Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. vs BCPS Connect
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Scholastic F.I.R.S.T.
This app helps children learn to read through a research-based methodology that breaks down reading skills into thousands of micro-actions. It offers personalized learning paths and detailed progress reports for educators and parents.
- Personalized reading paths
- Micro-action learning methodology
- Phonemic awareness focus
- Progress reporting for educators
- Adaptive learning technology
- Offline access
Read full descriptionHide full description
New from Scholastic! A new adventure in learning to read! Small Actions. Big Results. Ooka Island transforms teaching foundational reading skills by breaking the process down into thousands of micro-actions — 6,695 to be exact. With an instructionally robust methodology and highly adaptive technology, Ooka Island actively personalizes each student’s path toward fluent reading. - Steeped in Research and Efficacy Built on Dr. Kay MacPhee’s proven, research-based concepts, Ooka Island purposefully leads with securing children's phonemic awareness while teaching phonological skills to ensure reading words becomes as effortless as speaking-so students can focus on comprehension. Dive into the research to learn more about Ooka Island's effective foundational reading program. - Reporting for Educators at All Levels It's important to know how a student, class, school or district is progressing at both a high-level and the most granular. It's equally important to make that data actionable for educators. Ooka Island’s meaningful reports are filled with the richest and most impactful metrics, giving educators the tools they need to help meet their critical reading goals. - Adaptive. Really. Being highly adaptive means seamlessly supporting all students throughout their early reading journey. With three levels of adaptability—immediate scaffolding, adaptations to pacing, and more complex interventions—Ooka Island's continuous formative assessment understands the precise moment, and the right type of intervention, to help a student succeed. - Learning After the Bell Connecting reading to the home and family has a significant lifelong impact. Purposefully designed to be equitable for outside of school access, Ooka Island can be used anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Using their personalized account, students pick up wherever they left off, continuing to make measurable progress on their own learn to read adventure.
BCPS Connect
This app serves as a central hub for parents, guardians, and students of Broward County Public Schools. It provides easy access to important educational information like grades, schedules, attendance, and school news. Stay connected with real-time notifications and messages to support your student's academic journey.
- Student and Parent Portals
- Access grades and assignments
- View schedules and attendance
- School calendars and events
- Real-time notifications and messages
- Class resources and forms
Read full descriptionHide full description
Presenting BCPS Connect, the official one-stop-shop app for parents, guardians, and students of Broward County Public Schools (BCPS). Our carefully designed Student and Parent portals ensure that you stay involved and up-to-date with your student’s education. Effortlessly access key information such as enrollment status, schedules, attendance, grades, assignments, calendars, news, events, school and district social media feeds, class resources, forms, alerts, and messages—all in a single, user-friendly platform. BCPS Connect keeps you informed about essential updates and deadlines through real-time notifications and messages sent directly to your device. Support your student’s educational growth and remain connected to the BCPS community by downloading BCPS Connect. Now available on the Apple App Store.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. at 3.5 against BCPS Connect's 1.8. On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. holds the better App Store score, 3.5 against 1.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 60 and 101 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 10% of Scholastic F.I.R.S.T.'s written reviews are positive against 13% of BCPS Connect's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
| Parameter | Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. | BCPS Connect |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.5 (60 ratings) — better | 1.8 (101 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 10.0% of reviews | 12.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 60 | 101 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 433 MB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Scholastic Inc. | Focus School Software |
Customer experience
Scholastic F.I.R.S.T.
BCPS Connect
Bugs and requests
Scholastic F.I.R.S.T.
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
BCPS Connect
Reported bugs
10 issues- App crashes frequently
- Blank/white screen after login
- Login issues (permission declined, Microsoft sign-in broken)
- App logs users out automatically
- Information disappears, children no longer visible
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Cannot register new students or create accounts
- Content overlaps on screens
- App freezes after one login
- Translation is awful
- JQuery errors on first open
Requested features
6 requests- Bring back Pinnacle/Virtual Counselor
- Improve language settings/translation
- Add face recognition for login
- Fix bugs and improve functionality
- Make app more user-friendly
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Allow students more privacy
In-app purchases
Scholastic F.I.R.S.T.
No in-app purchases
BCPS Connect
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. free?
Is BCPS Connect free?
Which has better reviews, Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. or BCPS Connect?
Do Scholastic F.I.R.S.T. or BCPS Connect have ads?
Other comparisons















