Software Evaluation #3

Software Evaluation # 3
Tell Me More


Title of Software: Tell Me More

Producer: Aurolag Inc

Target students (e.g., age or grade-level of students): middle school and up

Proficiency level (e.g., beginning, intermediate, advanced): from absolute beginner to advanced + and business

Description:
Tell Me More is a comprehensive and interactive program for learners of English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Dutch, Arabic, Chinese, and Japanese. The program targets a variety of audiences in the sphere of education, government, corporate world and individual students. The program is available in the following formats: CD-Rom, Network Lab, and Online.
The software uses two lesson modes: Free-to-Rome Mode and Guided Mode. The Free-to-Move Mode enables the learners to select activities and workshops of their choice and therefore create individual lessons. The Guided Mode allows personalized lessons based on specific objectives and time constraints set by the learner.
To program is built around the following skills: reading, writing, listening, speaking, vocabulary, grammar, and culture.
The activities are built around six workshops: Lesson, Cultural, Grammar, Vocabulary, Oral, and Written. All together there are 37 types of activities distributed within these six workshops.

Language skills targeted: skills reading, writing, listening, speaking, vocabulary, grammar, and culture.

Evaluation:
The program has some incredible properties to promote successful language learning. One of the outstanding characteristics of the program is that it offers a wide range of activities for students to choose from. The activities are more engaging and less mechanic than in other language programs.
In addition, it is interactive and gives immediate feedback in form of scoring, correction, and providing the correct forms. The program uses speech recognition technology to analyze pronunciation and therefore recognize pronunciation errors.
Another strength of the program is that the activities are structured based on performance. Since the learner’s performance is constantly evaluated throughout the learning process, the subsequent activities are based on the results of the previous activities.
The software includes grammar explanations with examples for some of the activities. Also, the software has a built-in classroom administrative system and a student assessment area. I think this is a great tool for teachers or language instructors to keep track on classroom management and student development.


Some of the weaknesses of the program that I found it a little bit difficult to navigate between or across the different activities. In addition, the writers of the program refer to it as a program using the immersion method. I cannot see how a language software can be used as an immersion program or method without the learner having actual or direct interaction with other speakers of that language and the culture in which the foreign language is practiced. Obviously something that a software program is unable to offer.

As a language software, the program is very interactive providing a lot of opportunities for language production. For that reason, and because there is lot of communication involved during the activities, I believe that Tell Me More represents the Communicative Language Teaching method.
All in all I believe this language program is probably the best I have seen so far. As long as we are aware of its strengths and weaknesses, it is an excellent program to enhance language learning both for the individual learner, classroom and other group settings.