Website of Amy Sumislaski
Website Title: Education Place Producer of the Website: Houghton Mifflin Company Internet Address: http://www.eduplace.com/kids/index.jsp Grade Level(s): K-8 Subject Area(s): Reading/Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, and Spelling Reviewed by: Amy Sumislaski WEBSITE DESCRIPTION: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company produced a very user-friendly website called, Education Place. Houghton Mifflin is one of the leading educational publishers in the United States. It focuses on young readers as well as adults through textbooks, instructional technology, assessments, and more. Their goal is to help educators tailor learning to individual styles and preferences to enable success for all students. Though there are many aspects to this site, this specific evaluation is based solely on the student section of the website. On the student homepage, it offers five different subjects including: Reading/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and Spelling. In each of the subjects, two or three textbooks are provided that coincide with the textbooks published by Houghton Mifflin. Students have the option to select their appropriate grade and level within each subject. The site index and home link are located on the bottom of every page to assist students if one becomes lost. There are multiple forms of content offered in this site including: worksheets, games, the educational backgrounds of various authors of books, etc. Teachers can take educational information from this site and apply it towards their curriculum. The website includes very bright and entertaining objects to create a kid-friendly atmosphere. Neat supplements to the site are the various types of entertainment. You are never given a blank page; there is always something to do. As I navigated through the different subjects, no activity was significantly repeated giving students a broader range of entertainment. Activities ranged from: homophones in fourth grade The activities all had their own style and focus, allowing the website to include information that was directed toward the appropriate grade levels. ACCURACY OF CONTENT: This website is complete and shows no sign of construction or updates. With its easy to use access, this website is user friendly to all. Though at times, the content and graphics portray a younger vibe, the website includes information for students up to eighth grade. With that said, I find a slight bias in the site. If the site is going to offer information for grades kindergarten to sixth, it must represent all grade preferences and attract students. I also feel that the website should pay more attention to the upper grades by providing age appealing graphics and animation so that it can keep them engaged. Students want to use a site that is age appropriate; the content for each grade presents realistic information but the graphics and animation could be slightly changed to meet all students’ interests. TECHNICAL QUALITY: Students can for the most part navigate through the site easily. There are times though, especially for the younger students, when the teachers should guide the students to the correct location on the site. This would help students stay on task and use the website appropriately. I personally would suggest the website for all age levels though adult supervision would benefit the students and allow them to explore what the website has to offer. The site presents a lot of valuable information and one can easily get confused if you are unfamiliar with the site. USE OF TECHNOLOGY: The site is very straightforward and clear with what the students are to complete in each subject. After you choose a subject and grade level, it will bring you to a screen that provides multiple activities. This is where students can view the various units, lessons, and or activities that correspond with the textbooks. Since each subject has its own list of activities, students are encouraged to stay focused and on task. Teachers can manage their classroom without difficulty by recognizing if their students are on the correct activity. A benefit to using technology and particularly this site in your classroom is the ability to provide multiple forms of learning. Under most of the activities, there is an option to have the directions and sentences read aloud to the students. For students who struggle with reading, this could definitely boost their confidence and allow them to complete the activity. It helps teachers differentiate in their classrooms as well as supplying the students’ with their needs. ROLE OF STUDENTS: The site is limited in what it offers by including only some of the units and chapters corresponding to the textbooks. Every activity that is displayed on the website, can be taught through a lesson to the class and then complete the activity online as an assignment. For the younger students the website is not a helpful resource unless supervision is allotted. However, in the upper elementary grades, teachers could assign in small groups, to read about the lesson and then discuss or teach the class what they have learned. I feel that the site has a lot to offer and if the teacher takes the time to learn the material, students will be engaged with the site. As long as the teacher shows interest, the students are more apt to imitate. ROLE OF TEACHER: Though the site is colorful and provides graphics and sound encouraging student use, it is more beneficial for teachers than for the students to access information. In each textbook that the site offers for additional information, there are numerous routes to take and access data. If I were to use this site with my students, I would definitely spend time researching and navigating the site prior to allowing my students to freely access the site. I would also want to have an objective that follows the activity. If teachers search on the site and get comfortable with what the site has to offer, they will have no problem integrating this site into their curriculum. CLASSROOM USAGE: Though this evaluation focuses solely on the student portion of the website, I would like to discuss under the educators section, an area titled, Classroom Resources For Teachers. The links that are provided: Activity Search, Bilingual Resources, Current Events, Graphic Organizers, Link Library, Monthly Themes, Outline Maps, Shape-Book Patterns, Spelling Lists, and Using the Web. Most are identified through their title but also offer tremendous amounts of information. These are very helpful for teachers to use in their classrooms. I found the graphic organizers to be very helpful printouts including multiple strategies of brainstorming and worksheets that can enhance students’ performances. The various graphic organizers include multiple strategies of brainstorming and worksheets that can enhance student’s performances. Depending on what you are teaching the students, you could navigate the site to see how it could fit into the curriculum. For example: under spelling, there is an activity for fourth graders in Unit 5, which works with homophones. You could begin teaching the lesson on the board and then direct the students to complete the activity online. Allowing students to use technology is extremely important and beneficial for them. Even if you are only able to use the site one or two times, the site offers insight towards tactic learning. CRITICAL SUMMARY: I loved the website. In my opinion, if time is allotted, one could find multiple ways of integrating this site into their curriculums. From the graphic organizers, to Houghton Mifflin’s textbooks, Education Place is a site that offers a lot of information. Though it appears to be completely student- friendly, it pertains to teachers and parents just as much if not more. Teachers and parents can really benefit from the classroom resource links that were mentioned in the Classroom Usage Section of the review. OVERALL RATING (ON A SCALE OF 1 TO 10) 7 out of 10 EXPLANATION OF RATING: Rating it a seven out of ten is based upon the fact that the website offers beneficial information to various age groups and collectively explores a wide range of content. However I would have liked to have seen more student interaction. Though I personally have not used a Houghton Mifflin textbook I feel as though having the website as well as the textbook, will encourage classroom learning and provide an additional form of education.
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©Amy Sumislaski | 12/08/09