Educational Software

Buying educational software, especially for your first child when you have little or no experience, can be an overwhelming task. Where do you turn for unbiased reviews? The software company's own website will "review" the program in glowing terms, of course, and that's not much help.

One place to turn is your local library. Most libraries now carry some educational software for patrons to check out. Especially if your library has a children's librarian, that person is likely very informed about what programs have worked and which haven't.

Call or visit your library, talk to the librarian, and consider checking out one or two titles. Let your child try the program while you're there to help. Most kids will need some adult assistance or supervision while using new software.

If you've been watching television, you may find recommendations on the station's website. For instance, The Discovery Channel devotes an entire site (http://school.discovery.com/parents/reviewcorner/software/) to reviews of educational software. They even have a link to tell you how they evaluate the software, so you can see if their criteria matches what you're looking for.

There are, of course, many websites devoted to reviewing educational software. The best have the software organized around age or subject matter, because one of those will be the first criteria for most parents. They want software appropriate for the age of their child, and in a certain subject area.

The Learning Village is a Toronto-based independent software reviewing and advising site. They list a five-person editorial team, all of whom specialize in the educational arena. There is also a software guide, though the selection is primarily aimed at elementary and middle-school learners. However, the software descriptions are excellent and very thorough.

The homeschooling community is fairly active in software reviews, as well. Websites like http://www.homeschoolcentral.com/study/software.htm offer reviews of various programs by people who have used them. This particular site has links for pre-school, high school & beyond, special needs, and free study resources.

There are also some good independent review websites on the internet, like http://www.educational-software-directory.net/reviews.html. At this site and others like it, you'll find a broader range of software reviewed, and also links to other software review sites.

While sites like these are very comprehensive, they can be a bit overwhelming. However, if a Search box is offered, it might make your hunt a little easier.

One of the largest review sites is C-Net.com. On this site you can find reviews and also download much of the software, if the review sounds great. The tabs along the top of the page are exceptionally handy for moving around the site, and they appear on all pages.

C-Net claims to be unbiased, but do be aware that they accept advertising, typically from computer-related companies. Also, they review much more than educational software, so you may have to click down a few layers to get to what you're looking for.

And remember, educational software may come in commercial versions, educational versions, shareware, and freeware. Many shareware and freeware programs were developed by people with outstanding educational credentials.

Look for thorough, unbiased reviews of educational software and you should be able to spend your money confidently, knowing that what you're buying will suit your needs.