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Criteria for Selecting Language Software By Roy Sprenger Chargé du Multimédia at the University of Technology in Troyes, France and Language Consultant Email: Roy.Sprenger@univ-troyes.fr [Editor's Note: Roy Sprenger has kindly given permission for this article to be published on Volterre-Fr] The dilemma of choice : Choosing good quality language software is NOT easy. It takes time to view all the software on the market, and in general we assess software from both personal and professional viewpoints : I like the colours or You can move easily from one screen to another or It's not very interactive - we might say to ourselves. We may try as teachers to imagine we are students, and to react by projecting ourselves when viewing computer or multimedia material. I would like to propose a preliminary list of selection criteria which will allow you to get started in sensible fashion. I say « preliminary » because you will obviously add your own to my list according to your centre's specific needs. COMPATIBILITY Check immediately if the CALL material you are interested in is compatible with the hardware (computers) you have in your centre (or perhaps at home). It's either Macintosh or PC (i.e. IBM compatible). A lot of CALL programmes exist these days in both versions. Be ready to ask ! You will then need to ask slightly more technical details as to whether or not the programme runs under DOS or Windows... and which version of Windows (3.1 or 95). You will also need information about the hard disk space required on your computer to load the programme (particularly in the case of a CD ROM) as well as the RAM space required to run the programme efficiently. This is probably the major hurdle in your list of criteria and will avoid possible disappointment in your centre when you bring back that super programme from that Language Fair to find it is totally incompatible with your centre's machines ! EASE OF INSTALLATION Check that the programme is dead easy to set up and does not require a Master's in Computer Science to get it running ! You can check this on the cover of the CD ROM, or ask your distributor to show you the instructions. Read them for yourself, and see if you really understand them (before buying !). SITE LICENCE / NETWORKING If you intend using the CALL material on several computers in your centre, enquire about the technical specifications of the programme, and your legal right to make several copies. Some CD ROMs cannot be set up in a network configuration, others can. It's all technical, but you need to know beforehand. (By the way, the price will not be the same !) AVAILABILITY Obviously, if the product is on sale in front of you, there is nothing to worry about. But many CALL programmes these days come from the UK or the USA, and may need to be shipped in. Enquire. COST At some stage of the process, you will want to know the cost of the product, either on a unit basis, or for several authorised copies or for networking. Prices are often on a sliding scale, so they are worth a second look. You will notice that cost is not necessarily listed as the first criteria. Value for money is vital in language software. Some very reasonably priced programmes are extremely elaborate and very well designed, while some very expensive and sophisticated CD ROMs run out of interest after an hour or so. GENERAL PRESENTATION Esthetics do have their place when selecting software that language learners (adults, teenagers, children ?) are really going to use on a regular basis. There must be an attraction or interest maintained when using the material, so check that the general presentation is modern, colourful, enticing, instructive, clear, logical and basically sensible. This means a balanced use of colours and sound, clear screen layouts, buttons which are easy to find, Help pages to hand, easy-to-run exercises, and so on. CONVIVIALITY This follows on from the previous point and implies that the programme is user-friendly. A rather sterile, classical, academic, black-and-white screen with the old Try again, Try again, Try again instructions will hardly attract a learner these days. SCENARIO This follows on from the previous points , but needs more analysis. As a teacher, you will realize that a learner can really improve his knowledge of a language or any subject if the content is presented in a logical sequence. In a computer programme, this means that the pages or screeens should follow on logically from each other, making the knowledge-building process and the practice sessions fit together to give a sound, overall, pedagogical approach. The word scenario comes to us from the theatre and cinema. It implies that the action of the story line develops and blends to the general satisfaction of the audience. Isn't that what we try to do in our teaching ? ERGONOMY This word rhymes with fluidity and ease of access. The learner should be able to move smoothly from one part of the lesson or exercise or tutorial in the software to another without having to make extra efforts to find this button or that Help page, or where to click to get that video extract moving, and so on. Saving energy is the keyword, so that concentration is focused on the content and the learning process. To test this, you need to try out certain parts of the programme, fully. This takes a little more time than just rushing through a unit chosen by a salesman or distributor. You need to get a feel for the software. After all , when you buy a car, you do take it out on the road for a drive, don't you ? FEEDBACK I refer to feedback here for both the teacher and the student. The teacher would like to check at some stage or other if the learner is in fact using the programme, the number of units he has convered, the time he has spent on them, and his results, his progress. The student might like to know similar aspects. This means looking for a measuring or recording device of some kind in the CALL material. This may or may not exist, ,but it well worth checking out, as it brings substance to the content and allows both teachers and students to have a real learning TOOL at their finger tips ! ADAPTABILITY A single purchase should be considered as a part of a whole, that is of a software library, whether your centre has a Mediatheque or not. Variety should be the spice of your software so that you have a full array of software material for each language level, exercisers, tutorials, tests, perhaps authoring programmes, etc. So, think of completing and extending the existing range of software, or if you are just at the outset, think ahead. Think also of your teachers and students and what they can possibly handle at the moment. Does the software imply special treaining ? And how long does this training last ? Is the training included in the price ? Can you do the training yourself ? CONCLUSION The criteria may seem many in number, but we are still at the dawn of a new era (at least for many of us, both teachers and learners) and the software, particularly multimedia software, that we intend to purchase is expected to last a few years. Also, networking is more expensive, so it needs more thought. On the whole, it is wise to shop around, and learn as much as possible about the software, its content and its appeal. It is hoped that the above criteria will assist you in making a wise selection before that crucial moment when you load the software into the computer. Roy SPRENGER Language Consultant

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