Evaluating Apps for the iPad

Two helpful resources for evaluating educational apps are the Critical Evaluation of a Content-Based Mobile App (2013) by Kathleen Schrock, and Evaluation Rubric for IPod Apps (2010) by Harry Walker. They are both very helpful because they list specific criteria pertaining to apps. However, I do prefer Kathleen Schrock's resource more because it has the evaluator think about how the app relates to Bloom's Taxonomy. In addition, at the bottom, the evaluator is asked to write a quick summary of the app. I think including a summary is very helpful because it helps a different reader know what the app is about. In addition, the evaluator can use this space to write specific explanations about why he/she would or would not recommend this app to another user rather than simply answering the yes/no statements listed above in the criteria section.

Both resources have similarly listed criteria used to evaluate the actual content and components of the app. For this section, however, I do prefer Harry Walker's rubric because his rubric has different levels for each component. Conversely, Schrock's evaluative tool only allows the evaluator to answer each criteria as a yes/no. Walker's rubric allows the evaluator to specifically address each component and how effective the app truly is. Even though I do like the specificity of Walker's rubric, as a whole I prefer Schrock's evaluative tool because it gives the evaluator a more comprehensive review of an app.