Types of Software

Hey Everybody!
Can you believe it? We only have a couple of more weeks left in the term and we are finished. While this class has kept me extremely busy, I have learned lots of valuable tools. For our third blog, we are suppose to post about different types of instructional software we can use in our classroom. So here we go.

The five types of instructional software are:
Drill and practice
Tutorial
Simulation
Instructional Games
Problem Solving

Drill and Practice

Drill and practice software is a directed instruction type of software. It provides exercises where students work example items one at a time and then receive some type of feedback on whether or not they are correction. An example of drill practice is this math website found on Harcourt. Our district requires our students know 25 math facts in a minute with sums to ten. It is great for them to use and it goes with our curriculum. It does not correct the child if they answer wrong, however it does show the ones missed and what the correct answers would have been.

http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/thats_a_fact/english_K_3.html
Tutorial Software
Tutorial software is another directed teaching software. It is a true teaching software. It is used in place of the teacher. It makes sure students master a topic by providing information summaries, gives explanations, allows practice, gives feedback and tests the students on what they know. An example of a program I use in my classroom is another one provided by my district. It is called A Plus. I mainly use this program with my higher students in math while I work in small groups with my lower students in math. I like the program because it is directly correlated with Alabama state standards. The teachers assign skills that needed to be mastered. It provides students with a pre-test. It they make 80% or higher on the test the skill is considered mastered and they move on to the next skill. However, if they do not make that score, it sends them through a tutorial course. It introduces the topic and gives practice. They can then choose whether to study or practice the skill some more. Finally, it reassesses them. If they still do not master the skill, they have to repeat the process until they do finally master the skill.

Simulation
Simulation software models real or imaginary systems to show how the content evolves. It shows how the skill develops over time. It can be considered both a directed and constructivist strategy for learning. A program that can be used as an example is Oregon Trail. This website simulates what pioneers went through as they traveled across the country. They have to figure out foods take, an odd jobs throughout their journey. It is used more as a problem based simulation. Most simulations are currently found in space. Here is one website I would incorporate into my curriculum when talking about certain subject matters. It would help the kids to understand the content better. The videos are so realistic they made me nauseous!

http://www.wonderville.ca

Instructional Games
Instructional Games are considered a strategy that is both directed and constructivist in use. An instructional game increases motivation through adding game rules to drills and simulations. A website I am currently using in my classroom is called fun4thebrain.com. My students love it! Fun 4 the Brain incorporates math facts into a fun game the students can play. They select what skill they want to practice. Then it gives them 10-25 problems to answer. Once they get a certain number correct, it sends them to a game to play. In panda subtraction, they try to get bamboo for points. Once they lose so many lives, they have to go back and practice more facts to get more lives.

www.fun4thebrain.com

Problem Solving
Problem solving teaches students in a couple of different ways. The first was is directly. The program explain and practices the steps involved in solving problems. The second way is by helping the learner acquire problem solving skills by giving the opportunities to solve problems. It's strategy can also be considered both directed and constructivist. The website I will incorporate into my classroom is A Game A Day. Each month a new game is posted on the calendar. It encourages kids to use their brains to win the games. Each day has a new game for them to solve.

http://www.agameaday.com/

That's it for this week. Tune in to next week's blog and Happy Valentine's Day!