App Development for All!

In this workshop, participants will learn how to build custom, data-driven mobile apps using the hybrid model and how to scaffold app development projects to focus students’ efforts on specific lesson, unit or assignment goals. It is intended for post-secondary or late secondary educators who want to increase student engagement by including app projects in their courses. With new tools and techniques, barriers to implementation have been reduced: in the hybrid model, developers use HTML5, CSS and Javascript — along with libraries enabling access to mobile device features such as accelerometer, camera, contacts, etc — to quickly develop apps and to distribute them on multiple platforms. Participants will learn how to create app interfaces using the Bootstrap Mobile framework, how to compile their apps using PhoneGap, and how to pull data from public APIs into their apps. Participants will also learn how to use Google tools to quickly create a web service, giving students greater capacity to design and develop relevant, engaging and useful apps. Participants will need a laptop or will need to work with a colleague and should have at least a rudimentary knowledge of HTML, CSS and Javascript.

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