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Classifications of educational softwareStephen Bostock, Feb. 1995 There have been many classifications of educational software and, of course, over the years new types of software have been invented. Note that many individual software packages include more than one type of activity. The situation is confused by the use of a variety of similar terms (and their abbreviations, like CAL and CAI) to mean similar things. A glossary is provided at the end of the Module. Rather than just present the best classification I am going to develop one by looking at progressively more detailed distinctions. The first distinction in the uses of computers in education is between their management role and their direct assistance in learning. The first type is called computer managed learning (CML). Computers can increase the efficiency of processing and storing these records (just as they do with business information systems) and so help administrators, teachers and learners make good decisions about learning. It includes programs recording the components of a course already taken or passed successfully, advising on what resources are available for a course or learning goal, testing skills as a prerequisite for a course, testing after a learning period for the purposes of record or certification. We will not discuss computer managed learning further. In the second type, computer assisted learning (CAL), the learner uses the computer during the learning. Some of this software tests the learners, but this is part of the instruction process (formative evaluation) not to record their final performance (summative evaluation). Many packages have characteristics of more than one type, and much instructional software also does some record keeping of learner activity and testing of learning outcomes after instruction. There is a broad range of ways of using computers directly in learning. There have been various classifications published and we will look at a few. Firstly, Tim O'Shea and John Self (1984) considered the basic distinction to be computer as teacher and computer as tool.
In the book Learning and Teaching with Computers (1984) Tim O'Shea and John Self discuss a variety of specific types of educational software. Read the excerpt (p. 67-69 and 120-121) on the history of computers in education. Stephen Bostock and Roger Seifert in Microcomputers in Adult Education, 1986 described three types, by distinguishing simulations from tools.
In 1977, Kemmis and his colleagues discussed educational computing in four categories or "paradigms" to relate the use of computers in education to other educational activities.
The classifications above have used just a few categories. The following, for example, are more detailed:
Does it matter which classification we use? In one sense, no - there is a broad and growing range of computer applications and we can group them for convenience. In another sense it does matter, because we are grouping them into types which have similar uses in education. The distinctions between categories are educationally important. Thus, if we want software which lets a learner practice a skill in a realistic situation we need a simulation. If we want them to be able to check their own knowledge we need a quiz. If we want them to learn a principle by problem solving we can provide a modelling environment. The categories relate to the broad educational function for which they are being used. For the purposes of this Module we need a consistent set of terms, so the following classification will be adopted:
1. Data retrieval resources The word data has a dry sound, but as well as text and numbers, it includes pictures, animations, sounds and videos. The best example of a general purpose data resource is the multimedia encyclopedia on a CD-ROM such as Encarta, but there are many CD-ROMs. Because of its large capacity (over 600 megabytes) a single CD-ROM makes the equivalent of many books available on one disk, through one program. This makes a huge amount of information available on a single computer. Having CD-ROMs on a network makes them available to many computers at once. More dramatically, much larger databases are available on-line at large remote computers. Furthermore, many computers in the Internet - the world-wide network of computers - provide free information, creating the largest possible data resource. The way the user must navigate through the data is important. Without good navigation the data is a forest in which the learner gets lost. Obviously, having just a linear sequence of data would be of no help to a learner looking for something in particular. Hypertext is one way of organising the data in a non-linear way: each small text topic has links to other related topics (Figure 5.2). A common use of hypertext is in help systems, such as Windows Help. Hypermedia is just a database organised as hypertext but with non-text data too - pictures, sound or video. If the learner is browsing rather than looking for specific information, the following links to new topics is an easy way to do it. However, its easy to "get lost in hyperspace" so that the learner does not know how thy got to their current position or how to return to an earlier topic. So maps and back-tracks though the data are needed. Databases should also provide tools for searching for specific facts or topics. Such searching will be much faster than a manual search, but some searching tools are better than others. For example, can you search for an individual person's name, or by birth date, or by nationality. Can you search for topics only with pictures, or search only for sounds related to a topic or idea? Learners want all sorts of information so searching tools should be flexible and, of course, fast. Jean and Geoffrey Underwood in
Computers and Learning (1990) argued
that there are two reasons why children
should gain information handling
skills. Firstly, society is
increasingly dependent on computerised
information so these skills are needed
as preparation for employment and for
citizenship. Secondly, thinking about
information with computers is a catalyst
for general intellectual development.
For these reasons, knowing how to use
existing databases, and how to create
your own personal database are important
skills in their own right, on top of
their usefulness in retrieving
information needed for other purposes. 2. Tools for processing Whereas the first category concentrated on information retrieval, this concerns information processing. There is a large range of possibilities, from those with restricted abilities in one sphere (word-processors and text) to the creation of multimedia presentation using a generic authoring system. Along this range, the difficulty increases with the flexibility and power of the tool. If we go further in this direction we reach the use of general purpose programming languages. A database is a processing tool if you use it to store your own data. Spreadsheets and word-processors are the commonest applications used on desktop computers, and along with databases form the "Holy Trinity" of personal computing. While in databases the emphasis is on retrieval, in spreadsheets and word-processors the emphasis is on the processing of stored data, but there is obviously some overlap: word-processor or spreadsheet documents are stored and can be searched, while databases can do simple processing in generating summaries and reports. Word-processors are commonly used with normal children and those with writing difficulties to help develop writing skills (see Hawkridge and Vincent 1992, p.112). Their important functions include allowing repeated editing, producing neat printed copy and having spelling checkers. The ability to make changes repeatedly until the work is good is a great motivator, especially when used in creative writing or project work. Learners with hand control problems for hand-writing may find a standard keyboard or a special input device easier. Prostheses The National Curriculum in English includes attainment targets in speaking and listening. Disabilities which prevent either or both skills can be ameliorated with computer tools. A word-processor can provide a medium of expression for learners unable to speak or write by hand. Furthermore, it is a transparent medium where a teacher can observe the process of constructing language, not just its result. Speech output is also increasingly common. Desktop publishing is an extension of word-processing which allows more complex layout of text to be combined with pictures. It can be used to produce all manner of news-sheets, cards and posters. Just as word-processors manipulate words in appropriate ways, spreadsheets provide all the functions to manipulate numbers. They can be used to make maths more accessible at all levels, for example, performing predefined calculations automatically, providing statistical functions and display charts. In some ways they are easier to use than calculators as all of the numbers are visible all of the time, on the screen. learners can move gradually from using them as a super-calculator to using them for modelling or simulation. Put another way, they can move from using them to ask What Is? questions to What If? questions. Then they can be used as decision aids. Graphics packages, both for drawing (line drawings) and painting (bitmaps) on the screen have similar advantages for producing images as word-processing does for text. Scanners and digital cameras allow photo-realistic images to be captured. Using images of familiar people and places can give motivation and a feeling of ownership of the use of technology. Image manipulation software can be used to enhance, reduce and customise the images, and colour printers can produce good quality hard copy. The costs of all this equipment falls continuously. Computers now have sound generation capabilities much more extensive than the crude beeps of the early 1980's. Recorded voices or music can be played in hi-fidelity. Multimedia PCs have sound cards with music synthesizers built in. A variety of software allows learners to generate music, store and display it, in ways analogous to a word-processor document. This offers the opportunity for musical creativity and enjoyment which disability make prevent with conventional instruments. The more sophisticated packages can provide display, editing and printing of musical notation to allow musical education. Simple authoring packages can be used as a medium of expression by learners as an alternative to a word-processor. Packages such as Optima, Hypercard and Toolbook allow screen-based hypermedia to be created without any writing of a text program. Like a word-processor, they provide text editing features, but they also add the ability to import existing graphics and add sound, for example, of the author's voice-over commentary. (Capturing the spoken word is simple with a microphone and a multimedia computer.) Pages can be linked together with ready-made buttons. The result is a piece of interactive multimedia which displays the learner/author's abilities, and may be more satisfying to produce than simple text. Going further in this direction of flexibility, programming languages can be used create a wide range of software embodiments of a learner's understanding of many subjects. For this reason, and as a part of an understanding of the nature of computers, some have argued for the value of programming in a beginner's language like BASIC or Logo. Logo is usually used as a method of drawing with "Turtle graphics" (see module E) and in this form it is similar to a modelling environment - the turtle is a simulated robot under the learner's control (see later). But it can also be simplified by the provision of custom commands, to provide a drawing package. 3. Simulations and modelling Simulations, models, games and microworlds are related types of software. Simulations are a well established application of computers, often valuable in education or training. We are familiar with the idea of a physical "working model" such as toy racing cars or miniature aircraft in wind tunnels. The models represent the aspects of the real situation that are important so that we can understand it better. A computer simulation involves a software representation (a mathematical model) of aspects of a real world situation. We provide the conditions for the model as inputs, the software processes them according to the relationships specified in the model, and the outputs give us the effect of the conditions. A simulation is therefore a model being used, usually repeatedly with many different inputs or responding to continuous inputs in real time. The value of simulations in education lies in the feedback they give to the learner. This is not the feedback of a computer tutor praising a correct response or explaining a wrong one. It is feedback intrinsic to the simulation, it is the model responding. This allows the learner to practice skills and so improve them. If the simulation is realistic in important aspects, the skills should then be transferable to the real situation. Simulations are useful in training when practicing on the real thing would be difficult, expensive, dangerous or otherwise unacceptable (flying a fighter plane, controlling a nuclear power station or performing surgery on a human body). Simulations provide a context for experiential learning, where the learner can experiment and practice skills. The simulation is a simplification of the real world. This is good insofar as only the relevant aspects of reality are simulated, and bad insofar as the realism is reduced. In terms of Laurillard's model of learning (see module E) simulations provide the opportunity for learners to operate at the level of actions; they are interactive media. Learners use skills rather than learning concepts as abstractions; they can put concepts into practice. If, instead of the user providing inputs, the inputs are built-in we would have a demonstration and the lack of interaction reduces the educational value. Simulations may be in real time, or not. Real time simulations take a continuous input from the user and respond in real time. They may have realistic visual displays, such as flight simulators or racing car games. In this case the demands on computer processing are increased and limited processing power may result in jerky movements or reduced resolution of the display. Non-real time simulations are given a set of inputs and then run, to get the outputs but the execution time is not related to the simulated real time of the user. This process can be repeated, but often, a large number of runs with somewhat different inputs can be set off as a batch and a summary of results shown. In this case the inputs are often generated at random but within limits, in an attempt to mimic the unpredictability of many factors affecting the real life situation. Simulation games, or just games, are simulations in which there are two or more players, one of which may be provided by the software. The players compete in some way towards a goal such as high points. Games may be simple such as Sonic the Hedgehog, or more complex, such as games played by management teams in a simulated business environment, or by simulated politicians in a simulated British economy. The presence of other players with their independent goals adds realism to a simulation of competitive situations. Microworlds are similar to simulations but allow the learner more freedom of action. Whereas a simulation represents a machine or their system which can be manipulated, a microworld is a simulated "world" - an environment where some particular rules of nature apply. It need not look visually realistic. The best known and most relevant microworld is the Turtle graphics of Logo described in detail in Module E. Seymour Papert in Mindstorms (1980) argued a persuasive case for the use of microworlds - they not only allow a direct experience of the simulated environment, they also require learners to formalise their thought about the microworld by writing Logo programs to create simulations (the moving Turtle). This makes their conceptions explicit and visible for learner and tutor and yet they are inputs to the computer which govern the behaviour of simulated objects. In a simulation the learner provides the inputs, in a microworld she also provides some of the processing rules. Continuing in this direction of open-ended flexibility, we come to general purpose programming languages. Logo is a general purpose language and can be used to create programs which arithmetic or manipulate text, for example. But its commonest use is to provide screen Turtles (robots) as a mechanism for drawing. In this sense, the restricted use of Logo for controlling Turtles is a microworld, because the Turtles are simulations. The simplest use of Turtle graphics is to program line drawings as a way of learning some mathematics. Another version of this microworld discussed by Papert is the Dynaturtle, where the turtle simulates a rocket in space. Its behaviour is conditioned by a Logo program written by the learner and the activity helps learning about Newtonian physics by experiencing its effects, on the screen. The more specific the microworld, the more its designer is restricting the factors in the real world that are represented in the software, to help simulations in a particular realm. As a we look at less specific simulations, more general purpose programming environments, the learner has more freedom and more difficulty. Modelling is similar to using a microworld. It restricts the learner less because it requires the learner to create the model, as a set of (mathematical) relationships. Whereas in a microworld the learner writes procedural code to define the model's behaviour, in modelling it is defined as equations. By creating a model, a student is explicitly demonstrating a knowledge of the relevant relationships in the real situation being modelled. There are programs which are designed specifically for modelling in certain subjects, but spreadsheets are a general purpose modelling environment, where the relationships are defined as formulae linking the values in cells on the sheet. Spreadsheets can be viewed as a general purpose modelling environment. Advanced use of spreadsheets even allows a model to be run repeatedly under program control to form a non-real time simulation. Some of the above descriptions of learner activities may seem far removed from those of many Special Needs learners, but the same principles apply. So, for example, modelling may mean building a house on the screen. A simulation may involve guiding a screen object around the screen, a man chasing a dog, or a robot in a maze. A simulation may be controlling the movement of screen objects across the screen by button presses. Input can be in real time, so that the learner gets the experience of directly controlling something in a simulated world. Further along the scale of abilities Turtle graphics, especially the use of a robot floor Turtle controlled by a Logo program, can provide a range of learning activities for gaining knowledge, skills and positive attitudes. 4. Instruction (Computer Aided Instruction, CAI) Here the computer is a teacher rather than a tool or information resource. An enthusiasts view is that with a computer tutor an individual can work at their own pace, in private, with a one-to-one "staffing" ratio. Computer tutoring is more flexible than using a human tutor: available anywhere, any time. A computer does not get tired of repetitive tasks, yet because it is interactive it can require learner activity in ways a book, for example, cannot. On the other hand, a cynic's view is that a computer cannot provide the flexible, individualised interactions which humans do. Therefore the skills being taught are downgraded by the mechanistic nature of the medium, which demands simple correct answers. It is true that the majority of educational computer programs in use in schools have been drill and practice, and reinforcement programs, because they are easier to produce. There is a range of degrees of sophistication in the tutoring. The simplest programs are merely quizzes allowing self-assessment; no attempt is made to teach but only to test. This may be useful before planning suitable instruction. It may be used after some instruction to record progress. It will have most direct educational impact if it is used by a learner to assess their own progress. Testing is usually a part of the other types of CAI. Drill-and-practice programs are aimed at reinforcing simple skills and recollection; a common example is a typing tutor. Where the skills are being practiced, a simulation may be provided with the tutor aspect monitoring performance. Programmed learning aimsat
teaching, testing and remediating
knowledge. Linear programmed
learning provides sequences of the form: Many CAI programs are of this type. The improvement in the interaction between learner and program is due to more relevant feedback: being told an answer is wrong is little help on its own, nor is being told it is right if the learner guessed. However, it still emphasises a systematic presentation regardless of the initial knowledge of the learner or her preferences for the order of material or its style of presentation. It falls far short of what a human tutor can do. The adaptiveness to the learner is only in respect of the last response made; a better tutor would build up a record (or model) of learner activity in terms of their knowledge, their current performance rate and even their preferred styles of learning. In the absence of this degree of intelligence, the program could at least give the learner some control over the presentation so that they are not trapped in a standard sequence. In Generative CAL the program
generates questions rather than storing
and selecting them. To avoid exactly the
same questions being used each time, a
store of many questions can be selected
from at random. In some cases, in
mathematics, a standard question
structure can allow the exact terms of
the question to be calculated on the
spot when needed. A trivial example
would be In this case the exact values of the (first-number) and the (second-number) would be calculated just before being presented, not stored. The program must be able to do the calculation itself to check the answer from the learner. Typically it is possible to generate questions of a range of difficulty, and adapt the difficulty to the student's success rate. This is also possible with stored questions if they are arranged in several sets of different difficulty. It is important to adapt the level of difficulty of questions or other activities to the performance of the learner - if they are too easy the learner is bored, too hard and the learner is dispirited. This is also called Performance Contoured Programming. Intelligent tutoring systems attempt to apply techniques of artificial intelligence to adapt to individual learners both the subject matter and the method by which it is taught. Such systems are rare and are mostly the product of large research efforts. They contain knowledge of the subject domain, knowledge of the individual learner's understanding, and knowledge of different instructional styles. Crucially, they contain knowledge of common mistakes or misconceptions, so that when a learner makes such a mistake, the program explains what is wrong with the supposed faulty method used by the learner, as remediation. According to Laurillard (1993) "[such] tutoring systems would be the acme of all the educational media, if they existed". A good ITS would be indistinguishable from a human tutor communicating through a keyboard and screen. They are not a practical option currently, but an ideal against which we can measure the quality of the tutoring systems actually available. What all tutoring systems have in common is that, as with human tutors, the computer basically has control of the interactions. This is in contrast with the other categories where the user controlled the computer tool or resource. An effective mixed type of software is a tutoring system which includes simulations with which learners interact directly, and can thus be in control of their learning. Just because tutoring systems usually fall well short of what a human tutor could do in a one-to-one interaction with a learner, this does not mean they cannot be useful. Even the simplest of these types has its uses: skills need to be practiced, learners can benefit from feedback about their level of understanding. The unease about the use of tutoring programs (CAI) is partly based on its association with behaviourist psychology, now largely eclipsed. While behaviourism is often inadequate its conclusions are not necessarily wrong when learning is at a low level. The unease is also partly because the programs are often used where they are not appropriate. It is much easier to produce programmed learning software, which is little more than electronic page turning with multiple choice testing, than to produce software which adapts to individual learners. Still more difficult is to produce software that uses any 'insight' into the learner's conceptions and misconceptions. In a Special Needs situation, the practical advantages of continuous individual attention and the opportunity for reinforcement may often make use of simple CAI worthwhile. On the other hand, a CAI program is in control of the learning process so a learner will not gain the feelings of ownership and empowerment which can make using computers most worthwhile. 5. Computer mediated communication Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) has grown dramatically in the last ten years and includes such activities as electronic mail, text computer conferencing, audio- and video-conferencing. Its characteristic is that it passively mediates communication between identifiable, individual humans (learners and teachers), not between a human learner and a computer. It is being used a tool, not primarily for its information resource or its processing capacity but for the communication abilities of computer networks. Some CMCs has been available for years as isolated services. What is making them widely available now is the integration through common global network, the Internet. For example, there are still isolated bulletin boards which can be contacted directly from a PC with a modem, but there are also many global forums relevant to special needs available on the internet. Module A gives more details of the use of internet services for Special Needs education. We can distinguish these various services in two ways. Firstly, they can be synchronous (with a conversation in real time) or asynchronous (with messages stored for use at a later time. An analogy is a synchronous telephone conversation compared with the use of a telephone answering machine to leave a message. The advantage of asynchronous conferencing is that we don't have to organised people to be ready all at the same time. On a global scale this is essential. The second distinction is in the media being used. Text is still the dominant medium, especially for global messages. Electronic mail allows a message to be transmitted one-to-one person, like a letter, or one-to-many persons like a circular or newsletter, or many-to-many. This latter arrangement does not have a paper equivalent, but is made possible by List Server programs. After joining a circulation List of people interested in a topic, all mail to the list from any of its members is sent to all other members. It is therefore possible to have a sort of many-to-many discussion, although this will be spread out across messages over a period of days. To improve on the discussions possible by list servers, the Internet Usenet service provides discussion groups which anyone can join and whose contents are available to everyone with internet access. The difference is that messages are not sent to each internet user (millions!) but only to each internet site (such as Keele) where a central copy is visible to Keele registered users. Computer Conferencing and bulletin boards are private asynchronous discussions groups. All messages are stored in one computer to which the users must connect by telephone or internet. Other media Video conferencing in real time still requires special equipment but desktop video conferencing (on computer screens) is available on local networks, and in the future on the internet (e.g. SuperJANET between Universities). Audio conferencing can be supplied by BT as an extension of ordinary synchronous telephone conversations, for groups. Voice-mail is asynchronous audio messaging and is growing in popularity in business. Does Computer Mediated Communication have special relevance to Special Needs learners? There are two reasons for this being so. Firstly, it is important for Special Needs professionals to use the Internet are other telecommunications to develop themselves and facilities for their clients. They are a dispersed group of professional who can make use of this technology. Secondly, special Needs learners themselves may benefit from using electronic communications. Text communications, especially, are non-prejudiced media, and learners can take part in personal or group communications without their disabilities being explicit. Special Needs learners may find it harder than others to meet face-to-face a wide range of people or others with similar interests, but millions of Internet users are available by electronic mail. The asynchronous mode of e-mail and conferencing gives users time to compose messages in private before responding. All these benefits mean that CMC can be a liberating medium for Special Needs learners, opening new horizons on discussion and, therefore, learning. Glossary of AcronymsBASIC An introductory programming language from the US in the early 1960's, based on the older language Fortran. Good for simple programs but because it is not well structured it may develop poor programming habits. Some versions like the BBC BASIC are better structured. CAI Computer Assisted Instruction. A general term implying instructional software rather than a tool, where the software is a tutor. CAL Computer Assisted Learning. A general term for educational software. CBT Computer Based Training. A general term for the use of computers in training, generally instructional software, where the software is a tutor. CD-ROM Compact Disk Read Only Memory. A compact disk which is physically the same as an ordinary audio CD but containing digital computer data such as text, images, voice and video. CML Computer Managed Learning. Using computers to record learning or advise on learning resources, but not be used directly by the learner while learning. IMM Interactive multimedia Logo A computer language developed for education by Seymour Papert and others. See his book Mindstorms. TBT technology based training, the current version of CBT but recognising other technology like communications References and sources: selecting and evaluation softwareAbbott, C 1991. Word processing for all. British Journal of Special Education, 18 (1) p. 8 Barker, P. 1987 Authoring languages Croom Helm. Bostock S.J. and Seifert R.V. 1985 Microomputers in Adult Education Collins, R. 1989 Computers and special education for adults. pp.167-176 in The Applied Psychologist, ed. J Hartley. Milton Keynes, Open University. Drake, A 1989 Creating music with micros. 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