In our most recent blog, we have a look at how educational apps can help with improving your child’s learning and subsequent 11Plus results.
Today’s digital age has seen technology impacting just about every aspect of life. Education is no exception. For one, technology has considerably expanded access to education. Subsequently, creating more opportunities for communication and collaboration that were somewhat nonexistent a few years ago. Back in the day, only an elite few had access to reading materials. Students had to travel to the classroom to get an education. Today, personal computing and the internet have taken education to a whole new level. Students now own phones, tablets, laptops, desktops and other smart devices. These devices give them access to massive amounts of information (books, audio, images, videos), all at the press of a button.
For instance, a student in a classroom in rural UK can learn about the natural wonders in Africa. Simply by following the expedition of a team of scientists in the region, viewing photos, emailing questions directly to the scientists, and even talking live with them through video conferencing. This unprecedented access only strengthens the call to include the use of more technological applications, such as mobile apps, in and out of the classroom today. Not only are these apps proven to enhance the learning process through vivid representations and interactive lessons. They are also a good way to improve your child’s exam results.
Below we have a look at various apps you can use in an effort to expose your child to more information.
How Educational apps Can Improve Your Children’s Exam Results
Vocabulary Building and Spelling
A child’s verbal reasoning skills are closely linked to academic achievement. Having a large vocabulary and being able to spell words out properly helps your child think and learn about the world.
Enhancing vocabulary has a positive impact on all the subjects on the curriculum.
Maths
Excelling at maths requires each knowledge chunk to fit perfectly at the fundamental level. Your child can then build on top of it with regular practice. The following apps and the many innovative games can reinforce this knowledge. It will also help students become more adept at maths concepts and problems that have to be solved in multiple stages
KidSmart — Putting The Science Of Gamification Into Learning
This iPad app is designed to help improve your child’s English, and Maths skills in just 20 mins a day. Its strength lies in delivering a holistic and engaging learning experience. Students can, therefore, maximise their learning, develop cognitive abilities, and cultivate a growth mindset from an early age. Some of the core benefits of Kidsmart include:
- A variety of content types, including videos, games, and traditional worksheets with relatable examples.
- The perfect level of gamification to engage the child and meet specific learning outcomes.
- Parents and tutors have more visibility of the progress and direction with access to instant reports, which can help them adjust the learning experience to suit their child.
- A robust tutor support system that is available anytime and even features a service where you can book one-to-one lessons for your child.
This is currently only available on IPad and involves a subscription fee. There is however a 14-day trial available.
Lumosity
We have mentioned this app before in our article on Brain Training. It provides you with various games to improve memory, focus, attention, flexibility, problem-solving, language etc.
Here you have an option of the free version, giving you access to 3 daily games. Alternatively, there is a premium version with access to all games at all times.
Teach Your Monster to Read
This very handy app is more focused on the beginner reader. However, the game can help at all stages. Especially when trying to identify gaps in the foundation phases. It involves your own personalised ‘monster’ who needs to complete different tasks involving phonetics and rules of reading. Your child will then earn rewards and can spend ‘coins’ gathered for costume changes etc.
Gone are the days of simply writing down your revision notes on flash cards or sticking your timetable to the bedroom wall. Here we look at 8 study apps that can help you prepare for you for exams.
The Best free school study apps…
For getting organised
iStudiez Pro Legend
Take charge of your schedule with this planner aimed squarely at students. Available for various smart devices (including iOS, Android) as well as for Mac and Windows PC users, iStudiez Pro Legend helps students track their schedules, assignments, and grades all in one place. Not sure when your French homework is due or when your next exam is? Just consult your iStudiez app. As long as you input the dates and information as you go along, this app will take care of the rest for you. What’s more, you can integrate the app’s calendar to other calendar apps, like Google Calendar. The mobile version costs a one-time fee of £2.99, while the computer version is £9.99.
Best Free School Study Apps for Making Notes
Evernote
Regarded as one of the best note-taking and life organising apps out there, Evernote allows you to type notes, add attachments, clip web pages and record memos all in one place. You can use it to make personal checklists for organising your thoughts as well as for setting reminders and planning for exams. While the basic version with 60MB of uploads per month and syncing for two devices is available for free, if you want all the functionality then you will need to invest in Evernote Premium. This currently costs $7.99 a month or $69.99 annually. Available on Apple iOS and for Android.
The Best Free School Educational Apps for Learning
Oxford Dictionary of English
You could carry a dictionary around with you. Or you could use Google each time you read a word you’re not sure about. However, a far better option is to download the Oxford Dictionary instead – especially as the basic version is free. The mobile version of the Oxford University Press’ Oxford English Dictionary, this app features several advanced search and language tools. These include search autocomplete to help you find words quickly by displaying predictions as you type and camera search that looks up words in the camera viewfinder and displays results in a few seconds. The premium version doesn’t have any ads and provides the audio pronunciation of words, but at £20 it is quite pricey. You can download on Google Play for Android or for Apple devices.
Best Free School Study Apps for Revision
Quizlet Flashcards
Before apps even existed if you wanted flashcards for revision you would have to buy them from your local stationery shop. Well, not anymore. With Quizlet you can either create your own digital flashcards or choose from millions of others created by students. You can share your flashcards with classmates, put your memory to the test with ‘Write’ or race against the clock in a game of ‘Match’. A basic version of Quizlet is available for free. However, if you want full functionality then you will need to subscribe to Quizlet Plus for £1.42 a month or £16.99 a year. This allows you to add images to your sets, study without adverts and access content when you are offline. You can get Quizlet Flashcards from iTunes for Apple devices or from the Google Play store for Android.
BBC Bitesize – Revision
If you’re aged 14-16 (Year 10 and 11) and studying for your GCSEs, TGAU, Nationals or Highers, this BBC Bitesize revision app is for you. Available for Android/Apple smartphones and tablets, it has all of the information you need, broken down into bite-sized chunks, wherever and whenever you need it. It now includes flashcards for the new 9-1 GCSEs in Maths, English, Biology and Chemistry. And if you sign it to set your subjects and exam board you will also only see content that is relevant to you. What’s more, it’s completely free and there aren’t any in-app purchases either, unlike most education apps from commercial providers. Available on Android and Apple iOS.
The Best Free Educational Apps for Exams
Exam Countdown Lite
This free app will help to ensure you keep track of all your upcoming exams. Need to know exactly when your chemistry exam is? No problem. Just open up Exam Countdown Lite and you will see exactly how many months, weeks, days and minutes it is away! Usefully, you can customise the colours used for each subject and there are 400 different icons to choose from. You can also add notes to exams and tests and share your exams schedule on social media (Twitter and Facebook) should you choose. Available for both iOS and Android users, the app is a must-have for any school or college student.
Best Free School Study Apps for Dictation
Dragon Anywhere
Need to make some revision notes or write an essay, but unwilling or unable to write them down (perhaps you’ve broken your arm)? Then one option is to use a dictation app such as Dragon Anywhere from Nuance Communications. Just speak into the app and it will turn your words into text for you. Because it adapts to your voice, it becomes more accurate the more you use it. You can also add custom words to the dictionary so it understands any specific terminology you may use. The only downside is that it’s a little pricey especially now that Google has its own type with voice feature. However, Dragon Anywhere is arguably a much better quality. It costs £9.99 after a month’s free trial or £99.99 for 12 months. Available for iOS (Apple devices) or for Android.
How Can Educational Apps improve your 11Plus results?
Mobile Apps are a powerful tool that can support and transform education in many ways. With the worldwide reach of the Internet and the ubiquity of smart devices that can connect to it, a new age of dawning, one of unrestricted access to quality education anytime anywhere.
Logically the education sector should follow suit and implement technology alongside conventional education to get your child equipped for their 11Plus exams. Getting ready for the 11Plus exams involve a lot of practice. Why not use technology to your advantage. Your child will be much more likely to ‘play games’ than have to sit behind a desk writing, as they’ve already done for hours on any given day.
Educational apps should be used as a supplement to education in the classroom by reinforcing the ideas they have learnt in school. In addition, by using the technology we can use a data-driven approach to see the areas that need work. The areas that are strong and gain a true understanding of your child’s progress.
In the current system, parents rely on parent’s evenings and end of year reports. In a large classroom, it’s easy for a child to be lost and not have individual attention on areas that need improvement. This is where edu-tech comes in, making learning fun and providing parents with some measure as to their child’s progress.
Of course, apps and technology can never replace books and hands-on learning. It can, however, make some of the more mundane activities more interesting and fun.
