Blackboard Learn by Anthology vs. Google Classroom

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Blackboard Learn by Anthology
Score 7.7 out of 10
N/A
Blackboard Inc. is an enterprise learning management systems vendor. Blackboard was founded in 1997 and became a public company in 2004. The company provides education, mobile, communication, and commerce software and related services to clients including education providers, corporations and government organizations. As of December 2010, Blackboard software and services are used by over 9,300 institutions in more than 60 countries. Blackboard Learn is the company's flagship LMS, supporting…N/A
Google Classroom
Score 8.1 out of 10
N/A
N/A
$0
per month
Pricing
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Education Fundamentals
$0
per license/per month
Google Workspace for Education Standard
$3
per student/per year
Teaching and Learning Upgrade
$4
per license/per month
Google Workspace for Education Plus
$5
per student/per year
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
Additional DetailsMust contact vendor for pricing information.Education Fundamentals Version - 30-day free trial for qualifying institutions.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Considered Both Products
Blackboard Learn by Anthology
Chose Blackboard Learn by Anthology
Blackboard Learn is more robust because it allows for much more dissemination of materials for higher-level courses. Assignments are seamlessly connected in Blackboard Learn versus Google Classroom, where you have to access Google Docs to see your instructor's comments. Edmodo
Chose Blackboard Learn by Anthology
Google Classroom has the same objective, and that is to connect students to their teachers along with the organization. Google Classroom is organized easy to read and customizable by the teacher. Very user friendly. I can say that Blackboard is a much better platform to take …
Chose Blackboard Learn by Anthology
Blackboard is definitely more in touch with older students, particularly high school and college age students.
Chose Blackboard Learn by Anthology
Blackboard is the all around better fit for our intuition. It provides the "bells and whistles" we require in having a diverse faculty and flexibility in course delivery. The "bells and whistles" aren't cheap, but we have found that budgeting for this large expense has been …
Chose Blackboard Learn by Anthology
I did not select Blackboard Learn.
Chose Blackboard Learn by Anthology
It can be configured to do anything you want. It is Blackboard's blessing and curse. I think it has the biggest feature set in the industry. It confuse people and leads to strange UIs. But some organization and working together you can find something that will work well for …
Google Classroom
Chose Google Classroom
I think Google Classroom is better suited for younger audiences and less tech-involved than a Blackboard or Canvas site. I would much rather use google classroom with my student in a middle school than Blackboard and Canvas which are better suited for colleges. I think those …
Chose Google Classroom
As mentioned previously, the low barrier to entry was the final decision. Intuitive user interface is friendly for children.
Chose Google Classroom
Honestly, both the software's are equally good for online classes and meetings.
Chose Google Classroom
With so many schools using Google apps, Google Classroom becomes an integral part of the classroom learning experience. Overall, Classroom gets the job done. If you are looking for something simple this is it. It isn't a full-blown LMS but it keeps everything organized in one …
Chose Google Classroom
Google Classroom does not have all the capabilities of Canvas or Blackboard, but is a great choice for those who need an introductory digital platform. It is a great way to begin going digital, and has some great features, like the ability to share posts between classes/years. …
Top Pros
Top Cons
TrustRadius Insights
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Highlights

TrustRadius
Research Team Insight
Published

Blackboard Learn and Google Classroom are both academic learning management systems. However, each product serves very different academic segments, with little overlap. 

Blackboard Learn is very focused on serving higher education institutions, with many advanced features targeting these users. In contrast, Google Classroom is much more common in primary or secondary education classrooms instead of higher education. Blackboard Learn is also a paid platform, while Google Classroom is free for schools to use. 

Features

Blackboard Learn and Google Classroom both have distinct advantages that schools and universities can utilize. 

Blackboard Learn stands out as the powerhouse LMS for higher education. It has among the widest ranges of features and capabilities out of all academic LMS’s, including a robust assessment tool. It also offers excellent document management and can be highly customized to meet each institutions’ preferences and needs. 

Google Classroom excels at offering a more accessible and user-friendly platform for primary and secondary education. It is highly integrated with the rest of the G suite, with the compatibility benefits that come with the Google ecosystem. It’s also much more user-friendly than more advanced LMSs, especially for younger or less technically savvy users. It’s also free for schools, which can be highly appealing for budget-pinched schools. 

Limitations

There are also drawbacks to Blackboard Learn and Google Classroom that buyers should keep in mind. 

For instance, Blackboard Learn is less user-friendly across the board. While it’s more customizable, Blackboard is also much more of a lift to implement and manage over the long term. It’s also a more expensive option in the academic LMS market. 

In contrast, Google Classroom’s reliance on the rest of the G Suite, particularly Docs and Slides, limits the capabilities of Classroom on its own. This helps explain why Classroom’s native document management has been criticized by some reviewers. It has fewer advanced management capabilities that higher ed instructors rely on, as well as limitated assessment capabilities. Classroom is also less configurability. 

Pricing

Blackboard Learn is priced uniquely for each institution and is available by quote from the vendor. 

Google Classroom is free for schools to use, and is included in the G Suite for Education package as well. 

Features
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Learning Management
Comparison of Learning Management features of Product A and Product B
Blackboard Learn by Anthology
8.5
30 Ratings
4% above category average
Google Classroom
7.8
53 Ratings
4% below category average
Course authoring8.924 Ratings7.545 Ratings
Course catalog or library8.924 Ratings7.536 Ratings
Player/Portal8.021 Ratings8.234 Ratings
Learning content6.127 Ratings8.038 Ratings
Mobile friendly8.830 Ratings7.951 Ratings
Progress tracking & certifications7.024 Ratings7.540 Ratings
Assignments9.030 Ratings8.452 Ratings
Compliance management9.017 Ratings7.429 Ratings
Learning administration9.925 Ratings7.740 Ratings
Learning reporting & analytics8.926 Ratings7.737 Ratings
Social learning8.922 Ratings7.846 Ratings
Single Sign On (SSO) Enabled Learning9.01 Ratings8.57 Ratings
Gamification00 Ratings6.95 Ratings
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User Ratings
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Likelihood to Recommend
9.8
(58 ratings)
8.6
(73 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
4.6
(11 ratings)
1.0
(3 ratings)
Usability
10.0
(5 ratings)
3.0
(4 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
7.7
(14 ratings)
1.9
(14 ratings)
Online Training
7.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
10.0
(1 ratings)
2.0
(2 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Blackboard Learn by AnthologyGoogle Classroom
Likelihood to Recommend
Anthology, Inc
A school with a well-established technology imprint with their students (for example, ours is a BYOB school where every student has their own laptop and must bring it to school every day and where over 99% of our families have reliable broadband at home) is a reasonable scenario for using The arrogance and intransigence of the sales force is quite disconcerting… They are no longer the only game in town and don't yet realize it. Less well-off schools/families may find it a challenge if students must be on campus or at a public library in order to use the technology. Obviously, during the pandemic, this became problematic for some districts.
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Google
- During the pandemic, the college needs a fast and easy solution to conduct Google Classroom. The integration with Google Accounts and Google Meet allows the university to run and access the Classroom on a large scale. - The teacher wants to conduct some exams in third-party software like Moodle. But we have not found any plugin for this famous open-source learning platform. The exam system in Google Classroom is so poor that it doesn't even fully screen the test when students are writing their exams.
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Pros
Anthology, Inc
  • Blackboard Learn makes submitting assignments electronically simple and provides a variety of built-in Web-based tools like e-portfolios, wikis, and blogs that our students use to create their own content.
  • Blackboard Learn is intuitive and easy to navigate from a students perspective
  • Blackboard Learn has many integrations available for connecting this LMS to other tools we use at our institution.
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Google
  • Student-teacher communication - I love using Classroom for this because my students can always go back and check what was on Classroom by looking through the stream. This way they don't have to go dig through emails to find what they're looking for.
  • Posting to multiple classes - I can post the same announcement or assignment to multiple classes at once without having to repeat the process or send separate emails.
  • Streamlining grading - when students turn work in on Classroom, it all goes to one place and then when I'm grading I can open their documents directly from Classroom or my Drive folder. This way, I'm not looking through emails and Google Doc shared files for their assignment.
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Cons
Anthology, Inc
  • Blackboard Learn has some limitations when it comes to submissions
  • It is not that user friendly, I had to spend some time to get a hang of it in the beginning
  • I have been struggling a bit with deletion of manually added courses
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Google
  • Although usually in the discussion with other LMS apps such as Schoology and Canvas, Google Classroom doesn't possess as in-depth of a platform. There is no ability to set individual learning paths, pace student work with completion settings, or embed other apps directly into teacher-created assignments.
  • The assignment creation options are limited. Teachers can only choose from creating an assignment (usually a link with directions), a material (usually a doc/slide/website, etc), a question, and a quiz.
  • With gamification taking on a new lens in education, there really isn't any way to use gamification elements with Google Classroom. There isn't any way to create Individual learning paths, or use badges and micro-credentials within Classroom. Outside programs would have to be used.
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Likelihood to Renew
Anthology, Inc
There are several aspects of Desire2Learn that outweigh the benefits of using Blackboard. I find that the Desire2Learn system is a bit more user friendly and looks more up-to-date. However, the decision to renew systems is not up to me because the entire University uses the same system. Regardless, I think I would choose Desire2Learn over Blackboard because of its improved user interface.
Read full review
Google
Testing is particularly important in online learning, and Google Classroom falls far short of other learning management systems in this regard. Security is also a concern: while account control is reasonable for the account used with Google Classroom, the person controlling a particular account is often able to, for example, forward or download proprietary materials.
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Usability
Anthology, Inc
It is very usable for both faculty and students. The interface is pretty intuitive and most students can use it without a lot of additional training. Faculty do need some training to effectively use the interface, but they usually get it pretty quickly. We have had to create some additional programming to give faculty a way to delve deeper into the content.
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Google
This is only a product I would recommend to a humanities teacher. Math and science teachers cannot use this product the same way that I can as an English teacher. It is great for word process and for reading, but unable to handle the demands of math and science. Therefore, I would highly recommend this product to English or Social Studies teachers, but NOT math or science teachers
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Reliability and Availability
Anthology, Inc
No answers on this topic
Google
We have had very little trouble in accessing Google Classroom. Our issues, if any, have risen from our server and not the Google servers.
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Support Rating
Anthology, Inc
My Blackboard support comes from the university I work with. They are responsive--eventually... but it takes them sometimes a week to respond to a reported issue. For example, I reported 2 issues last week and one was resolved and I was contacted about one still open option today. That is too long for a tech issue. I have not contacted any support offered directly by Blackboard, which may be a completely different experience altogether.
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Google
Since this platform is provided by Google, the technical support is better than any others, and we are not required to bother about the space constraints for adding the contents. If we have a good uninterrupted internet facility we can access Google Classroom without any delay or lag. They have app support in both Android and iPhone.
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Implementation Rating
Anthology, Inc
Blackboard's Managed Hosting was top-notch in getting us up and running quickly.
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Google
It was relatively easy to implement due to the simplicity of the platform. Even our more technology challenged teachers found it easy to get started with Google Classroom.
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Alternatives Considered
Anthology, Inc
Coursera offers a variety of modules in which a team is able to work on then, but [Blackboard Learn] offers more options to understand how are the team members developing and which tasks have offered a harder challenger for them. [Blackboard Learn] also offers a variety of reports that can be generate by a team lead.
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Google
I haven't tested or evaluated another digital classroom website or application. I feel like Google Classroom is convenient for many reasons such as compatibility to Google docs, slides, etc. I also love the ability to link to YouTube and other sites. I don't know if there would be a site that is easier to maneuver.
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Scalability
Anthology, Inc
No answers on this topic
Google
It is very easy to push out this program across our buildings. Teachers are able to use it without much trouble.
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Return on Investment
Anthology, Inc
  • At one of the institutions that I worked for, the ROI was excellent for the number of users we were serving; however, I could not speak to other instances as I was not aware of the overall cost of the contract.
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Google
  • Students are able to continue learning in a remote environment
  • Parents have a single, consistent organization structure to make it easy to track assignments and progress for multiple children
  • Much better solution than the quickly assembled Zoom-and-gloom of the previous spring when school abruptly went remote with no planning
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ScreenShots

Blackboard Learn by Anthology Screenshots

Screenshot of A modern and intuitive learning management system (LMS) designed in collaboration with the global education community, providing students and faculty with a more inclusive, flexible, and insightful experience.Screenshot of Fostering a sense of belonging is essential to student success. To truly create an inclusive learning environment requires a holistic approach, and Blackboard Learn leads the market in many critical areas which allow your institution to meet students of all backgrounds where they are. Built to be mobile-first, Blackboard Learn is the only LMS that provides the same great experience on PC, tablet, and smartphone. And we're proud that Blackboard Learn was the First LMS to achieve accessibility Certification from the National Federation of the Blind and all of our interfaces undergo rigorous accessibility testing. Learn also has the best integration with our market-leading accessibility product, Ally, of any LMS. Learn also ensures that every user has an experience which reflects – and celebrates – their unique identity. To take just one example, users can record their name pronunciation, and choose their preferred pronouns.Screenshot of Blackboard Learn supports instructors with multiple formative and summative assessment methods, and features capabilities that reduce stress for students. For example, we’ve recently released features that allow students to use different test-taking strategies and understand their progress through assessments – including a timer that can be hidden – to maximize their result and minimize anxiety. Grading workflows have been designed to increase efficiency for instructors and give more insightful feedback to students. For instance, we’ve recently revamped the overall grade functionality to make it easier for instructors to change weightings between tasks and tailor to individual students. Blackboard Learn also offers deep integrations with hundreds of partners to create even more interactive and engaging courses, including the deepest interaction of any LMS with Microsoft Teams.Screenshot of Blackboard Learn presents insights embedded right into instructor and student workflows - making useful information readily available, and making it easier for instructors to help students where and when they need it most. Learn's progress tracking tools help students and instructors always know how they're tracking to achieve their goals - and where there is opportunity for improvement. Quick actions are tied to these insights, like following up with students in groups or individually. Blackboard Learn also provides built-in value with Blackboard Data Reporting to help leaders understand how the LMS is being used, student performance, and surfacing opportunities for continuous improvement.