this point, xFanatical Safe Doc becomes an invaluable tool. By implementing the BlockSlidesTemplates policy, you can remove the template options in Google Slides. Once this policy is enabled, students will no longer have access to default templates, ensuring that they create presentations from scratch. This fosters creativity, promotes originality, and encourages students to focus on developing content rather than relying on pre-made designs.
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xFanatical Safe Doc removes Templates option from Help > Search for menus
How to Block Templates in Google Slides using xFanatical Safe Doc
Step 1: Install Safe Doc:
The first step is to install Safe Doc in your Google Workspace environment. Safe Doc is a browser extension that seamlessly integrates with Google workspace, providing enhanced control and security features.The first step is to install Safe Doc in your Google Workspace environment. Safe Doc is a browser extension that seamlessly integrates with Google workspace, providing enhanced control and security features.
Step 2: Configure Safe Doc settings:
Once Safe Doc is installed, you can configure its settings to disable templates in Google Slides.
Step 3: Access Google Admin Console:
Now, navigate to the Google Admin Console. In the Google Admin Console, click on Devices followed by Chrome. Then, select Apps & Extensions and click on Users & Browsers.
Step 4: Copy the Policy:
Locate the policy that you wish to apply and copy it. The policy will display in a specific format similar to the example provided below:
"BlockSlidesTemplates": {
"Value": true
}
Step 5: Save the Policy:
After copying the policy, click the Save button to apply it.
How to configure Safe Doc?
First of all, ensure the deployment of Safe Doc on your students' Chrome browsers, and review the xFanatical Safe Doc Configuration document.
Conclusion
In conclusion, blocking templates in Google Slides with xFanatical Safe Doc is an essential step in promoting creativity and maintaining consistency in classroom assignments and presentations. By disabling access to pre-designed templates, educators can encourage students to develop their own content from scratch, fostering originality and critical thinking skills. This measure also ensures that slides are tailored to specific educational requirements, avoiding unnecessary distractions or mismatched designs. With xFanatical Safe Doc, schools can implement this policy effectively, supporting a more focused and customized learning environment that enhances the educational experience.
To learn more about how xFanatical Safe Doc can help enhance online safety in your educational institution, visit our website Safe Doc
If you have yet to install Safe Doc, please get a 30 days trial.
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