Josh Leitz

Educational Software - 3 Types of Educational Software



Posted: Sunday, March 22, 2009

by Josh Leitz
Backbone Communications

Educational software is a concept that we are seeing more and more of in our society today. This concept is one that is mainly computer based and comes in a wide range. Educational software is something that allows students to grasp things that they previously couldn't get their head around and one thing is for sure; it's going to change the way that we learn.

Every student and child has their own pace of learning; some may pick things up faster than others but this doesn't necessarily mean they are more intelligent; it could merely mean that they grasp that way of learning more than the other child. It is because of this that there needs to be more than one way of delivering subjects, which is where educational software comes into play.

Some examples of the categories that educational software comes under are as follows:

Classroom aids – one main example of this is when a lesson or certain aspects of the learning process are projected onto a large whiteboard, which is placed at the front of the class. Classroom aids can also be used on a network of computers that are placed in a classroom

Computer games with learning value- these were originally designed and developed for adult use as well as older children all of whom may have potential learning difficulties; however they have now also been developed for younger children too. It is believed that computer games with learning value are so successful due to the fact that they provide simulations of different kinds of human activity, which allows players to explore a variety of social, historical and economic processes. 

Courseware – this concept is used as additional educational material intended as kits for teachers or trainers or as tutorials for students, usually packaged for use with a computer. Can refer to when an entire course is used online or in a computer format.

As you can see from the above the main forms of educational software have been strongly influenced by the idea of computer games. This basically means that the educational software is designed to be fun as well as being educational. It is used to provide an alternative teaching method, which is extremely helpful if a child or student has difficulty understanding more traditional methods of teaching. Educational software provides a teaching method that some students may be able to understand better plus this way of teaching allows students and children to get more involved in the learning process, which will more then likely mean they will be able to remember what they have been taught better than if it had just been read out to them.

Some of the most popular forms of educational software are reading intervention and math intervention software programs as well as English Language Learning (ELL) and English Language Development (ELD). The list of educational software really does go on meaning you have a good range of choice when selecting the educational software that will most benefit students and children of all learning levels and stages. 

Differentiated Instruction


Josh was a classroom teacher for grades Kindergarten through 8th grade and used The A+nyWhere Learning System® with his 5th & 6th graders in order to differentiate the curriculum and provide appropriate content to his many students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). Josh currently meets with schools, assisting in implementation, and training teachers and administrators on various software tools.

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