A full tour of the student-facing experience — from logging in and viewing assignments, to using session tools, uploading homework, and customizing the Beacon by K12 Tutoring voice. Review this to understand what your students encounter day to day.

Video transcript This article is based on a recorded walkthrough of the student interface. It is intended to help educators understand the student perspective.

Watch full video in browser

Watch full video in browser

The Student Dashboard

Upon logging in, students see a personalized welcome message and a list of their 10 most recent assignments — whether assigned by an educator or self-initiated via Homework Help or Skills. Each assignment card shows:

  • Estimated time to complete the session
  • Total skills covered
  • Total exercises included
  • A Start or Continue button depending on whether the session has been opened before
Beacon by K12 Tutoring student homepage

Accessing All Sessions

Students can click View All Sessions to see every session ever assigned to them, searchable by name. This is useful when the 10-assignment preview doesn't show what they're looking for.

Inside a Session

When a student opens a session, Beacon by K12 Tutoring provides a welcome message with background context on what they'll be working on. Depending on the session, students may also see supporting images or videos that explain the relevant skills before the interactive portion begins.

Session Tools

Every session provides a built-in toolkit students can open at any time:

  • Calculator — standard and scientific
  • Graph Plotter — graph functions and visualize equations
  • Whiteboard — draw, write, and sketch out working
  • Shapes tool — create geometric shapes and measure angles
  • Table — organize data or working in rows and columns

Uploading Homework Images

From the homepage, students can upload a photo of their homework two ways:

  • Download / file picker — choose an image saved on the device
  • QR code — scan with a phone to upload a camera photo instantly

Once uploaded, the student selects the problem area, reviews the AI transcription, confirms it's correct, and submits it for tutoring.

How Beacon by K12 Tutoring Teaches

Beacon by K12 Tutoring uses the Socratic method — rather than giving away answers, it asks prompting questions that guide the student toward solving problems independently. This builds thinking and problem-solving skills over time, not just correct answers in the moment.

For educators The Socratic approach means students can't just copy AI answers — they must engage with guiding questions. This makes Beacon by K12 Tutoring sessions a genuine learning activity, not a shortcut.

Skill Practice Without Homework

If a student wants to practice a subject but has no homework to upload, they can type a topic or skill directly into the chat — for example, "I want to practice long division." Beacon by K12 Tutoring starts a guided practice session immediately from that prompt.

Customization and Help

  • About Beacon — a help button students can tap for more information about how Beacon by K12 Tutoring works
  • Customize — opens voice settings so students can choose from different AI voices for a more personalized experience