Released a new version of the Skill Syllabus app on Android. Like with the new releases of the other apps, the goal is to make the app faster, more secure, share the same themes and layouts, and add features to solve problems. One such problem is: after a professor creates a syllabus, then how do the students access it from the app?
A new feature is a targeted search from within the Skill Syllabus app. I cannot yet claim there is enough content to aid students in discovering new courses at this stage; though, this could be an option if there is an increase in the number of syllabi in the system.
But the search is useful for students finding and adding syllabi from their professors all from within the app. A suggested sequence is the following:
- Professor(s) create a syllabus online or from the Learning Labels Create app.
- Professor(s) notify students the syllabus is posted. If “Private’ access is required, then also provide a key / password. (There is a feature to send an email notification from the admin interface. But with this targeted search, simply telling them also works.)
- Students download the Skill Syllabus app and if they do not already have an account, then create a new one. A signup feature is provided from within the app.
- Students search on the title of the course, subject, or professor’s name in the app. From the search results, the students add the syllabus and provide the key (if necessary).
- Students access all the fields and content of the syllabus from within the app, including all the learning labels (tasks and experiences).
- From within the Skill Syllabus app, a student can add the other Learning Label apps (Search and Collections) – another new feature. Once installed, from within any app, a student can navigate to the other ones.
This significantly streamlines the process of onboarding students and getting them access to the syllabus. At any time, a student accesses the syllabus from a mobile device, tablet, or desktop. Accessing the app works across Android, Windows 10, and the website application.
For traditional professors, there is a PDF rendering of the syllabus from the app too. This is printable.
Finally, this supports college wide adoption of Skill Syllabus. It is now much easier for students to manage all the syllabi for their courses in a semester. With the targeted search, the process is now much quicker.