Educational Leadership and Planning for Technology Chapter 10 – Software Selection and Evaluation Dr. Anthony G. Picciano

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved PowerPoint Outline Software Evaluation Criteria Administrative Software Evaluation Factors Instructional Software Evaluation Factors Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Software Evaluation Criteria Like hardware choices, consider how long you may be using the same software. Software decision Efficiency Ease of use Documentation Hardware requirements Vendor Cost Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Software Evaluation Criteria 1. Efficiency—how well are the programs written? 2. Ease of use—how easy is the software to use? 3. Documentation—what is the quality and quantity of the documentation? 4. Hardware requirements—what hardware is needed to run the software? 5. Vendor—what is the reputation of the developer in terms of support, maintenance, and industry position? 6. Cost—how much does it cost? Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Administrative Software Evaluation Factors Decide how well the software meets the specific needs of the application through the various features provided. These features can be considered regardless of whether the specific software product is stand-alone or part of an integrated package such as Microsoft Office. Figures 10–2, 10–3, and 10–4 (pages 228-9) list important evaluation features for the three most popular applications: word processing, electronic spreadsheets, and databases. Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Administrative Software Evaluation Factors Features of Word Processing Software Number and types of fonts Number of type styles (boldface, underline, shadow) Footnoting, wordwrap, menu-driven Lengthwise printing Print preview Graphics integration ASCII (and other) file conversion Multiple document processing Multiple column controls Spell-check features Thesaurus Document security Grammar checker   Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Administrative Software Evaluation Factors Features of Electronic Spreadsheet Software Number of rows and columns Editing features Copy features Lengthwise printing Multiple spreadsheet processing Menu-driven Spreadsheet merging Spreadsheet security Graphics integration Database integration Types and dimensions of charts Types of statistical functions supported   Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Administrative Software Evaluation Factors Features of Database Software Database structure (such as relational or flat file) File security Report-generator program features Statistical reporting features Query language capabilities Database restructuring Sort/merge Speed Options(ascending, descending, levels) Data-sharing features Conversion of other database files File merge capabilities (electronic spreadsheet, word processing, address labels)   Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Instructional Software Evaluation Factors Different instructional applications will have different needs and will require specific software features to meet these needs. The U.S. Congress’ Office of Technology Assessment (1988), in a national survey, identified more than 200 factors that could be used in evaluating instructional software. Figure 10-5 in the textbook (pages 231-3) provides a sample instructional software evaluation form for a school district. Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Instructional Software Evaluation Factors Evaluation Form (Page 1 of 2) Title:___________________________________________________________ Company/Vendor:________________________________________________ Subject matter:________________________________________________ Grade level:___________________________________________________ Cost:__________________________________________________________ (Attach additional supporting information if necessary)   Type: Tutor: Simulation_____ Tutorial_____ Drill/practice_____ Game_____ Tool: Word processing_____ Spreadsheet____ Database____ Other____ Tutee: Specify language/title_____________________________________ Other/Hybrid:________________________________________________________ Computer system:___________________________________________________________ Special hardware requirements:_____________________________________________ Internet-based/enhanced:___________________________________________________ Objectives:     Program description: Efficiency: Documentation: Ease of Use: Evaluation Grade (0 = lowest; 9 = highest) General characteristics Instructional quality Efficiency: ____ Content: ____ Documentation: ____ Pedagogical features: ____ Ease of use: ____ Motivational: ____ Company/vendor: ____ Creativity: ____ Feedback: ____ Evaluation and record keeping: ____ Audio/visuals/graphics: ____ Flexibility: ____ Overall rating: ____ Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved Instructional Software Evaluation Factors Evaluation Form (Page 2 of 2) Instructional quality (Comments)   Content: Pedagogical features: Motivational: Creativity: Feedback: Evaluation and record keeping: Audio/visuals/graphics: Flexibility: Reviewer's name:______________________________________ Date:_________________ Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved

Questions and Comments Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved