Ask the Experts: Apps
September 1, 2014

Q: How do I know which apps are good? I don’t want to choose blindly.

A: In the past, I’ve heard about apps from other educators and spent time looking them up on iTunes, trying to figure out if they were right for my work and how I could use them. Now, there are plenty of sites that do the searching and reviewing for me.

I prefer graphite.org. The platform—created for educators—is free and easy to navigate, and you can search for apps in several different ways. It offers thorough analyses of apps and websites, with subheads like “What’s it like?”, “Is it good for learning?” and “How can teachers use it?”

Each reviewed app also includes teachers’ comments and a ratings section (similar to amazon.com), clueing you in to how others are using the app. There’s even a section that addresses Common Core State Standards, though it doesn’t specifically address arts standards, unfortunately. You can find those at nationalartsstandards.org.

I would also recommend appitic.com. This site offers a list of apps, sorted by subject areas such as Special Needs, Flipped Classrooms and even Bloom’s Taxonomy. APPitic also includes its own app list-builder and way to share those lists. Educators from around the world share their app lists for their specializations.

Barry Blumenfeld teaches at the Friends Seminary in New York City. He is an adjunct professor at New York University and on faculty at the Dance Education Laboratory of the 92nd Street Y.

 Photo courtesy of Barry Blumenfeld

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