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December 15, 2006 2006 Awards of EXCELLENCE WinnersKristen Kennedy, Paul Jackson, and the T&L editors Page 2LANGUAGE ARTSClicker 5 Clicker 5 is a powerful, complex language tool that challenged judges with its novel approach to writing. As one judge wrote, "Once I got the hang of it, it was really fun." This multimedia writing tool lets students create compositions, books, and even audio-enchanced presentations with Clicker's unique grid system. Using these theme-based templates, practicing writers combine pictures, sounds, and text as they practice word recognition, sentence building, and story making. Teachers enjoyed exploring this multi-use program and thought prereaders and older students would, as well. CommunicationFitness Judges labeled ComFit's offering an excellent tool for English grammar and skill development and were equally impressed by the thorough research the company conducted to determine appropriate content and feedback for students. This Web-based tool easily guides students through a diagnostic writing activity and then follows up with skill-specific practice drills and exercises. Judges welcomed the program's timely reports that put students' work into a helpful evaluative context. Language First! Program A model program with a "flawless" design, Language First! optimizes the LeapPad platform with 36 new theme-based books. The program garnered judges' approval for use with struggling readers and English language learners, thanks to support in six different languages and evaluation in four proficiency levels. Our evaluators particularly liked how "the program tackles difficult aspects of English usage such as correct use of pronouns, subject-verb agreement, and verb tenses" in a way "that makes learning words interesting." ReadAbout Another exceptional, research-backed reading skill-building program, ReadAbout lets students of varying skill levels work at their own pace to improve reading comprehension. Kids begin by selecting topics of interest "from American history to the Everglades" from a video-enhanced content library that introduces new vocabulary. Scaffolded reading passages follow to challenge students' comprehension and encourage understanding of key analytical features of reading proficiency. Meanwhile, adaptive technology works with each student's developmental level by providing support when necessary. TechLiteracy Assessment TechLiteracy offers educators and administrators a Web-based solution for evaluating students' technology skills. An online assessment comprised of multiple-choice and open response questions quickly evaluates proficiency in word processing and spreadsheet programs as well as Internet use and multimedia presentations. More important, the program looks not only at what students know how to do with computers but whether they appreciate the social and ethical issues surrounding computer use in the digital age. Vocabulary A-Z Efficient, effective, and outstanding were the words judges used to describe this Web-delivered vocabulary skill-building program. Teachers can easily and quickly build custom vocabulary lessons and exercises by subject area or theme, extending the program's use across the curriculum, or select one from its rich assignment bank. Our judges particularly liked how Vocabulary A-Z creates weekly lesson plans that include worksheets and assessments. CURRICULUM AND DATA MANAGEMENTDestiny Library Manager As part of the broad-based Destiny Suite, the Library Manager does exactly what its name implies. The judges liked the easy-to-use Web interface. Routine library functions are automated, such as batch delete of users and bar code printing. Also noted by the judges were a rich selection of reports and reasonable pricing, making Library Manager one of this year's top products. "This product is the next generation in library management and resource allocation," said one judge. Dyn-Ed Records Manager The DynEd Records Manager is the student tracking system of the DynEd Language Learning Solutions Suite. The system tracks student progress and features the "Intelligent Tutor" that helps students in their weak areas. The system can be configured for campus or distance learning scenarios. The database allows user imports from standard file formats. The judges were impressed by the comprehensive tracking of student progress in comprehension, speech, and repetition/time on task. Said one judge, "ESL students could greatly benefit from the well-designed curriculum, and teachers will find it easier to identify weak areas and assist them." ECHOS Early Childhood Observation System The ECHOS Childhood Observation System lets busy teachers keep track of young learners' progress toward meeting state and national assessment standards. The program uploads to a handheld or desktop where teachers can easily record their observations of student progress in seven major developmental areas and according to four performance level indicators. They can then send student data to the ECHOS secure Web site, where student records can be quickly updated and made accessible to key stakeholders. TetraData DASH DASH is essentially a DASHboard that allows administrators to view data and create reports. Data is stored in the back-end Central Data Store, which warehouses data from other sources and is included with the DASH product. Judges were impressed with the products' ease of use, rich reporting features, import/export capabilities, and interface with existing data. Judges described it as "an excellent resource for teachers and district leaders to quickly and efficiently access student information," and praised its "simple color coding and sortability [that makes] data easy to read."
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