Spark Educator

www.spark-space.com/educator

KS3 (Years 7 - 9)

ICT

The title installed easily from a CD-ROM. There was no specific uninstall program, but it could be removed using 'Add/Remove programs' in the Windows Control Panel. The screen resolution and computer settings did not require any modification.

What This Product Offers

The interface for creating the mindmap is simple and fairly intuitive. There is a video demo file which takes the user through the creation of a mindmap, as well as explaining the icons on the toolbar and how to change the look and feel of the map. A feature of this software is the 3D rotation of the map; however, in this evaluation only the flat, 2D view was used as the 3D version did not really enhance the pupils' understanding of the topic.

Another feature of this program was the ability to convert the map into a word-processed document. Each 'spark' or idea on the map can be annotated with text, pictures or hyperlinks to the Internet, a file or mailed to an email address. The user can flip between the map and the document or split the screen to view both. Each of the sparks become headings, with the text underneath. The completed maps can be exported as Rich Text Format documents, images or as html webpages. I have used other mindmapping tools that have this facility and further options, but a benefit of this title is that the user can view the word-processed document as the work progresses.

Purpose of Using This Product

We wanted a quick, clear method for collecting together the pupils' ideas on the causes of the English Civil War. Spark Educator offered a visually-simple display of their ideas, which could be recorded and enhanced for a future lesson.

Differentiation

When running this software as a whole class activity, with the teacher entering the information, there was little need for differentiation, as the teacher could synthesise the pupils' thoughts onto the screen by typing in their words and ideas.

If pupils are working independently, there is a text-to-speech function and a spell checker, which may help less able readers.

This program is useful for supporting pupils in organising their ideas into a framework, and could be used to create writing frames for pupils to base research or essays around.

Classroom Organisation

The whole class was involved, working at their desks and sitting around the interactive whiteboard at the front of the classroom.

Context of Use

The objective of the Humanities lesson was to find the reasons behind the English Civil War. For the main activity, the class worked in pairs at their desks. They sorted statements (printed on card) into groups and thought of categories for each one. Through whole class discussion, they came up with 'money', 'religion' and 'power'. These ideas were entered by the teacher into the program and displayed on the interactive whiteboard. The pupils then volunteered their summaries of the information and instructed the teacher as to which heading to place them under.

Ease of Use - Design & Navigation

The program was straightforward and easy to get started. The icons were mostly self-explanatory and the demo helped to explain their purpose. The lesson was attempted after a little practice, and there were no real problems in creating a mindmap with comments from the pupils. The Help guide was adequate to explain how to use the software. After the lesson, the mindmap could be edited to customise the backgrounds, add further images and alter the appearance of the sparks.

Monitoring & Assessment

To fulfil the lesson objectives, the pupils needed to categorise the statements about the Civil War and summarise them. The software enabled the assessment of the pupils' understanding to be demonstrated in a visually stimulating manner. It also provided the starter for the next lesson, where the pupils were able to talk about the mindmap and again show their understanding of the problems. The Spark Educator software facilitated the assessment of the pupils by the teacher in a whole class situation.

Feedback from Pupils and Other Staff

In the plenary session, the pupils and a teaching colleague were asked their opinions about the software and the lesson. The pupils liked it as they said the layout was clear and it looked neat and professional compared to their writing. The teacher agreed with the pupils, but highlighted that their work involving moving statement cards around was good for kinaesthetic learners and that the display on the whiteboard was good for visual learners. Both teachers and pupils liked the way the software presented the information in the word-processor format.

Ease of Use

Spark Educator is a straightforward, easy-to-use mindmapping tool. Ideas can be captured quickly and annotated with text, images and hyperlinks to other files, the Internet or to launch an email. The information from the map can be displayed in a word-processing program, where each of the main ideas form headings and the extra information is collated underneath. The program can therefore be used to create writing frames or as a tool to organise ideas into text in an essay. The map can be exported as a Rich Text Format document or as web pages.

Classroom Experience

The software was used in a Year 7 Humanities lesson of mixed ability boys and girls. The objectives were to understand the reasons behind the English Civil War and summarise them. The pupils organised statement cards of reasons into groups and then identified the main headings. As a whole class, the teacher collected these heading titles and the software was used to categorise them into three main headings. The pupils then offered their summaries and instructed the teacher as to which heading they came under. The software enabled the information to be collected and reorganised quickly. The final map could then be displayed as a piece of prose, where the main ideas and information were displayed as a word-processed document. Spark Educator is a useful piece of mindmapping software, which can help to organise the thoughts of pupils and teachers alike.

Read KS3 Content evaluation...

Product Overview

This product is published by Spark-Space Ltd (Tel: 0870 240 4809)