The Blackboard app has been around almost as long as chalk and blackboard dusters.
Okay, that's maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but Blackboard was one of the pioneers of online learning. It has deep roots in education and has been a permanent fixture on countless campuses worldwide.
This longevity, of course, is no accident. Blackboard would not have got into the position it has today without being fundamentally spot on.
It has all the basics right and has evolved to improve and move with the times. Others compete in the online learning and education space, but very few possess such an extensive track record and breadth of knowledge as Blackboard.
Blackboard then has undeniable online teaching chops. But has it got flabby around the middle after all these years? Is it being overtaken by a new, younger breed of online apps?
● View course and content updates
● Sits tests and take assignments
● View grades
The Blackboard mobile app is a new solution to help students and learners stay up to date, informed, and connected with their online learning environment.
Essentially, the app is a go-between. It serves as the means to collaborate between the app's software and the user's educational establishment's Blackboard Learn server.
As so often happens, software that is long in the tooth gets complacent. While there are extensive resources to help out, Blackboard is not the easiest of things to master. Another Learning Management System, Canvas, is biting at Blackboard's heels to be the top dog.
However, this is all very interesting, but you have no choice in the matter if you're a student. If your educational institution runs Blackboard - and many do through force of habit - then you're stuck with it.
● It's free
● A mobile route into your Blackboard online learning
● The app lets you log in and see what you need wherever you are
● Multi-language support
● Not particularly user-friendly
● The interface is terrible
● Needs a very stable internet connection
The app is a companion to the student's educational institution's Blackboard platform.
However, there is a drawback. And it's an important one. There's no guarantee that user or instructor-generated content will be compatible with the app. So you may still have to access Blackboard using a desktop or laptop as usual.
The other caveat that Blackboard flags up is that not all features and functionality may be available. This is usually due to your school, college, or university omitting to keep their Blackboard software up to date. The same can happen due to server outages.
Blackboard's mobile app is downloadable from Google Play and Apple's App Store. You will need to have 211 MB's worth of spare storage space for the Android version and run Android 6.0 or later.
The iOS version needs 121.1 MB of storage and iOS 11.0 or later to work.
The app scores a very ordinary 3.7 out of five at Google Play but gets a much better 4.6 at the App Store.
