Google Classroom vs. Unique Learning System

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Google Classroom
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
N/A
$0
per license/per month
Unique Learning System
Score 10.0 out of 10
N/A
Unique Learning System (ULS) is a special education solution that supports students with disabilities from Pre-K through transition. It provides differentiated, standards-aligned lessons in ELA, math, science, social studies, and life skills with built-in assessments, progress tracking, and automated differentiation.N/A
Pricing
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Editions & Modules
Education Fundamentals
$0
per license/per month
Google Workspace for Education Standard
$3
per student/per year
Teaching and Learning Upgrade
$4
per license/per month
Google Workspace for Education Plus
$5
per student/per year
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsEducation Fundamentals Version - 30-day free trial for qualifying institutions.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Features
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Learning Management
Comparison of Learning Management features of Product A and Product B
Google Classroom
7.8
Ratings
5% below category average
Unique Learning System
-
Ratings
Course authoring8.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Course catalog or library8.90 Ratings00 Ratings
Player/Portal9.50 Ratings00 Ratings
Learning content5.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Mobile friendly5.80 Ratings00 Ratings
Progress tracking & certifications8.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Assignments8.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Compliance management8.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Learning administration7.80 Ratings00 Ratings
Learning reporting & analytics9.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Social learning7.80 Ratings00 Ratings
Gamification6.50 Ratings00 Ratings
Single Sign On (SSO) Enabled Learning9.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Small Businesses
iSpring Learn
iSpring Learn
Score 9.6 out of 10
Freckle by Renaissance
Freckle by Renaissance
Score 9.9 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Schoology Learning
Schoology Learning
Score 9.7 out of 10
Schoology Learning
Schoology Learning
Score 9.7 out of 10
Enterprises
Schoology Learning
Schoology Learning
Score 9.7 out of 10
Schoology Learning
Schoology Learning
Score 9.7 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Likelihood to Recommend
8.1
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.1
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
9.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
1.9
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
2.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
10.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Google ClassroomUnique Learning System
Likelihood to Recommend
- During the pandemic, the college needs a fast and easy solution to conduct Google Classroom. The integration with Google Accounts and Google Meet allows the university to run and access the Classroom on a large scale. - The teacher wants to conduct some exams in third-party software like Moodle. But we have not found any plugin for this famous open-source learning platform. The exam system in Google Classroom is so poor that it doesn't even fully screen the test when students are writing their exams.
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Unique Learning System is well suited for students in self-contained classrooms who need to access grade-level curriculum. I would love to see more life skills incorporated for students who are working on functional skills. It doesn’t translate well to the general education classroom for students who go to inclusive settings.
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Pros
  • Student-teacher communication - I love using Classroom for this because my students can always go back and check what was on Classroom by looking through the stream. This way they don't have to go dig through emails to find what they're looking for.
  • Posting to multiple classes - I can post the same announcement or assignment to multiple classes at once without having to repeat the process or send separate emails.
  • Streamlining grading - when students turn work in on Classroom, it all goes to one place and then when I'm grading I can open their documents directly from Classroom or my Drive folder. This way, I'm not looking through emails and Google Doc shared files for their assignment.
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  • differentiated reading levels with picture support
  • constantly updated articles and materials
  • ease of login for students with disabilities
  • broad variety of topics
  • easily accessible games for students of all cognitive levels
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Cons
  • Although usually in the discussion with other LMS apps such as Schoology and Canvas, Google Classroom doesn't possess as in-depth of a platform. There is no ability to set individual learning paths, pace student work with completion settings, or embed other apps directly into teacher-created assignments.
  • The assignment creation options are limited. Teachers can only choose from creating an assignment (usually a link with directions), a material (usually a doc/slide/website, etc), a question, and a quiz.
  • With gamification taking on a new lens in education, there really isn't any way to use gamification elements with Google Classroom. There isn't any way to create Individual learning paths, or use badges and micro-credentials within Classroom. Outside programs would have to be used.
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  • I would like the print options to be easier to use. I wish I could create a file of the pages I want to print instead of downloading the entire PDF across multiple levels and picking and choosing. My students do not all have digital access due to a variety of reasons and print is a better option for many.
  • I would like Unique Learning System to offer shared licensing. We have classrooms of 6 students where there may be 1 teacher, 5 paraprofessionals, 1 BCBA, 1 SLP, 1 OT, etc. It is a group effort to prepare learning materials for the students and deliver the instruction. I would prefer the licensing to be by student instead of by teacher, it takes a village.
  • I dislike how complicated materials have become with courses, the library, the units, etc. I wish there was a way it could all be organized a little better. I would also love small graphics to be paired with the materials so I don't need to open everything to find what I am looking for. Such as in the Transition Portfolio section.
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Likelihood to Renew
Testing is particularly important in online learning, and Google Classroom falls far short of other learning management systems in this regard. Security is also a concern: while account control is reasonable for the account used with Google Classroom, the person controlling a particular account is often able to, for example, forward or download proprietary materials.
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No answers on this topic
Usability
This is only a product I would recommend to a humanities teacher. Math and science teachers cannot use this product the same way that I can as an English teacher. It is great for word process and for reading, but unable to handle the demands of math and science. Therefore, I would highly recommend this product to English or Social Studies teachers, but NOT math or science teachers
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I’ve been using Unique Learning System for about 12 1/2 years. And I feel like I am very well-versed and all of the different features. I will say it did take me time to get to this comfortability level. However, if you aren’t afraid to explore and learn, then it will be very easy for you to Figure out
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Reliability and Availability
We have had very little trouble in accessing Google Classroom. Our issues, if any, have risen from our server and not the Google servers.
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No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Since this platform is provided by Google, the technical support is better than any others, and we are not required to bother about the space constraints for adding the contents. If we have a good uninterrupted internet facility we can access Google Classroom without any delay or lag. They have app support in both Android and iPhone.
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The individuals helping have always been great. The response to requests for changes in functionality or reporting less so.
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Implementation Rating
It was relatively easy to implement due to the simplicity of the platform. Even our more technology challenged teachers found it easy to get started with Google Classroom.
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Alternatives Considered
Skyward and Google Classroom are completely different programs that are used for completely different things. The only comparable areas are communication with students. Skyward does so through the class rosters and message center and Google Classroom does so through the classrooms for each student and their teacher, but each is unique in their own way.
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Unique Learning System is by far easier to utilize. The Vizzle system was fraught with issues for me and the students just used their learning online systems as games and clicked through to the finish with total disregard to what the computer was asking or saying to them. They did not have as much available for level one students and you could not easily assign work or print materials as you can in Unique Learning System.
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Scalability
It is very easy to push out this program across our buildings. Teachers are able to use it without much trouble.
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Return on Investment
  • Students are able to continue learning in a remote environment
  • Parents have a single, consistent organization structure to make it easy to track assignments and progress for multiple children
  • Much better solution than the quickly assembled Zoom-and-gloom of the previous spring when school abruptly went remote with no planning
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  • There has been nearly 100% improvement in data collection for teachers who began implementing Benchmark assessments and Unit Checkpoints. Many teachers don't have the time or capacity to create their own data tracking tools - if it's not provided, it falls through the cracks.
  • When content is applicable, Unique Learning System saves on planning time immensely. It is a grab and go resource, but also customizable based on student needs.
  • I like how the checkpoints are modeled in a similar fashion to our Florida Alternate Assessment. This helps students practice how to test take throughout the year.
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ScreenShots

Unique Learning System Screenshots

Screenshot of assessments and progress monitoringScreenshot of lesson planningScreenshot of research based contentScreenshot of Science of Reading coursesScreenshot of a system overviewScreenshot of teacher reference materials