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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Nearpod

    Score8.9 out of 10
    N/ANearpod is an education-focused learning management software solution offered by Nearpod.

    $159

    per year

    Sakai

    Score8.7 out of 10
    N/ASakai is an open source learning management system provided by the Apero Foundation. The LMS provides what it calls Core and Expanded Features. The Core Features encompass an integrated tool set that is tested by the Sakai community members and is then included with each new release. The tool set can be configured by: instructors, students, research investigators and project leaders. The other set of tools, known as “Contrib Tools” are specific to Sakai tools and innovations that are developed…N/A
    Pricing
    NearpodSakai
    Editions & Modules
    Gold
    $159
    per year
    Platinum
    $397
    per year
    Silver
    Free
    Premium Plus
    Get quote
    per year
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    NearpodSakai
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsNearpod has a free version for all teachers. There are paid options for individual teachers, as well as schools and districts, for increased features and access.Must contact vendor for pricing information.
    More Pricing Information
    Features
    NearpodSakai
    Learning Management
    Comparison of Learning Management features of Nearpod and Sakai
    Feature
    Nearpod
    -
    Ratings
    Sakai
    7.9
    5 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Course authoring00 Ratings8.05 Ratings
    Course catalog or library00 Ratings7.04 Ratings
    Player/Portal00 Ratings8.02 Ratings
    Learning content00 Ratings8.05 Ratings
    Mobile friendly00 Ratings7.05 Ratings
    Progress tracking & certifications00 Ratings8.05 Ratings
    Assignments00 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Compliance management00 Ratings7.04 Ratings
    Learning administration00 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Learning reporting & analytics00 Ratings6.05 Ratings
    Social learning00 Ratings9.04 Ratings
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    NearpodSakai
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    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    NearpodSakai
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (7 ratings)
    9.0
    (14 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (3 ratings)
    Usability
    8.0
    (2 ratings)
    7.4
    (3 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.1
    (3 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    NearpodSakai
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Renaissance Learning
    Nearpod is great for teachers who want data to help gauge how engaged students are during lessons. Additionally, teachers in one-to-one schools can better use these tools with a lesson delivery system like Nearpod. Nearpod is especially effective when a presenter has to deliver information to a large class.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Apereo
    I've used Sakai to supplement my Public Speaking class. Public Speaking is very much a F2F type course, so I didn't use Sakai much for course content delivery. However, I did use it to post my syllabus, post my lecture slides, communicate any class announcements, and to conduct a final exam for the class. Building the final exam was very simple and I was easily able to swap out questions to vary it from term to term. Before I was a staff member and lecturer, I used Sakai as a student. My instructor used Sakai to varying degrees. I really appreciated it being the one-stop-receptacle for all-things class related. If I somehow lost an assignment instruction sheet, I could rely on it being posted there. For multimedia work it was lacking, at that time, but I know Sakai has been updated over time and I hope that part of it has improved. If I was ever frustrated by Sakai, it was because faculty used it in a piecemeal way. It's fine not to want to use the gradebook, but don't enter some grades and not others. It's wonderful to upload class documents to it; but don't do some and not others. Whatever way you're going to use Sakai, commit to it and use it well. Your students will thank you.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Renaissance Learning
    • Provide timely and individualized feedback.
    • Allow for the teacher to check for understanding, for the entire class, in one view.
    • Present an array of different interactive lesson items, at the fingertips of every student.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Apereo
    • Sakai is flexible, providing a way for our customers (instructors) to customize their courses while staying in line with consistency and continuity of course design. This has allowed our courses to be far less cookie-cutter and stale. This is mostly accomplished through Sakai's LTI functionality and it's Lessons tool. This is particularly notable because not every course is the same, nor should it be. Our faculty and course developers can draw from OER resources, course text publisher assessment quiz banks and pull in content from sources from our library databases and services like YouTube.
    • Sakai is customizable, allowing us to pair it with our student information system to automatically create and track with student registration data - including adding new students and removing students who have elected to drop a course. The customization features also include being able to create course templates for individual schools or courses using specific tools or sequences of tools as well as a way to personalize content for students when they engage with each lesson.
    • Sakai is stable in the market. We have been using Sakai for almost 10 years and continue to see it improve; responding to changing trends in browser technologies, mobile platforms and accessibility requirements. Multiple programs offered over the years have been recognized by outside organizations like BestColleges.com for our programs and given high marks by students taking the courses offered in Sakai.
    • Sakai allows our faculty to inform it's continued evolution. We work closely with the developers, having a front seat to how things can work and function for our faculty. There have been multiple occasions where faculty ask, "Can Sakai do this?" and the answer is never "No."
    Read full review
    Cons
    Renaissance Learning
    • I would love Nearpod to have more free activities.
    • I would love Nearpod to be free for educators.
    • I would love if teachers could assign homework on Nearpod.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Apereo
    • The coming upgrade will address many issues, the visual presentation of sites and courses
    • The Forums (discussion) tool is not natively integrated into the Gradebook, but needs another step to connect the two.
    • The Wiki tool is awkward and not WYSIWYG. But I understand that is common with wikis in most platforms
    • The Help documentation could use some focus on student needs rather that course developer needs
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Renaissance Learning
    Goal is to continue our subscription for the 2019-2020 school year
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Apereo
    Sakai is a good general learning management system - it is not leading edge but rather a stable system with standard learning management system features. It can be fairly easily customized and is fairly easy to learn from both student learning and faculty administrative vantage points. New paradigms for online learning though are emergent so the current field should also be investigated with competitors.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Renaissance Learning
    While there is some learning curve to fully understand and know how to lead a lesson with Nearpod, once mastered successfully, Nearpod lessons are simple to create and deliver. When leading a lesson, it is relatively simple to see how everyone in the class performs and how well they participate and understand.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Apereo
    When faculty are preparing courses from term to term, a portion of the content is static within a specific discipline. The time it takes to import past lessons into new versions of Sakai can be an inefficient use of my time. When I want to add new content and edit from the old content, it's reliant upon me to cut and paste the content from term to term rather than simply import and edit from a backup.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Renaissance Learning
    The support staff for Nearpod is top-notch. I have not had technical issues, but I did have a concern about my bill and they reached out to me nearly immediately to address the problem. I was very satisfied with how they handled the interaction from beginning to end. They did a great job.
    Incentivized
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    Apereo
    Since Sakai is open-source their documentation is often lacking and support is absolutely needed onsite. Internal documentation is more important with Sakai than other services. The Sakai community is fun, passionate, engaged, and absolutely doing their best, but it's an uphill battle against the current market and trends.
    Incentivized
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    Implementation Rating
    Renaissance Learning
    No answers on this topic
    Apereo
    No, I don't
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Renaissance Learning
    I don't know of a product off hand that does what Nearpod can do. Between the library of pre-made lessons, the ability to create your own lesson content, the ability to add interactive content, Nearpod offers a unique engagement platform for instruction
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Apereo
    As an adjunct professor, I didn't pick Sakai for the university. I have experience with Moodle, Blackboard, eCollege, iBoard and now Sakai. I would have to say that Sakai is one of my all time favorite LMSs to use as it is very easy to navigate.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Renaissance Learning
    • The impact is awesome. It gives students a digital option other than PowerPoint for presentations.
    • The feedback tool allows you to follow students in realtime.
    • The shallow learning curve made it easy encourage other faculty to try it.
    Read full review
    Apereo
    • Sakai makes it easy for students to monitor grades which puts their minds at ease.
    • Sakai makes it easy for teachers to assign and receive assignments from students.
    • Communication is one of the most important and one of the most taxing parts of an educational system. Sakai makes this process just a little bit easier.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
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