Provides the rationale and purpose underlying an evaluation of criteria form appropriate for inquiry-based science software or interactive multimedia programs. A copy of the form is included. (JJK)

This collection of reprints from The Computing Teacher contains 11 articles on the selection, evaluation, and organization of software published between August 1983 and March 1986, as well as more than 20 reviews of educational software packages published between December 1982 and June 1986. The articles are: (1) "The New Wave of Educational…

Discusses evaluation criteria for selecting courseware that teaches basic concepts appropriate for preschool and early elementary students. Reviews of the software manual, the courseware itself, and reviews by students are suggested. Other areas of concern that are addressed include instructional quality, production quality, flexibility, and cost.…

This digest presents a reprint of an article which addresses the issue of the rights of computer software owners to duplicate materials. A conservative approach to software copyright is taken which looks to how the law will likely be interpreted, rather than waiting for the definitive decision by a court. Three major issues involved with software…

Lists 43 current software review sources grouped by type, i.e., review journals and reports, educational computing periodicals, education periodicals, educational computing newsletters, and other information sources. Information on average number of reviews, average review length, review type, reviewer qualifications, and journal cost is provided…

Outlines criteria for selecting microcomputer-based telecommunications software for educational settings. Terminal software, which provides interaction between a modem and remote terminals, is distinguished from software that allows an electronic bulletin board system to be developed, and three software packages of each type are reviewed. (LRW)

Building on the 1983 policy statement developed by the International Council for Computers in Education (ICCE), this statement recommends the adoption of a school district copyright policy, adoption of the suggested software use guidelines, and use of the copyright page of software documentation to ascertain user's rights, obligations, and licence…

Describes four game programs--Silly Sentence, Spell-It, Scrambled Word, and Guess the Word--designed to introduce elementary school students with no prior programing experience to key concepts of programing with BASIC. Several immediate learning outcomes that became evident while observing students at work with the programs are also discussed.…

Presents a programing subroutine which will create a graphical plot that occupies any number of columns specified by user and will run with versions of BASIC programming language. Illustrations of the subroutine's ability to operate successfully for three possibilities (negative values, positive values, and both positive and negative values) are…

Reprinted from "The Computing Teacher," this document contains software reviews for 23 computer programs that educators could use in the classroom or for administrative purposes. Each review describes the program by listing the program title, subject, producer, grade level (if applicable), hardware required, cost, and reviewer's name and…

Describes an opinion survey distributed to software publishers and software preview centers in which participants ranked suggested criteria for identifying or certifying preview centers, development of center policies and procedures, and the role of schools in the process. A revised survey is included to which readers are encouraged to respond.…

Presents several examples of algebraic word problems and demonstrates how spreadsheets are used to solve the problems. Spreadsheet templates are included to illustrate how each problem is solved. (MBR)

Describes how a microcomputer with a word processing program can be used efficiently to generate cloze tests, offering teachers an effective method of producing individualized materials for reading and language arts instruction. Examples of grammar worksheets focusing on proper nouns and adjectives, adjectives and adverbs, and plural words are…

Describes several situations in which elementary and secondary school students successfully use adult level software in learning situations. Suggestions on how to teach students to use adult level software are presented and the advantages of such use are discussed. (MBR)

Describes a survey of members of the Educational Software Evaluation Consortium that resulted in a ranked list of 22 criteria used in preparing their annual software preview guide. Noting that content and pedagogical concerns received the highest rankings, the report offers five recommendations for future software development, evaluation, and…