Empowering Educators with Google's Android App Inventor: An Online Workshop in Mobile App Design

An introductory-level mobile app design workshop developed and offered through Boise State University's Professional Development (PD) Portal during Summer 2011 is discussed. The workshop consisted of three modules, lasting 2 weeks each. Participants were expected to expend 15 hours of effort in each module. Throughout the workshop, the instructor communicated with participants mostly through module instruction, weekly announcements in the LMS, Twitter and e-mail. The practice apps and corresponding apps covered in this workshop included HelloPurr, PaintPot, MoleMash, NoTextingWhileDriving, and ParisMapTour or Presidents Quiz. Participants were required to submit their final app design proposals for peer and instructor review prior to building the apps. During this process, they were prompted to think through different aspects of design such as visual interface and the level of interactivity. This workshop served the purpose of introducing visual programming of mobile apps to interested educators and individuals.