David Marshall - Instructional Software I Have Designed

David Marshall - Instructional Software I have designed

In the following pages I provide screenshots from educational software that I have built at UMASS-Amherst. All of this software has been used in classrooms.

AnimalWatch is a 4th and 5th grade math tutor that was built specifically to help encourage girls to learn math. Toward this end the software engages students in helping endangered species such as whales and panda bears survive. While learning about the plight of these animals, students solve math word problems. The system keeps track of the student’s math skills and offers problems of appropriate difficulty. It can also help a struggling student solve problems when they get stuck. The system was used in elementary schools in Hadley, Deerfield and Springfield.

Rashi is an inquiry-based learning environment that helps students learn about a subject by working on a case. The software was designed to allow instructors from any field to create a case. Currently we have modules in Epidemiology, Biology, Geology, Art History, and Forestry. I have worked with professors from many colleges (URI, UMASS, Hampshire College, Antioche New England) in building these modules. The system has a coach that helps students to build arguments, reason about texts, explore virtual worlds, and gather data. The biology modules have been used extensively by hundreds of students.

Wayang Outpost is a web-based tutoring system that helps students prepare for high-stakes tests like the SAT or MCAS. The tutor has a variety of activities including: assessing spatial abilities, assessing math fact retrieval ability, and solving geometry problems. The tutor uses a variety of strategies to select appropriate content for the student to work on and can provide highly detailed (animated with voice-over) hints about how to solve problems. The tutor has been used in high schools in Massachusetts and California and has been seen to improve students’ geometry skills, in some cases, by roughly 25%.

Animal Watch: 4th and 5th grade math tutoring and animal protection software

More info: http://ccbit.cs.umass.edu/ckcold/researchpages/animalwatch.html

Rashi: Inquiry Learning software being used in Art History to understand the Giorgione’s Tempest