Android App Development with Kotlin & Jetpack Compose in Uganda

Course outline and learning expectations

This is a tutor-led course. The outline shows what your tutor will cover; teaching materials and examinations are provided directly to enrolled students.

What you will learn

• Set up, run, debug and organise a modern Android project in Android Studio.
• Build responsive native Android interfaces with Kotlin, Jetpack Compose and Material 3.
• Manage UI state, user actions and screen lifecycle behaviour using Compose and ViewModel.
• Create multi-screen apps with clear navigation and safe argument handling.
• Validate forms and design accessible experiences for users with different devices and abilities.
• Display lists, images and structured content efficiently across common Android screen sizes.
• Save simple app data locally with Room and preferences with DataStore.
• Test, package and present a working Android portfolio app designed for a Ugandan use case.

Modules

1. 1

   Android project setup and development workflow

   Understand Android projects, application IDs, modules, resources and Gradle build files.

   Create a Compose project, configure an emulator and run the app on a physical device.Use Logcat, breakpoints and the debugger to identify common build and runtime problems.
2. 2

   Jetpack Compose UI foundations

   Build interfaces with composable functions, modifiers, rows, columns, boxes and reusable components.

   Apply Material 3 colour, typography, shape and theme principles.Use previews to test components efficiently without rebuilding the whole app.
3. 3

   State, events and app behaviour

   Distinguish stateful and stateless composables.

   Use state hoisting, immutable UI state and unidirectional data flow.Connect a ViewModel to Compose and preserve state through normal configuration changes.
4. 4

   Navigation and multi-screen apps

   Build a single-activity app with Compose navigation.

   Pass identifiers safely, handle back navigation and support simple deep-link concepts.Organise screens, components and navigation routes for maintainability.
5. 5

   Forms, validation and accessible design

   Create text, selection and date-input experiences with clear validation and error feedback.

   Design for touch targets, contrast, screen readers and readable content.Build interfaces that remain usable on low-cost phones and different screen sizes.
6. 6

   Lists, media and adaptive layouts

   Display efficient lists and grids with Lazy components.

   Load local and remote images with placeholders and failure states.Adapt content for portrait, landscape, tablets and changing window sizes.
7. 7

   Local data with Room and DataStore

   Model entities, data access objects and a Room database.

   Perform create, read, update and delete operations using coroutines.Save user settings with DataStore and show persisted data in Compose.
8. 8

   Testing, packaging and local capstone

   Write focused unit tests and introductory Compose UI tests.

   Improve app quality through debugging, empty states, loading states and error handling.Build a portfolio-ready Uganda Local Services app that works reliably on a real Android device.