While the use of mobile phones in class might once have been frowned upon, advancements in technology have meant that smartphone/tablet technology can now be useful for making education more interactive or exciting.
Classroom
Needed Teacher Apps!
While the use of mobile phones in class might once have been frowned upon, advancements in technology have meant that smartphone/tablet technology can now be useful for making education more interactive or exciting.
The benefits of using technology in the classroom include the following:
- Independent learning is encouraged
- Student engagement is improved
- Life skills are honed
- Time is saved for both teachers and students
There is also a slew of time-management tools and teaching aids that can help educators to offer their students more. In this article, we’ll look at some of the most-needed apps for teachers, what they do and how to get them.
Education resources
1. Kahoot
Even the most boring classes can benefit from an injection of fun with Kahoot! It enables the “gamification” of learning, where teachers can prepare questions that are transformed into a playable game accessible via an Android, iOS, or web browser. During games of Kahoot, the app can be used as a buzzer to allow students to answer questions. This brings a quiz show-style element to the classroom, and students of all ages will love it.
2. Google Classroom
Google Classroom for iOS and Android has been designed to make the distribution and grading of assignments for students as easy as can be.
Teachers can use it to store important learning materials in the cloud so students can easily access educational resources. It helps to save on printing/copying and can also be used by teachers to make announcements or to chair debates. It’s a versatile, must-have app for teachers and students alike.
3. Seesaw
Seesaw is ultimately a student portfolio app for iOS and Android which allows parents to check on the progress and achievements of their children. Students are encouraged to store their achievements and best works within the app so that their parents can look at what they have learned and praise them if needs be.
It’s also useful to allow teachers to keep an eye on the weaknesses of their students so that they can raise any issues during the parent-teacher meeting and suggest ways in which students can improve.
4. Slack
Dedicated teachers understand that learning doesn’t stop outside of classroom hours. Slack is a messaging app designed to allow students and their professors to keep in touch with one another outside of school hours – which can be useful if a student needs extra tuition on a subject they don’t quite grasp.
It can also send reminders or push notifications to students and their parents/guardians in emergencies. It’s available on Android and iOS.
5. Additio
All teachers and administrators know the importance of keeping accurate copies of grades, attendance records, and other notes. While teachers have traditionally stored these in hard copy or paper form, we all know how easy it is to misplace paperwork.
Additio allows teachers to take attendance registers, plan timetables and calculate the predicted grades of students based on their average grades over the year. Educational establishments can opt for a premium edition of the app, which offers detailed performance analytics. Additio is available on iOS and Android devices.
6. Doceri
Teachers can enjoy turning tablets and smartphones into portable, projectable whiteboards with Doceri. It’s perfect for making lessons more interactive. It can be particularly beneficial during science lessons when teachers need to annotate diagrams or offer visual representations of how biological or chemical processes work.
It can also reduce lesson delivery times, as teachers can post pre-saved materials from their iPad instead of manually scrawling them on a board. At present, this app is only available on iOS.
7. Evernote
While it’s not strictly for educational purposes, this note-taking app is indispensable when collating source materials for lessons or saving printouts for outdoor learning.
It’s possible to share assignments and projects with students who have also downloaded the app, making collaborative learning as easy as possible.
