Educational technology tools have become indispensable for enhancing the teaching and learning experience. These technologies encompass a wide range of digital tools and resources designed to facilitate and improve the process of learning. While there are several digital teaching tools that could be used for instruction, it is important to understand why there is a limited set of tools that can and should be used for instruction at Ohio State.
Before a new teaching tool is approved and added to the University Learning Technologies toolset or supplemented by the College of Arts and Sciences, there is a software review process that is completed to make sure that the tool meets Ohio State standards for data security, privacy, accessibility, cost, legal, usability, and potential integration with other approved tools. If you are using a tool that has not been through the software review process, you may be out of compliance with OSU policy and/or state law, and may be unwittingly putting yourself, your students, or the university at risk.
To support a consistent, secure, and high-quality learning experience, OTDI and ODE have curated a list of approved digital tools for teaching and learning. These tools have been vetted for compliance with institutional policies, data privacy standards, accessibility requirements, and pedagogical effectiveness.
Using university-approved or college-approved tools ensures that students and instructors benefit from reliable support, seamless integration with university systems, and protection of personal and academic data. It also helps maintain academic integrity and fosters a more equitable learning environment.
Approved tools at Ohio State generally fall into four main categories:
These are tools that OTDI has vetted and provides support for everyone at the university. These tools are all free for you to use, and support is provided in the form of articles, workshops, consultations, and on-demand help.
These are tools that the College of Arts and Sciences ODE have vetted and provides support for instructors and students within the college. These are free for you to use, and support is provided in the form of articles, consultations, and on-demand help.
These are tools that a specific department or departments have requested go through the vetting process, have been approved, and are available to use within the specific department or course. If you are interested in adopting one of these tools, please reach out to ODE.
- Gradescope
- Math and Physics
- Codon Learning
- Biology
- Course Specific
- There are some tools that are approved for use within a specific course or set of courses
These are tools that the university or college provides for everyone, but not all components have been thoroughly vetted for accessibility.
- Microsoft 365
- Adobe Creative Suite
- Google Workspace*
- Note: While OSU faculty, staff, and students have access to Google Workspace, Microsoft365 remains the preferred suite of tools for teaching and learning
Avoid any non-OSU-approved Alternative. Tools that have not been vetted for security, privacy, accessibility, and terms of use and for which students cannot receive help from university and college support teams should not be used at Ohio State.
- Any non-OSU-approved learning management system (e.g., Moodle, Blackboard)
- Any non-OSU-approved document platforms (e.g., Google Documents, Evernote)
- Any non-OSU-approved web file storage platforms (e.g., Box, Dropbox)
- Any publisher platforms or tools you do not know are approved
- Personal websites, webservers, webhosting, or web tools not provided by OSU
- Any of the 10,000 alternative tools whose representatives may approach you with offers but which Ohio State has not approved for use
