Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

College-bound students flock to universities’ mobile websites

Only one in 10 campuses have a mobile website.

A surge in the percentage of recent high school graduates who use smart phones to research colleges and universities could turn campus web development on its head.

Colleges’ mobile sites, once considered experimental by campus leaders, could take priority over traditional websites, and soon.

Fifty-two percent of prospective college students said they had viewed a school’s website on a mobile device in 2011—more than double the percentage from 2010. And 48 percent of those students said the mobile site experience bettered their view of the campus, according to a survey conducted by higher-education consulting company Noel-Levitz and the National Research Center for College & University Admissions.…Read More

How to tailor your school site for mobile web users

A mass-notification system can call parents about a survey they can fill out online via the mobile web.
A mass-notification system can call parents about a survey they can fill out via the mobile web.

With smart-phone use exploding in the U.S., it’s only a matter of time before having a mobile web site becomes a necessary component of school communications.

Used as handheld computers, smart phones are changing how Americans consume media. According to the Pew Internet and American Life project, 40 percent of adults now use mobile phones for internet access, eMail, and instant messaging.

Other popular non-voice-related applications include texting, playing music and games, recording video, and taking photos.…Read More