1page.title=Get Started 2page.metaDescription=Get your apps ready for Google Play for Education. 3excludeFromSuggestions=true 4@jd:body 5 6<div style="position:absolute;margin-left: 636px; 7 margin-top:-76px;color:#777;">If you're interested<br> 8 <a href="{@docRoot}distribute/googleplay/edu/contact.html" 9 class="go-link" 10 style="display: block;text-align: right;">SIGN UP</a></div> 11 12<p>If you've got a great app for education or just an idea for one, plan to be a 13part of Google Play for Education to reach even more teachers and students. It's 14easy to participate, and you will be able to offer new or existing Android apps 15using the familiar tools in Google Play.</p> 16 17<p>To get started, review the sections in this document and learn about the 18safety, usability, and quality guidelines that apps should meet. Assess your 19apps against these guidelines and make any adjustments needed. You can use the 20linked resources to help you develop a great app for students that offers 21compelling content and an intuitive user experience on Android tablets.</p> 22 23<h2 id="requirements">Safety First</h2> 24 25<p>To participate, your apps must be designed to be usable and appropriate for 26the K-12 market. The basic requirements that your apps must meet are:</p> 27 28<ol> 29 <li>Apps and the ads they contain must not collect personally identifiable 30information other than user credentials or data required to operate and improve 31the app.</li> 32 <li>Apps must not use student data for purposes unrelated to its educational 33function.</li> 34 <li>Apps must have a content rating of "Everyone" or "Low Maturity" (apps with 35a "Medium Maturity" rating are allowed, if they have that rating solely because 36they allow communication between students).</li> 37 <li>App content, including ads displayed by the app, must be consistent with 38the app's maturity rating. The app must not display any “offensive” content, as 39described in the <a 40href="http://play.google.com/about/developer-content-policy.html">Google Play 41Developer Program Policies</a> and <a 42href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/188189"> 43content-rating guidelines</a>.</p></li> 44</ol> 45 46 47<h2 id="approved">With the Help of Educators</h2> 48 49<p>App content submitted to Google Play for Education will be reviewed by 50educators who will categorize the apps and align them with <a 51href="http://www.corestandards.org/" class="external-link" 52target="_android">Common Core Standards</a>. This will help make your content 53discoverable in a way that is easy for teachers and administrators. </p> 54 55 56<h2 id="secure">Sold Simply</h2> 57 58<p>Google Play for Education provides a simple and secure environment in which 59educators can buy apps in a way that's easy for schools — through purchase 60orders. Your apps must support this environment by ensuring that they:</p> 61 62<ul> 63 <li>Sell all content and services through Google Play for Education</li> 64 <li>Permit Google Play to offer teachers limited free trials before purchase 65(through business terms only, no development work is needed)</li> 66</ul> 67 68<p>In addition, it's highly recommended that your apps:</p> 69<ul> 70 <li>Disable in-app purchase in any UI accessible to students.</li> 71</ul> 72 73<h2 id="quality">High Quality and Usability</h2> 74 75<p>Google Play for Education brings educational content to students and teachers 76on Android tablets. Your apps should be designed to perform well and look great 77on Android tablets, and they should offer the best user experience possible. 78</p> 79 80<p>High quality apps are engaging, intuitive, and offer compelling content. 81Google Play for Education will highlight high-quality apps for easy discovery in 82the store. Here are some recommendations for making your app easy for students 83and teachers to enjoy.</p> 84 85<ul> 86 <li>Meet Core app quality guidelines 87 <ul> 88 <li>Follow <a href="{@docRoot}design/index.html">Android Design Guidelines</a>. 89 Pay special attention to the sections on <a href="{@docRoot}design/patterns/actionbar.html">Action 90 Bar</a>, <a href="{@docRoot}design/patterns/navigation.html">Navigation</a> and <a 91 href="{@docRoot}design/patterns/pure-android.html">Pure Android</a>.</li> 92 <li>Test your apps against the <a href="{@docRoot}distribute/googleplay/quality/core.html">Core 93 App Quality Guidelines</a>.</li> 94 </ul> 95 </li> 96<li>Meet tablet app quality guidelines 97 <ul> 98 <li>Follow our best practices for tablet app development</li> 99 <li>Review the <a href="{@docRoot}distribute/googleplay/quality/tablet.html">Tablet App 100 Quality Checklist</a> and <a href="http://android-developers.blogspot.com/2012/11/designing-for-tablets-were-here-to-help.html" 101 class="external-link;" target="_android">blog post on designing for tablets</a></li> 102 <li>Check your Optimization Tips in the Google Play Developer Console (if you've already uploaded your app)</li> 103 </ul> 104<li>Strive for simplicity and highest usability for students 105 <ul> 106 <li>Design your app so that teachers and students can use all capabilities of your app without 107 having to sign-in to multiple accounts and remember multiple passwords. </li> 108 <li>For best experience, use Google sign-in in your apps, which provides seamless authentication 109 across apps. <!--Google Account login service and integrate with Google Drive where appropriate. --></li> 110 </ul> 111</li> 112</ul> 113<p>In addition, it's highly recommended that your apps:</p> 114<ul> 115 <li>Disable advertisements in any UI accessible to students.</li> 116</ul> 117 118 119<h2 id="strategies">Strategies for Development</h2> 120 121 <p>If you have an existing educational app in Google Play, the classroom 122environment offered by Google Play for Education presents a slightly different 123set of needs, requirements, and also opportunities.</p> 124 125 <p>We're working to give you the tools you need to build for the classroom 126environment from a single APK, delivered as a single product to all of your 127users in Google Play. Our goal is to let you customize your app's UI and 128features as minimally or deeply as you need, to provide a simple, intuitive, and 129beautiful learning experience. </p> 130 131 <p>Watch for more information on developer tools coming in the weeks ahead. 132We'll update this page as we roll out tools for you to use. As a starting point, 133we recommend planning your app's design and ensuring its optimization on Nexus 134tablets.</p> 135