to evaluate it for you. They can then give you feedback on their experience
of using it.
5 Get familiar with the package, before giving it to your learners. There is
a learning curve to be ascended with most computer-based packages, and it
is best if you go up this ahead of your learners. They will need help on how
to make best use of the package, as well as on what they are supposed to be
learning from it. Find out what it feels like to use the package. By far the
best way to do this is to work through the package yourself. Find out what
learners will do as they use the package, and check whether the tasks and
activities are really relevant to your learners, and pitched at an appropriate
level for them.
6 Check the intended learning outcomes of the computer-based package.
The best packages state the intended learning outcomes clearly within the
first few screens of information. Alternatively, the intended outcomes may be
spelled out in supporting documentation, which comes with the package
itself. Check that they are appropriate and that the package actually matches
them.
7 Think about access to equipment and software. It can be prohibitively
expensive to give or loan each learner both the software and the hardware
needed. However, if the package is an important part of their overall
programme, ways need to be found to maximize their opportunity to work
with it. Some packages come with licence arrangements to use the package
with a given number of learners, either allowing multiple copies to be made,
or the package to be used over a network. Ensure that the software is
protected in order to prevent unauthorized copying, or unlicensed use on
more than one machine.
8 Check that learners will get adequate feedback on their work with the
package. One of the main strengths of computer-based learning packages is
that learners can be given instant feedback every time they select an option
in a multiple-choice question, or key in a word or phrase, and so on. The
feedback should be much more than just the correct answer to the question or
task. Learners who get it wrong need to find out from the programme why
their answer or response was wrong, and exactly what was wrong about it.
9 Check how long activities and pathways within the package should
take. The time spent by learners should be reflected in the learning payoff
they derive from their studies with the package. Many computer-based
learning packages indicate the expected timescales that are involved in using
them, but it is well worth finding out how long typical learners actually take.
Also find out whether a game, for example, can be saved to continue later—
it is very frustrating for learners who have to quit a package part way
through an activity to have to start again from the beginning next time.
10 Think ahead to assessment. Work out what will be assessed, relating
directly to the learning that is to be done using the computer-based materials.
Express this as assessment criteria, and check how these link to the intended
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