Software Package Evaluation: The Interactive Picture Dictionary

Software Package: The Interactive Picture Dictionary (1995-1999)
Produced by Protea Textware Pty Ltd
Hurstbridge, Victoria, Australia

Context: Elementary (between A1 and A2) for ESL students in elementary school in South Korea.

Skills: Vocabulary, Spelling

The Interactive Picture Dictionary CD-Rom is designed for classrooms, libraries or home study. It provides content rich topics that teach vocabulary and spelling. There are six main groups with over 40 topics. It is self-paced so it allows the students to explore the areas that interest them the most. The software is simple to navigate from activity to activity and provides instant feedback when necessary. This is a solid instructional tool that is highly interactive.

This program is mostly intended for beginners to intermediate language levels but would suite special needs students as well. Use of the dictionary would best suit individual or pair-work study and would encourage autonomy. The activities engage learners in the learning process and provides for both visual and aural learners. The activities range from three types of spelling games to gap filled exercises using the vocabulary words studied. There is a picture for each word that not only provides an audio to help with pronunciation but it also puts the word in a sentence so students can see it used in context. After all the fun, this program enables students to test their knowledge and gives them feedback immediately. However, it does not explain mistakes made during the test. This could potentially be problematic for students who cannot figure out their mistakes on their own.

This software would benefit students, particularly those who are struggling with vocabulary. The exercises are intended to familiarize students so they can recognize words by sight. The self-paced study ensures students only advanced when they feel ready and want to be challenged a little more. One of the greatest features for teachers is being able to create their own vocabulary lists for students. Even better, the program will develop activities using those words so there is no extra work for the teachers. Now that is AWESOME!!!!

Although there are some great aspects, there were a few disconcerting points as well. For instance, there is not a variety of media content. The categories are organized in the same manner, which is great for consistency but not very exciting.

Overall, The Interactive Picture Dictionary would be useful software to use to supplement other teaching materials used in class. It consistently teaches vocabulary through practical exercises and games.