Chapter 11 Reflection

To my knowledge, there are numerous ways that problem-solving or educational software can be beneficial to the learning process of k-12 students in any area of study. This is because not only are there literally thousands of different styles of software that cater to the many different needs of each student, but because these thousands of tools have been evaluated by the thousands of teachers who use them. Evaluations consist of how effective or ineffective a particular brand of software was able to relay a lesson to students. It is judged on how well it aligns with the objectives of the standard course of study, the ease of use for students and faculty, and how well students perform using it. It is also important that users (students) enjoy their experiences while using the software. If the software is boring and colorless, students may think of using it as a chore rather than a reward. Morrison and Lowther (2010) tells us students are learning at a higher rate when they don't realize they are even learning. More specifically, what resulted was "more positive attitudes out these subject areas" (Morrison and Lowther, 2010). This is an important feature of educational software as learning becomes easy and students are enthusiastically engaged in their own process as well as the process of their peers. Morrison and Lowther (2010) also tells us that "one of the key benefits of drill-and-practice software is the opportunity for students to engage in interactive basic skills practice that provides immediate individual performance feedback." This is why it is necessary for teachers to evaluate every software rather than taking the distributors "guarantee." The benefits of using such software are large in number and these certain tools must be highly sought after by educators.

Choosing the correct software is actually easier than one would think. There are literally dozens of websites that not only sell a large variety of educational software but also offer evaluations from educators. If an educator wanted to test a brand new piece of software and was not sure about its' functionality, ease of use, or alignment with course objectives, self-evaluations are rather easy as well. After all, teacher are going to use it, why should we not be the ones to evaluate it first hand for ourselves? Morrison and Lowther (2010) offer five easy steps to include when doing such an evaluation. First, instructors want to focus on "Content Accuracy," making sure the program is about History or Science (obviously depending on the course of study). Second, "Research-Based Instructional Strategies" focus on how motivational, interesting, and how well it offers feedback to the users. Thirdly, educators want to focus on how well it meets the objectives of their standard course of study. Fourth, educators want to make sure the program effectively assesses the information that was covered. Finally, instructors want to put themselves in the shoes of his/her students while testing the software to ensure it is easy to use and to determine how much information needs to be covered prior to allowing students to use for themselves. This may seem like a lot, but to test different software, one essentially needs to simply tinker around on it for an hour or so, keeping notes on certain positive or negative attributes.

When it comes to traditional lesson plans, teacher of the past would only need to make sure students came prepared to class. This involved paper and pencil (or pen)and their text book opened to the correct chapter. For the teacher, he/she only needed to make sure the correct 35 mm slides were set up or, more recently, the correct power point presentation was set up. If so, class could go smoothly and there might even be time for a little activity or maybe the class would get to watch scenes from a relevant movie. Today, however, the technology exists that allow lesson plans to have a much wider range of variety and style. Students can also engage in their own learning process. The largest change with the integration of such technology, at least to me, is the preparation one must go through to ensure that class still goes as smoothly as it did when less was involved. Essentially, students must be educated before they can be educated. This means, educators must take the time to show what is proper "netiquette" and what entails as being too much information. Morrison and Lowther (2010) explains more specifically what would change when a lesson plan involves problem-solving or educational software. There are six key components that differ from a lesson plan that involves this type of software: Computer functions, research and analysis, results presentation, activities during computer use, activities before computer use, and activities after computer use.