Aleks . . .

[Jane Elliot]

I have praised ALEKS here (on the old boards) in the past, so I feel it is only fair to give a follow-up review. Dh had always done upper level math instruction in our home, but two years ago when work became more intense for him and he started his own practice, I looked for something that wouldn't be so dependent on his involvement. Aleks seemed the answer to our problems, so the twins have been using it as their sole math program for almost 2 years.

 

We received our SAT scores yesterday and I was shocked that the math scores were low (they did way better on the other two sections than I expected they would, but the math scores astounded me.) These boys did fine on the PSAT two years ago and have always seemed mathy. I feel like I dropped the ball and really let them down. :crying:

 

We asked them what they thought about it and they both said that ALEKS had not prepared them. They said ALEKS teaches them to plug in a formula, but not to really think it through. ALEKS certainly has its uses, but I wish we had not used it as more than a supplement in the upper grades. We're looking for something else right now. Others may have had a different experience, but this has been ours.

[mama25angels]

:grouphug: sorry

[Michelle in MO]

You shouldn't feel compelled to apologize. I actually signed myself up for Aleks to help me review some algebra before the GRE. I think Aleks is fine for review, but somewhat formulaic in its approach, i.e., there is a tendency to present the same type of problem over and over, only with different variables. Nevertheless, I'm glad I did it for myself---it got me going in the right direction. It also helped that I've been working through Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry with my oldest two girls over the past few years.

 

My oldest still struggles somewhat with math. She did *OK* on the ACT math portion, but still struggles with applications. I think word problems and applications of problems are difficult for many kids. I'm not sure which math program would best prepare them for the ACT or SAT. We used Lial's, which had plenty of word problems, but some of the word problems were over their heads and required diligent studying on my part in order to figure out what exactly was being asked. And, remember: although the ACT and SAT tests are important, they're not the overall picture of your student.

 

You might look at this thread---it's right on this page:

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38459 . I think it's entitled "SAT results in . . . oh dear". You might find some helpful information there!

[FloridaLisa]

Luann,

 

Thanks so much for giving us an update. We've used ALEKS as a supplement. As we continue to chart a course for each child (amidst all the needs of a large family and mine is about half of yours!), it really helps to have a full picture. But about those math scores . . . isn't that why we have summers? To fill in all the gaps from the school year? :D

 

I sure do appreciate all of the wisdom you bring to this board. May the Lord bless the your efforts and those of your husband as you continue to educate at home.

 

Lisa

[Ruth in Canada]

We use Aleks for review. DD was feeling overwhelmed by Foerster's Alg & Trig at one point this year so we switched to Aleks for 2 months to allow her to do some drill. She's now (more happily) working on Foerster's again. It's clear to us that Aleks helps on drill and review, but the Foerster's problems are much harder. I expect that we will continue to use Aleks for a few months when dd needs to consolidate the mechanics of what she has learned. I don't feel Aleks alone will give her the depth of math (and problem solving) background that she needs--so we will continue with Foerster's or something similar.

[Niebski]

I agree - ALEKS as supplement only. There are no word problems of any depth whatsoever, but it's a great review of techniques and alogrithms. SAT math can be so peculiar anyway I think you need to specifically prep for it with an SAT program. Just my 2 cents!

[SandyKC]

:iagree: We used ALEKS as a supplement for each of our kids this past year and the outcome is a unanimous vote from the kids that time spent on ALEKS was not that helpful. We used it solely as a supplement, and personally, I LIKE that it forced review and insured gaps were filled in (like when my youngest was struggling with fractions, the repetitive review helped solidify how to work with fractions). I think ALEKS is good as a "support" platform to provide additional review where a child may ordinarily be prone to forgetting concepts, but I don't think it is robust enough to be a stand-alone platform.

 

We used ALEKS in combination with Switched on Schoolhouse and in another case ALEKS was combined with Thinkwell. The SOS/ALEKS combination worked well. The Thinkwell lacked sufficient practice, and ALEKS lacked instruction, so the two together made a 'reasonable' course, but not a robust or deep one!

[Jane Elliot]

Luann,

 

Thanks so much for giving us an update. We've used ALEKS as a supplement. As we continue to chart a course for each child (amidst all the needs of a large family and mine is about half of yours!), it really helps to have a full picture. But about those math scores . . . isn't that why we have summers? To fill in all the gaps from the school year? :D

 

 

 

Thanks for the encouragement, Lisa. Yes, that definitely is why we have summers. :D I have Chalkdust SAT review on the way.

[Jane Elliot]

SAT math can be so peculiar anyway I think you need to specifically prep for it with an SAT program. Just my 2 cents!

 

Yes, I'm realizing the benefits of preparing specifically for these tests. If one is aiming for a high score, it is necessary, I think. The boys way exceded my expectations on the essay, but we prepared with Pudewa's course and did a practice timed essay most Fridays for a year. Now why didn't I think we should do the same preparation for math???

[Jane Elliot]

:iagree: We used ALEKS as a supplement for each of our kids this past year and the outcome is a unanimous vote from the kids that time spent on ALEKS was not that helpful. We used it solely as a supplement, and personally, I LIKE that it forced review and insured gaps were filled in (like when my youngest was struggling with fractions, the repetitive review helped solidify how to work with fractions). I think ALEKS is good as a "support" platform to provide additional review where a child may ordinarily be prone to forgetting concepts, but I don't think it is robust enough to be a stand-alone platform.

 

We used ALEKS in combination with Switched on Schoolhouse and in another case ALEKS was combined with Thinkwell. The SOS/ALEKS combination worked well. The Thinkwell lacked sufficient practice, and ALEKS lacked instruction, so the two together made a 'reasonable' course, but not a robust or deep one!

 

:iagree: I think it is probably good as a supplement, a rather expensive supplement though, don't you think? I suppose if one were to use it only a few months of the year, it wouldn't be quite so bad, but still . . .

 

Thanks for your comments on SOS and Thinkwell. I've been wondering about Thinkwell. I hadn't thought about SOS, but will definitely check into it.

[Jane Elliot]

We use Aleks for review. DD was feeling overwhelmed by Foerster's Alg & Trig at one point this year so we switched to Aleks for 2 months to allow her to do some drill. She's now (more happily) working on Foerster's again. It's clear to us that Aleks helps on drill and review, but the Foerster's problems are much harder. I expect that we will continue to use Aleks for a few months when dd needs to consolidate the mechanics of what she has learned. I don't feel Aleks alone will give her the depth of math (and problem solving) background that she needs--so we will continue with Foerster's or something similar.

 

This is what I wish we had done. They did Foerster's Algebra. I wish we had continued to the next book (or maybe used Jacobs Geometry in between) and used ALEKS as you describe. Sigh. I afraid I'll have this homeschooling thing all figured out when baby Josiah is ready to graduate. :glare:

[SheWhoWaits]

We switched from Chicago Algebra to ALEKS and I wish we hadn't. Problems 1) When we were doing Chicago, if ds needed help I could read the book and figure out what he needed to know and go over it with him. With ALEKS I can't do that because there is no book. 2) Ds complains, similarly to what some of you have said, that ALEKS isn't a good way to LEARN anything. It's great for review, but doesn't teach new concepts well. I'd like to switch back, but we'd be so far behind after switching twice that I'm reluctant to do so. The reason for switching in the first place was that I thought ds needed more discipline in his approach to math. ALEKS HAS helped with that.

[Jane Elliot]

You shouldn't feel compelled to apologize. I actually signed myself up for Aleks to help me review some algebra before the GRE. I think Aleks is fine for review, but somewhat formulaic in its approach, i.e., there is a tendency to present the same type of problem over and over, only with different variables. Nevertheless, I'm glad I did it for myself---it got me going in the right direction. It also helped that I've been working through Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry with my oldest two girls over the past few years.

 

My oldest still struggles somewhat with math. She did *OK* on the ACT math portion, but still struggles with applications. I think word problems and applications of problems are difficult for many kids. I'm not sure which math program would best prepare them for the ACT or SAT. We used Lial's, which had plenty of word problems, but some of the word problems were over their heads and required diligent studying on my part in order to figure out what exactly was being asked. And, remember: although the ACT and SAT tests are important, they're not the overall picture of your student.

 

You might look at this thread---it's right on this page:

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38459 . I think it's entitled "SAT results in . . . oh dear". You might find some helpful information there!

 

I tried for too long to figure out how to use the multi-quote thingy because I think you make several good points here. I can't figure out how to use that feature though.

 

I agree with you that ALEKS is good for review but "formulaic" describes it exactly. It does certainly have its uses as you demonstrated with using it yourself. I wouldn't want to diss the whole program, just want to keep it in its proper place. I think I once posted a response that ALEKS sent me in which they stated that ALEKS can be used as a whole course. As several here have pointed out, it should be used as review/reinforcement/supplement only, not as a full course, especially in the upper grades. I'm afraid I learned this the hard way.

 

I especially appreciated your point that while the SAT and ACT are important, they really aren't an overall picture of a student. I think they can show that a student is well-read, has a developed vocabulary, knows their maths, etc. But there does seem to be a "teaching to the test" element to them. For example, dd did not score as well as either of the twins on the essay. She is, in fact, though a much better writer than one of them. I believe the difference was that Pudewa's SAT essay writing program arrived in the mail here the day before her SAT (it had just come out or I would have gotten it sooner!) The twins, on the other hand, had plenty of time to use Pudewa's program and to practice what it taught. And of course, there are all the other facets of a student that these tests can't measure, i.e. motivation, creativity, perseverance, social skills, etc.

 

And, thanks for pointing me to the thread "SAT results in . . . oh dear!" Very helpful. I have ordered the Chalkdust SAT review and we'll be formulating a different math plan for their last year.

[Jane Elliot]

The reason for switching in the first place was that I thought ds needed more discipline in his approach to math. ALEKS HAS helped with that.

 

:iagree: ALEKS IS definitely good for that. It eliminated the "I haven't gotten to math today because I had questions for Dad" excuse. There really are things I LOVE about ALEKS, and we probably won't ditch it, but we will definitely be using it differently (supplement only!)