Compu-Spell
Encyclopedia
Compu-Spell is educational software
developed by Sherwin Steffin and Steven Pederson of Edu-Ware Services
for the Apple II
in 1980. It is designed to teach spelling
based on the assumption that spelling is a memorization (as opposed to rule-based) task. The program presents a series of spelling words within sentences, and then requires the learner to type in the spelling words. In "learning" mode, the program would ignore incorrect letters, with the idea being that seeing an incorrect spelling on the screen would interfere with memorizing a correct spelling. (The user could continually guess at the next correct letter or press ESC to show the correct spelling.) Misspelled words are presented again to learners, who must retype spelling words until they are spelled correctly. The program periodically presents spelling words from previous lessons to reinforce memoirization.
The program was sold with data disks of spelling words for grade levels 4 through 8, each containing 800 to 1200 spelling words, along with an "adult/secretarial' disk featuring the most frequently misspelled words in the English language.
Designed for both home and classroom use, the program includes a classroom management system allowing teachers to track the progress of many students, a number of settings used by teachers to control the learning process, and a file-building system for adding new spelling words and sentences.
Educational software
Educational software is computer software, the primary purpose of which is teaching or self-learning.-Early History, 1940s - 1970s:The use of computer hardware and software in education and training dates to the early 1940s, when American researchers developed flight simulators which used analog...
developed by Sherwin Steffin and Steven Pederson of Edu-Ware Services
Edu-Ware
Edu-Ware Services, Inc. was an educational and entertainment software publisher established in 1979 by Sherwin Steffin and Steven Pederson It was known for its adventure games, role-playing video games, and flight simulators for the Apple II family of computers.-History:Edu-Ware founders Sherwin...
for the Apple II
Apple II
The Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...
in 1980. It is designed to teach spelling
Spelling
Spelling is the writing of one or more words with letters and diacritics. In addition, the term often, but not always, means an accepted standard spelling or the process of naming the letters...
based on the assumption that spelling is a memorization (as opposed to rule-based) task. The program presents a series of spelling words within sentences, and then requires the learner to type in the spelling words. In "learning" mode, the program would ignore incorrect letters, with the idea being that seeing an incorrect spelling on the screen would interfere with memorizing a correct spelling. (The user could continually guess at the next correct letter or press ESC to show the correct spelling.) Misspelled words are presented again to learners, who must retype spelling words until they are spelled correctly. The program periodically presents spelling words from previous lessons to reinforce memoirization.
The program was sold with data disks of spelling words for grade levels 4 through 8, each containing 800 to 1200 spelling words, along with an "adult/secretarial' disk featuring the most frequently misspelled words in the English language.
Designed for both home and classroom use, the program includes a classroom management system allowing teachers to track the progress of many students, a number of settings used by teachers to control the learning process, and a file-building system for adding new spelling words and sentences.