8 Cool Mobile Apps Created by High School Students

What an Awesome way to Learn! These Students Showed the World What They Can Accomplish.

One of my very favorite uses of technology in education is when it used by students to create things. There are so many ways to be creative with technology – writing, creating art work, composing music, creating web sites, developing presentations, and so on.

One of the most intense and potentially rewarding creative undertaking students can tackle is coding – developing their own programs! The resources available to help interested individuals learn how to code have never been better or more plentiful. Schools and teachers have embraced this as an opportunity, setting students up to learn coding (and some highly motivated students take it on themselves).

Look what these bright young entrepreneurial students have created:

Gotcha: North Philadelphia high school students designed this crime-stopping app, which allows onlookers to report crimes where and when they take place. This article from Technical.ly/Philly explains how Gotcha came about.

iParkedHere: As this article explains, “In his senior year of high school, Brandon Cowan created this app to help drivers find their parked cars and keep track of time left on the meter. It became a top-grossing lifestyle app and was featured on the iTunes home page.”

Echo: A high school senior from Los Angeles developed a mobile app that better connects students with their teachers. The Echo app allows teachers to send homework and study reminders to students with lower-than-average GPAs. Learn more here.

iTigers: According to this news piece, this student-designed app provides students with “access to homework assignments, campus news, sports information, fine arts, faculty, and clubs and organizations”.

OBHS App: Old Bridge High School senior John Shammas created this app, which includes, “access to bell schedules, activities, daily announcements, a map that includes locker information and after school activities, as well as access to students' MealTime online accounts.” Read more about it here.

Many Apps created through the Congressional App Challenge: This web page discusses this contest run in 2014, under the auspices of the US Congress. “Starting in January 2014, over one-third of all House Members challenged high school students in their districts to enter a competition to create a software application (or “app”) for mobile, tablet, or other computing devices.”

Winning Apps include:

Trext: This app informs parents of their children’s whereabouts
State Puzzles: An app that lets people to learn about digital encryption and decryption
Pocket Einstein: Teaches students math and science

Wouldn't it be awesome if all students were afforded these kinds of learning opportunities? Not everyone has the resources available, or gets exposed to the tools and techniques. What is your school doing to expose students to coding and creative possibilities like these?

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