Content Selection Process
AWE Learning uses a complex and exhaustive content selection process to evaluate and select the titles which make the Early Literacy Station™ and our other products the premiere educational solutions.
First, every title suggested to us, submitted by one of our publishing partners, or uncovered by a member of our staff is carefully evaluated in-house using a tool similar to the superb model developed by children’s software guru Warren Buckleitner of Children’s Technology Review (CTR). While AWE Learning’s evaluation tools include many of the same metrics, it has been highly customized to reflect our greater emphasis on educational value and lesser concern with cost. A formula that merges AWE Learning’s rating, Buckleitner’s rating, and utilization statistics (a de facto children’s rating) is key to a title’s selection and retention.
Some of the focal-point metrics of AWE Learning’s evaluation tools for content selection:
- Entertaining and engaging
- Suitable: Fits AWE Learning’s demographic and educational vision while complementing existing titles
- Functional: Intuitive, easily navigable, etc.
- Technologically advanced: Supports touch, adapts to users, employs random generation, etc.
The result is a menu of best-in-class programs covering seven content areas which are as eclectic as they are educational and entertaining. From traditional stalwarts like Reader Rabbit Toddler and the JumpStart series to leading edge titles like Math Doodles, KidPix 3D, and World of Goo, no provider in the industry comes close to providing the cross-curricular breadth and quality of our software catalog.
Skeptics occasionally ask us why we haven’t replaced products like Reader Rabbit Toddler on the Early Literacy Station. The answer is millions of hours of successful instruction and continued popularity among toddlers demand that we do otherwise. Reader Rabbit Toddler is a classic. Think of it as the Shakespeare of children’s educational software. And yet, this groundbreaking educational program is now off the shelves and virtually unavailable elsewhere. The same can be said of other classics like Dorling Kindersley’s My Amazing Human Body and creative masterpieces like Krazy ArtRoom, both of which are virtual AWE Learning exclusives.
One of the many reasons the Early Literacy Station is the premier all-in-one learning tool is that its classic titles easily coexist with and complement new programs like the Giggles programs, the Edmark Series (Bailey’s Book House, Millie’s Math House, etc) and Speakaboos digital books (which are backed by the educational pedagogy of Dr. Alice Wilder). Our titles are aligned to STREAM and many have received recognition from various educational organizations.
Through rigorous evaluation, utilization tracking and market vigilance, AWE Learning is committed to identifying and selecting a mix of software titles which will continue to give your children a leg up on their academic futures while keeping our products many lengths clear of the competition.
ELF Child-Safe Browser
The website content included in the ELFTM Child-Safe Browser is carefully selected by the AWE Learning team. The sites are recommended by the American Library Association, Children’s Technology Review, and other organizations. We also incorporate input from teachers, parents, library staff, current AWE Learning customers, and even children. Each website included with the ELF Child-Safe Browser is appropriate for children of all ages. They’re fun, safe, and minimally commercial!
