SkieCan Skie disable the camera on school tablets?
Yes. Disabling the camera is an optional Skie protection using Android's camera disable policy, and it is off by default. When it is on, camera apps cannot use the camera at all. Turn it on for exam rooms and for groups where photos are not part of the lesson.
Android lets a device owner disable the camera for every app on the device, not just the stock camera app. Skie uses that. When the switch is on, a camera app opens to a message that the camera is disabled, and other apps that ask for the camera do not receive one.
It is optional because a camera is an everyday classroom tool. Students scan homework, photograph experiments, record presentations and join video lessons. A blanket default would get in the way. On the other hand, an exam hall, a hostel at night, or a primary class with younger students might not want it.
This is a device-wide switch. If you want different behaviour for a particular class, set it at group level and leave the rest of the school alone. Schedules decide which apps are available at which times, but the camera switch itself is a policy value, not a timed one.
The admin sees one toggle in the hardening section. It is read back from Android after every apply and appears in the compliance score. Skie itself does not capture photos or audio from a device.
Practical tip: set up a separate exam group with the camera, screenshots and Bluetooth switches on, and move devices into it for exam week. It is cleaner than changing the policy for the whole school and back again.