Aleks uses an artificial intelligence program to teach math and assess how well the student is learning and mastering the subject -- while avoiding multiple choice questions most of the time. It is web-based and accessible from any internet-connected computer. It can be used for tutoring, or as your complete math curriculum.
Aleks has a wide range of courses available. It covers math from 3rd grade, through precalculus and trigonometry. They have a chemistry course, and preparation courses for high school exit exams. There are also college level courses available, both as complete tutoring courses, and as preparation for other courses.
My daughter enjoyed her subscription to pre-algebra tutoring. She was challenged to improve her pie chart and master more areas. Every time I turned around, she was at my computer trying to work just a few more math problems. She doesn't enjoy math, and has struggled with this subject her entire school career. Yet, she looks forward to working with Aleks. It inspired her to keep working, and to do better. She said that some of the problems she learned on Aleks were things she didn't fully understand as explained in her normal math curriculum. She was proud to finally "get it".
As a parent, I was able to log on to my account and view my daughter's account. I could see how her assessments were going, what areas she had mastered, what areas she was still needing to master, and if her percentage of mastery was improving. I could print reports of her progress, as well.
Aleks is user-friendly, and the website is easily navigated. We did find that for some reason my daughter couldn't use Aleks on the "kids' computer" but could on mine. It would get "hung up" and stall on her computer, but didn't on mine. We aren't sure why that is, and we didn't really invest time in figuring it out. There were also times when my daughter needed to log out, and log in again to proceed. The program would get stalled, or not acknowledge the answer she was putting in. We'd log out and in again, and proceed from there. This mainly happened in the initial assessment that was performed when she began her course.
However, despite all its good attributes, Aleks isn't reusable. If I buy a subscription to Aleks, it is not like putting a textbook on my shelf that I can use with my next student. And, I confess, I still prefer that most of our curriculum NOT be computer-based. Those two issues, along with the cost, make it not an option for our family.
While the cost is not something my family can afford for a non-reusable curriculum/program, it is still more affordable than most private tutors. Memberships are sold for $19.99 per student per month. They can also be bought for $99.95 for 6 months, or $179.95 for 12 months. If you are enrolling multiple students for a 6 or 12 month subscription, there is a family discount available.
If you have a struggling math student, or if you lack confidence to teach higher level math to your students, then you should consider Aleks as a possible solution for your family.
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Trusting in Him,
April
