Using computers to teach children

The best move my dad ever made was buying me a computer when I was just nine years old. Back in those days, the idea of having a computer in your own home was just starting to catch on, and I was given this machine I had no idea what to do with.

My dad, on the other hand, knew exactly what he wanted me to do. First he hid the games that came bundled with it in the attic, and asked my neighbor to come round once a week to teach me how to program in BASIC.

From that moment on, I was hooked. I studied computer science right through school and even graduated from university with a degree in Artificial Intelligence.

It won’t be long now until I can encourage my own son to embrace technology and use it for learning. Computers in the classroom are now common place and some Japanese cram schools specialize in using educational software to teach children at their own pace.

Score! Educational CentersIf there is an American equivalent of Japanese cram school, then it would be Score! Educational Centers. There are over 160 Score! centers in the U.S, teaching children from pre-K to 10th grade, helping them catch up or get ahead in Math, reading, writing and a host of different subjects which have been based on the curriculum used in schools.

I was watching the Score! video, and it seems that there are three distinct advantages for your children. They are:

1. The kids grow familiar with using computers
2. The software adjusts to match your child’s ability
3. The kids have fun learning.

I actually feel that years of ‘learning opportunity’ are wasted in regular schools when a child either doesn’t understand and shuts off for the rest of their schooling, or the material is so easy that he or she doesn’t learn as much as they are capable of. One-to-one tuition is definitely the way to go, and computer-based learning makes this possible.

This post is sponsored by Score! Educational Centers / Math Tutors.

If you like, you can find me on Twitter at @nick_ramsay. I'd love to hear from you!