Product Review of McGraw-Hill Connect

The tool is made to help learners improve their results with the use of homework and learning management solutions that incorporate learning and adaptive tools. Some of the resources available to learners include SmartBook Adaptive Learning—a platform that gives learners adaptive mobile study resources to work with. Other resources include flexible and mobile course materials, grading and insights system, lecture caption, LMS integration, and accessibility.
Website: https://connect.mheducation.com/
What Users Love About the App
“It is a highly valuable resource for both students and instructors alike. It allows users to have remote access to the text that is used in the classroom if they are not able to access a copy of the textbook. There are also multimedia resources and quizzes available for some texts/resources. I loved using this in some of my university courses.”
“I am moving as many courses and resource materials to MMGH so I can use Connect in as many classes as possible. I believe all my SP21 courses are set up with MMGH and will be using Connect. They also have a medical office simulation (game) that students can mimic the exact duties and responsibilities they will be doing in the Medical Office in this software and can get grading information on their work and progress.”
“Textbook, Assignments from the textbook, Workbook, Workbook assignments from the workbook are in this software. No need to purchase a printed book and wait to get it. Everything coincides with the text and/or workbook you use from McGraw-Hill. All Instructor resources are right at hand. I can add, change, delete, hide, upload, download almost anything out of or into Connect.”
“It allows teachers to access their instructional resources online and allows students to receive online instruction aligned with our McGraw Hill products.”
“I love the options & diversity of materials included in this software – games, review, lessons, etc. I love that parents/students can access these at home and use them as a review.”
What Users Dislike About the App
“It can be a little challenging to navigate as a new user. I also think that a lot of instructors are unaware of the full resources that are available to their students. Some of the resources can seem a little “hidden” at first but once you’ve used it a couple of times you can unlock its full potential.”
“Getting started process for Instructors. Getting the students, especially the ones that are new to the Medical Office environment, up and running in the first-class time. Did not work the first two semesters I used Connect but since then is not so bad. Just big learning curve already and then add having to try and help the students get started was overwhelming.”
“As a platform, Connect is OK. A few years ago, its interface was more appealing than many of its competitors, but in the past couple of years, the competitors have really stepped up to make the language learning experience online a more collaborative experience, while Connect has stuck to the bare bones exercises that lack innovation, collaboration, and do not provide a fun experience that would help the students study for intrinsic reasons. Additionally, building the sites every three years when new textbook editions are released is a tedious affair. Moreover, the customer service for students is time-consuming that hardly ever produces results.”
“Initially setting up online access to McGraw Hill products is always somewhat problematic. For instance, you may purchase “x” amount of student and teacher seats to access a particular program, but then those seats won’t show up online until you create a ticket with McGraw Hill support and they fix it. Last school year, it took 7 calls, hours on hold with McGraw Hill, and 2 months for one of our 5th-grade teachers to access their Wonders Reading curriculum online.”
“Deleting things on your planner is the biggest pain – it’s all right to click here and confirm there. I love all the materials, but there’s got to be an easier way to get rid of lessons/activities that you don’t want. Also, I really dislike that so many of the activities have almost the same name, even if they’re different activities.”