Edsby

Avantages

The ease and familiarity of a social media platform with the security and transparency of educational software. I can respond to my students questions from anywhere in the world at anytime and I know that our interaction is transparent for their security and mine.

Inconvénients

The gradebook takes some getting used to and doesn't have all of the functionality of a dedicated platform.

Avantages

The company is based in Ontario, Canada and focuses on K-12 education which is exactly where my school lands. As a result, many of the changes and customization are geared towards my school. Most the major LMS companies are based in the US so their focus is naturally there.

Inconvénients

It seems like the number of customer service staff has not grown at a rate that can accommodate the number of clients that Edsby is accumulating. This has resulted in excruciatingly slow response times, especially around September and October.

Avantages

The ability to make online quizzes/tests that auto-grade and enter into the gradebook

Inconvénients

Where to begin...
I'm amazed that any LMS software does not have an import/export feature for it's test bank.
I've had numerous times that multiple choice test questions had blank answers when the students took the test - although this should be 'impossible' since when MANUALLY typing in each question and answr choices, it will not let you save a blank answer.
When cross-posting assignments, some propagate when edited and some do not. But nothing on the entry screen tells which ones.
There is no way to enter in a test/quiz grade manually for students that require alternative testing methods - unless you change the online submission type to 'none' - which then deletes the info for all of the students that took the online test.
and there are NO UNDO options.
On many screens where an information bubble pops up - it remains there no matter what is clicked on and you have to reload the page to make it go away.
For assignments with a letter grade - there is no option to give a ZERO - and a U does not calculate in as a zero.
New pinned items go at the bottom when they should show at the top - or at least give an option without having to manually drag it.
Anytime I have opened a ticket with support - I either get no answer, an answer that is later contradicted when I ask for more detail, or a "working as designed" with absolutely no offer to consider that ALL of our teachers would logistically prefer a feature to function differently

Avantages

I like that I can change the Sort order of the students to sort the list by First Name instead of Last Name.

Inconvénients

I don't like that I have to set the SORT order EVERY time I go into my student gradebook - it should be either defaulted to the last setting or let me set my preference globally and have it stay that setting. I also think if I set it to sort by First Name the list should show the names as First Last - instead even though I select to sort by First Name it displays the names in Last First order. :(

Avantages

1. Intuitive layout
2. Very user-friendly for both teachers and students
3. The ability to incorporate various attachment formats such as .jpeg hyperlinks and .wmv files

Inconvénients

I wish when accessing assignments for marking in the grade book the list on the right-hand side would show I have marked it and not require I click on the assignment on the list on the right in order to affect the number of unmarked assignments. I open the assignment and add comments by clicking on the assignment from the list on the grade book screen.