Apple has updated iTunes U with a bunch of new features, cranking the version number up to 2 and introducing improved discussion features and the ability to create and update courses directly from the iPad app, which previously has been mostly a user-facing client for consuming content. The update, live now in the App Store, gives the universal app new powers for students, letting them ask questions about the course, posts and assignments more easily in private courses, and allows other students to participate in discussions directly by asking follow-on or supplemental questions, or by answering questions posed by other students. Push notifications also now alert users about new questions and responses to discussions in process. For teachers in particular, it’s a big update, since it now allows them to set up their iPads from their devices.

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