After evaluating more than 400 software packages, 20 elementary-school teachers reached one conclusion: Children’s educational software fails on many levels.
Most of the software available for children in kindergarten through 4th grade is entertaining but lacks content and instruction, say researchers at Ohio State University in Columbus.
“We were looking for software that supports active and meaningful learning with a dynamic approach,” says senior research associate Todd Fennimore. “A lot of the software falls into the game category with bells and whistles, but we were looking for software that helps kids formulate their own problems using the software as a tool.”
Children don’t learn and think for themselves with most programs, the study shows. Simple feedback techniques are not used in most programs so that children can evaluate their own progress, while most programs follow a lecture model of giving out information without interaction, the study said.
While some software packages had challenging story lines and entertaining characters, most did not inspire critical thinking, problem-solving or inquiry. “Most programs are just worksheets on a computer,” Fennimore says.
Reading and language arts software gets the top grade for effectiveness, while science programs run second, the study shows. Social studies and math programs were found to be the most lacking.
