When my colleagues and I first tried out Nearpod it was a bit problematic connecting to each other. Students and teachers used different wireless networks – was that the problem? Whatever the problem, it was limited to teachers and students in the same classroom doing a lock-step lesson and seemed more hassle than it was worth, so I didn’t use it.
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However, I was quite impressed when I saw it demonstrated recently. It can connect teachers and students anywhere in the world that has internet. And it is no longer bound by time – students can download and do the lesson whenever they want – a flipped classroom – great. And the teacher will still collect feedback on the quizzes and exercises in it – wow.
For those who are new to Nearpod, the best summary I can think of is that it provides a really convenient way to guide a student through resources in the order the teacher wishes them to be presented. Plus you get feedback from polls, quizzes, open ended questions and drawings. That feedback comes back to the teacher via a student report section. Probably the most common use will be that a teacher will lead a class through a series of exercises – for example: some readings, a video, a quiz, a poll. But a student who missed the class can download the NearPod presentation and also follow the material in the same order, completing the same exercises. The only difference is the students who downloaded the lesson could do it at their own pace. Their responses will still end up in the student report for that class.
It has student apps for iPad and Android. Also, it is cross-platform as it can be used on Windows, Linux and Mac via the website, and it has a web-based app. Truly useful for a BYOD classroom. The exercises can only be created on a computer, but that isn’t much of a restriction as I prefer to use a large screen to create lessons.
It boasts 4 million students using it. It is worth taking a look at it here:
http://www.nearpod.com/how-it-works/
