4 Best Studying Apps for Students and Teachers

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4 Best Studying Apps for Students and Teachers
These apps are changing the game in education. Check out the 4 best studying apps for students and teachers.

The game has changed- studying is no longer relegated to just pen and paper, but technology like mobile and online apps.Today, students can learn both in and out of the classroom better than ever before. Ubiquitous platforms like email, Gchat, and Skype have crossed the boundary from personal tools to media that provide practical means to complete academic work.

Brad Zomick, Content Manager at killedUp, says these changes have already become engrained in the education. Now, technology and apps are simply a way of life for matriculating students. "A virtual whiteboard is something that's becoming increasingly popular for teachers and students. You're able to access whiteboard notes from wherever you are. Textbooks, once a hallmark of high school and college students alike, are disappearing. Buying electronic textbooks is huge for students. Not only doesit cut down on costs, but it saves you from carrying around a heavy backpack all day."

Don't forget about online courses, from ultra-comprehensive providers like SkilledUp. "Now anyone can learn what they want through an online course. Some don't necessarily give you a degree at the end of it, but it does make you more valuable for employers. And, you get to learn something new!"

4 Top Apps for Students and Teachers

We've polled veteran educators and students alike to find some of the greatest apps for studying. Check out the list below to see how these top apps are changing the game.

TechSmith

TechSmith is an awesome host of products that allow anyone to create custom, reusable images and videos. The products act as professional solutions that are used both in the workplace and in education settings. Kris Schrotenboer, a 20-year veteran high school teacher in Forest Hills, MI, recently began using TechSmith in her classroom to increase student engagement. "TechSmith's solutions have helped transform my teaching. I am more efficient, more thorough and more confident than ever that I am reaching all of my students. Not only is the product versatile for teachers, but helpful for students looking to rewind notes and lessons when studying. "It allows them to learn at their own pace, stop and start when they need to do so, and 'rewind' material when they feel they need to see something for a second time. The first time I used Relay in a class for administering notes, I had one student look up at me with her eyes gleaming. 'I love this,' she told me."

Kris has been mesmerized at the times by the way students have adopted the technology. "One of the most memorable situations this year was when we were reviewing for mid-term exams. I was going over concepts and told my kids, 'Make sure you are paying attention and getting this stuff down in a way that will help you.' Over half of the students in the class pulled out their phones and began recording. It was a strange and yet surprisingly satisfying feeling to be standing there, talking to them, while they recorded me. That was the first time when I realized the power of Relay and what it did for kids."

Testive
Are you looking for ways to prep for the SATs? One solution might be Testive - designed for busy students who need to prime themselves for the big test. This includes over 1,500 adaptive practice questions, a free live weekly class, and a community of coaches and teachers. In the community, students can be assigned a professional coach to keep them on track along the way.
Miro Kazakoff, CEO at Testive, says that the app uses algorithms "developed at MIT to help target you on the right areas and direct your practice to the right level of difficulty. Testive makes sure that students don't waste time studying questions that are too easy (and won't help them improve) or ones that are way too hard (and don't help make progress). Our question targeting technology is like lifting the right weights at the gym, it helps you get stronger faster."

Another thing that students and parents won't mind- Testive is free! Students don't pay anything to use the site. That's a deal we don't mind at all.

meStudying

Online education pioneer Florida Virtual School came up with the idea for mobile studying app meStudying in 2009, and they haven't looked back since. Jennifer Whiting, Senior Manager or Product Development at meStudying, saw the future, "we could see that the smartphone would be integral to the daily lives of students."
meStudying is an app that is designed to help students study anywhere, from riding on the bus to waiting for class to start. No casual moments are wasted if they want to study. It also gives you the opportunity to create online study groups with your friends, or other students. The online topic library (encompassing everything from language to algebra and biology topics) is constantly updated, and it offers many general topics as well as Advanced Placement subjects. In the self-study mode, you can answer questions, solve quizzes and in return, you receive detailed feedback, which will help you with you additional studies.

"The traditional advice of 'sit in a quiet room, feet on floor, lamp on desk' to study, is not a realistic setting for most students. Today's children are very overextended in their schedules, and need to be able to study on the go and between evening activities. Mobile content like meStudying is perfect for this environment if it can grab a student's casual moments and turn them into study time. There are teacher-facing products that can help extend the classroom in this way."
FlowVella
FlowVella (previously known as FlowBoard) is presentation software designed for an always-on audience. The presentation app, designed for iPad, is a digital canvas that is easy enough for anyone to use. Each "board" is highly customizable so that students can add words, photos, links, and videos in the way they want. Students can even remix previous Flowboards or tap various templates to get started. Flowboards can also be selectively viewed and shared everywhere with friends - social, web, email, mobile and more. You can even print these Flowboards and choose to save them as a PDF file.

Have you used any of these apps before? Do you have any other apps that you turn to in the crunch? Let us know on our social channels!

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