Best Communications Software for Schoology Learning

Shift puts you in control of your browser. Arrange apps, bars, and controls exactly where you want them, building a personalized workspace that works around you — not the other way around. Connect over 1,500 web apps, jump between dedicated Spaces for work, side hustles, and personal browsing, and manage multiple accounts without ever logging in and out. As a pioneer in carbon-neutral browsing, Shift is committed to rethinking what a browser can be — for the people who use it and the world they live in. Started in Victoria, British Columbia in 2016, Shift is a Certified B Corp and proud member of the Redbrick portfolio. What you can do with Shift: - Build your browser: Design a layout tailored to how you use the internet. - Create Spaces: Keep work, side hustles, and passion projects in their own lane. - Integrate Apps: Bring your favorite web apps together in one place. - Templates: Pick from 6 ready-made layouts to get started fast. - Shift AI: A built-in AI assistant that helps you get more done across every tab and app.

Engageli is an AI-powered learning platform built for active, inclusive, and data-informed instruction. Developed by Stanford educators, leading technologists, and the founder of Coursera, it was purposefully designed to overcome the limitations of standard video conferencing and fragmented engagement tools. Engageli offers a streamlined, multi-modal environment that helps instructors create more connected, human, and effective virtual learning experiences. The platform brings together live classes, interactive self-paced learning, and AI-assisted course creation. Patented virtual tables enable intentional small-group collaboration, while built-in AI engagement tools—polls, quizzes, games, shared documents, notes, chat, and Q&A—support seamless participation without relying on external apps. Teachers retain full oversight with table visibility, content monitoring, and adaptable session controls. AI supports instruction across every modality. During live classes, it generates polls, quizzes, and summaries directly tied to presented materials. In asynchronous playback rooms, AI tutors respond to learner questions and support content review. Engageli Studio creates immersive modules by segmenting existing videos and PDFs and inserting activities at logical pause points. Engageli also delivers robust engagement data across live and self-paced learning. Instructors and administrators can track participation patterns, confirm active minutes, identify learners who need help, and meet funding, compliance, or performance reporting requirements. Today, Engageli supports more than one million learning hours each week across K–12 districts, colleges and universities, and global corporate training programs.

Zoom Meetings is a cloud-based video conferencing and collaboration platform designed for virtual meetings, remote teamwork, online presentations, and hybrid communication. The software provides HD video and audio, screen sharing, virtual backgrounds, noise suppression, and customizable meeting layouts. Participants can collaborate using chat, annotations, shared documents, digital whiteboards, and interactive meeting tools. Breakout rooms allow hosts to divide participants into smaller groups for discussions, training sessions, and collaborative activities. Zoom's built-in AI features automatically generate meeting summaries, identify next steps, answer questions about meeting content, and organize notes. Its My Notes functionality combines manual note-taking with AI-assisted transcription and summarization to help users capture important information. Accessibility features include automated captions, multilingual caption translation, and configurable meeting controls for different participant needs. Zoom Meetings integrates with Zoom Team Chat, Scheduler, Calendar, and third-party productivity applications to support scheduling, communication, and follow-up workflows. The platform includes meeting recordings, administrative dashboards, participant permissions, and security controls for organizations managing virtual collaboration across multiple teams and locations.

Blackboard Collaborate serves as an effective, user-friendly online collaboration platform tailored for educational and training purposes. This virtual classroom solution simplifies access with a one-click feature for web conferencing, fostering enhanced interaction and engagement between educators and learners. It is crafted to be accessible and straightforward, ensuring it fits seamlessly into educational workflows, enabling students to engage actively in virtual environments, participate in training sessions, develop new competencies, and interact with their peers through meaningful “face-to-face” exchanges. Notable aspects of the platform include an adaptive design, extensive device compatibility, high-definition audio and video capabilities, and an interactive whiteboard, among other innovative features. Additionally, its user-centric approach allows for a flexible learning experience that can adapt to various teaching styles and methodologies.

Enhance the engagement of your online learners with BigBlueButton, a robust web conferencing platform specifically tailored for virtual education. If you are in search of a reliable solution to facilitate remote teaching, BigBlueButton enables instantaneous sharing of audio, video, slides, chat, and screen content. The platform fosters student interaction through features like emoji sharing, polling, and breakout rooms, creating a dynamic learning environment. It’s essential that synchronous learning tools seamlessly integrate with your learning management system (LMS). Notably, platforms like Instructure, Schoology, Jenzabar, and D2L come equipped with native BigBlueButton integration, while Moodle and Sakai offer plugins for enhanced compatibility. Additionally, BigBlueButton adheres to learning tools interoperability (LTI) 1.0 standards, ensuring broad usability across various educational settings. Supported by a global community of developers and commercial entities, BigBlueButton is committed to providing an exceptional web conferencing experience for online education, making it a top choice for educators worldwide. Thus, whether you are teaching a small group or a large class, BigBlueButton is equipped to meet your online teaching needs effectively.