2. Educational Software
• Evaluating software
• Making a choice
• Starting out to be successful
• Getting results
• What’s new?
• What’s coming?
• Questions & Discussion
• Door Prizes
3. Evaluating software
• Criteria
• Who are the customers?
• Results?
• What else do we need or want?
• Determine
• Priorities (among results, customers, needs/wants)
• Which program/s may fit
• Pilot
• Road test
• Scientific
4. Software pilots
• General
• Cost to institution varies-- $0 to ?
• No obligation to purchase
• Pilot agreement between institution & publisher (Aztec)
5. Pilot agreement
• Publisher agrees to
• Furnish software for 1-12 months
• Train instructors & administrators
• Provide support
• Institution agrees to
• Make software a regular part of the curriculum for a group of
students
• Identify measures of success
• Send instructors to training
• Consider purchasing the software if the pilot is successful
6. Software pilots
• Road test
• Take it out for a spin
• Feedback from instructors
• Feedback from students
7. Software pilots
• Scientific
• Pilot group & control group
• Equal numbers
• Similar demographics
• Similar beginning Educational Functioning Levels
• Pre & posttests (standard assessments)
• GEDs
• Feedback from instructors & students
9. Pilots- examples
• Maximum Security Prison
• Road test– no control group
• TABE every 4-5 weeks
• Little direction to students or tutors- ―open lab‖
• What we learned:
• Importance of following PRETEST>LEARNING>POSTEST path in
Aztec- students who took posttests made twice the gains of
those who did not
• For some students, outside factors significantly affected TABE
scores (e.g., prison policies, parole hearings, lockdowns)
10. Pilots- examples
• Job Corps Center
• Started as scientific- pilot group & control group
• Planned for 90 days with TABE pre & posttests
• Customer pulled the plug after 30 days & bought software
for 5 Job Corps
• What we learned:
• Educators can be impatient!
• Getting good data is extra work & not the primary mission
• Customer’s ethical dilemma-- if a tool is perceived as effective,
shouldn’t we make it available to all?
11. Pilots- examples
• Community College
• Scientific
• Pilot group & control group of equal number
• Similar demographics- age, gender, socioeconomic
• Similar Educational Functioning Levels (Range: ABE II-ASE II,
Majority in ABE III & ABE IV)
• What we learned:
• 90-120 days is a realistic time frame for a single cohort of students
• Importance of up front administration support
• Instructors don’t have to be experienced with software
• Instructors do need to want to try something new & be willing to
follow through
• Student contract- setting expectations- was a good idea
12. COMPARISON OF AZTEC SOFTWARE VS. CONTROL GROUP
STUDENTS’ EDUCATIONAL RESULTS FALL 2011 (11 AUG-11 DEC)
PILOT AT LANIER TECH JACKSON COUNTY (GA) LEARNING CENTER
Aztec Control
Number of Students1 19 19
Number of Students 10 4
Completing EFLs
Students with Multiple EFL 2 1
Completions (no GED)
GED 7 2
GED in Process 7 5
Dropped Out 3 4
1.Comparable numbers at each beginning EFL, comparable demographics
14. Educational software-making a choice
• Need/gaps
• Expected results
• Reporting
• Ease of use
• Management
• Dependability
• Cost
• Single vs. multiple user groups
15. Educational software- starting out to
be successful
• Train
• Hands-on instructors in labs
• Instructors who refer students
• Distance instructors & coordinators
• Administrators
• Set expectations for how software will be used
• By instructors
• By students (contract?)
17. What’s new?
• New from Aztec:
• Distance Learning Reporting
• College Transition Series
18. Chart A1.1. Percentage of population that has attained tertiary education , by age group (2009)
%
70
55-64 year-olds 25-34 year-olds
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Luxembourg
Turkey
Germany
Italy
Hungary
Norway
Israel
France
Greece
Korea
Mexico
Japan
Slovenia
Ireland
Spain
Iceland
Canada
Denmark
Finland
Poland
Chile
Austria
Portugal
Estonia
Brazil
G20 average
Australia
Netherlands
Sweden
OECD average
New Zealand
Russian Federation1
United States
Belgium
United Kingdom
Switzerland
Slovak Republic
Czech Republic
1. Year of reference 2002.
Countries are ranked in descending order of the percentage of the 25-34 year-olds who have attained tertiary education.
Source: OECD. Table A1.3a. See Annex 3 for notes (www.oecd.org/edu/eag2011).
Statlink
19. North Carolina
• 37.65% of the population have at least a 2 year
degree
• National average: 38.3%
• NC rank: 27th
• Percentage of jobs requiring a college credential by
2018: 59%
Lumina Foundation, from 2010 census data, www.luminafoundation.org
20. What’s coming?
• GED 2014 – advance info published February 2012
• A for-profit GED Testing Service is stirring up the
adult education publishing world
• Aztec’s GED 2014 Series (work has begun; name to
be determined)
• Changes in communication>>changes in education
• Student Intervention Platform
21. What’s wrong with this paragraph?
• “…Even with all of this evidence against the usefulness of a GED, it
continues to grow. As shown in the chart below, nearly 500,000 high
school dropouts passed the GED test in 2008. Those individuals
accounted for 12 percent of all high school credentials issued that
year. At the same time, the exam’s difficulty continues to decrease.
When the GED exam was introduced in 1942, it was estimated that 80
percent of graduation-bound high school seniors could pass the test
on their first try. Currently, however, it is estimated that only 60
percent of graduation-bound high school seniors are able to pass the
test on their first try.”
•
• Alliance for Excellent Education
• http://www.all4ed.org/publication_material/straight_as/06282010
22. GED 2014
• What will be the same & what will be different?
• Same: nouns & verbs will still agree, & the
denominator will still be on the bottom.
• Different: cost
DATE: May 11, 2012
RE: Pricing for the New GED Test (2014)
GED Testing Service is pleased to announce that the cost to the jurisdictions* for the new
2014 GED® test on computer will remain at US$120. This pricing will remain in effect
through the end of 2014.
• Different: computer, keyboard essay, new
question/answer interactions (drag & drop, short
answer, fill in the blank, cloze items, etc)
23. Aztec’s GED 2014 Series
• Aztec’s content will mirror testing—
• 4 practice tests, balance of informational texts &
literature, balance of quantitative & algebraic
problem solving
• Range of complexity, abstractions, critical
thinking, recall
• Instruction focusing on Common Core State
Standards & similar state career & college readiness
standards
• Calculator & formula pages will be available
24. Aztec’s GED 2014 Series
• Aztec’s content will mirror testing (cont.)
• Practice essays will be required in Literacy & Social
Studies
• Reading & writing will be measured in Social Studies
• Reading will be measured in Science
• Texts at the college & career readiness level will be
included
• Special attention to standards that include the most
often missed questions on the 2002 GED
25. Aztec’s GED 2014 Series
• Aztec’s presentation of test items will use the same
interactions required in the GED to ensure mastery
of the technology—
• Drag & drop, hot spot, cloze items, short answer, fill in the
blank, multiple choice, multiple selection
• Essay prompts with word processor, extended responses
• Computer literacy module
• New content
• New practice tests & question banks
• New graphics, animation, video
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d-
Ze7y7FG4&feature=youtu.be
26. Changes in communication >>
changes in education
• Portable – Digital – Immediate
• Apps – Podcasts – Blogs – Social media – Text messages –
Wikis – You Tube
28. Student Intervention Platform
• Teens are sending 3,417 text messages per month.
(Neilson)
• There are more text messages per phone
(357/month) than phone calls (204/month.)
• Student Intervention Platform= instant notification
to students, faculty, and support services via text.
• What kinds of information?
• Student information
• Time based
• Event based
29. Student Intervention Platform
John Coplin: If you Early intervention>
would like help with
algebra…
Retention
Press
1) For a tutor
2) For math lab
hours & location
GOOD MORNING—I’M JOHN COPLIN WITH AZTEC SOFTWARE. IF YOU CAME TO THIS SESSION HOPING FOR AN HOUR LONG AZTEC COMMERCIAL, I HOPE YOU WON’T BE DISAPPOINTED IF I TALK ABOUT A FEW OTHER THINGS.I WILL TALK ABOUT AZTEC A LITTLE BIT, OF COURSE, & IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE PROGRAM, I’LL BE MOST HAPPY TO VISIT YOU OR DO A WEBEX DEMONSTRATION.I’M NOT AN EDUCATOR-- I CONSIDER MYSELF A TRAINER. (ALTHOUGH AFTER AN EDUCATOR TELLS ME ABOUT HER DAY FOR 34 YEARS, I FEEL LIKE I DESERVE AN HONORARY DEGREE.) WHAT I’D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT TODAY IS WHAT WE’VE SEEN IN MORE THAN A DOZEN YEARS OF TRAINING & WORKING WITH ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN COMMUNITY COLLEGES, PRISONS.
WHAT’S PUPPY DOG MARKETING? RAISE YOUR HAND IF YOU’VE EVER SOLD A PUPPY– WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU SAY, “ TAKE THE PUPPY HOME & IF YOUR CHILDREN DON’T LIKE IT, YOU CAN BRING IT BACK”?HAVE YOU SEEN THE SIGN IN A STORE THAT SAYS “ALL CHILDREN UNDER 10 GET 2 CUPS OF COFFEE & A FREE PUPPY”?
SHOW DL REPORT- INPUT FROM NCCCS INCLUDING AUDITOR & CC DL COORDINATORShttp://testing.aztec.com/aztecSHOW COLLEGE PREP, REDUCING ALGEBRAIC FRACTIONS, screens 1-6http://cp.azteclearning.com 5,5,55555COLLEGE TRANSITION- WHILE STATES ARGUE ABOUT WHY THEY SHOULD HAVE TO TEACH REMEDIAL COURSES & WHO SHOULD TEACH DEVT ED, THE NEED IS NOT SHRINKING** CHART?
OECD= Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development. 34 member countries.
IMPORTANCE OF MASTERING FOUNDATION COMPETENCIES, NOT JUST GED PREP IF GED STUDENTS ARE TO STICK IT OUT IN COLLEGE
DOES THE WRITER NEED TO STUDY MATH OR CRITICAL THINKING? MAYBE THIS IS A GOOD PROBLEM FOR THE NEW TEST!
DESPITE SOME FOLKS ARGUMENTS AGAINST THE GED, & MOST OF US WOULD AGREE IT’S NOT AN END IN ITSELF, THE GED IS THE CREDENTIAL WE HAVE, & WE HAVE TO GET READY FOR IT.IT’S GOING TO COST MORE, SO IT MAKES SENSE TO CONFIRM A STUDENT’S READINESS BEFORE HE OR SHE TAKES THE TESTS.
JENNIFER, MY WIFE & PARTNER, IS WORKING ON GED 2014 CONTENT. SHE’S HIRED SOME SMART GRAD STUDENTS IN NC STATE’S INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN PROGRAM. MOST OF THEM WERE TEACHERS BEFORE COMING BACK TO STATE. SHE GAVE THEM A BUDGET TO STUDY AZTEC & SEE HOW IT ENGAGED THE LEARNER– SOMETIMES A BIT PLAYFUL & TOLD THEM TO GET CREATIVE, SOCIAL STUDIES INTRO:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d-Ze7y7FG4&feature=youtu.be
IMPORTANCE OF BEING ABLE TO TALK TO & HEAR FROM STUDENTS AS SOON AS THEY’RE HAVING TROUBLE
