Kurzweil 3000 is a program developed for struggling students that assists with reading, writing, test taking, and study skills. It has many uses, and has been in development since the company was founded in 1996. Today there are many similiar text-to speech applications available, and offered for free, but Kurzweil has the edge because of it's all-in one packaging and special features. Rather than having to download a bunch of apps onto each students computer Kurzweil can easily be installed and everyone can become familiar with the same program. I believe this adds to the ease of use and usefulness to students and teachers. Especially for those who grew up without technology, it can be frustrating having to learn how to access and use new programs. It is difficult to no sound like a salesperson, but Kurzweil 3000 does many things very well and helps more than just the struggling students succeed, it can help all kids in the classroom.
You can't talk about the advantages of Kurzweil without mentioning the built in text-to speech functions. You can do this by highlighting text and the computer will read back anything you have selected. As mentioned there are free programs built into web browsers that can do this already but Kurzweil can select and organize any highlighted selections to be saved and used later for study purposes. Another neat feature of the text-to speech is the ability of Kurzweil to recognize text from scanned documents allowing for easy transition between computer and written text. The highlighting feature and the ability to save notes is an example of how Kurzweil benefits every student although it was designed to help struggling readers.
Built into Kurzweil are many customizable features that can be adjusted to each learners preference and needs. For example, tests can be easily adapted from a written form so that they can be taken using Kurzweil by simply scanning the document, webpages and other texts can be magnified or altered for better readability, there is a built in language translator for foreign language students, audio files can be recorded instead of typing (although Kurzweil does support speech-to text software) and there's much more.
To effectively implement Kurzweil it should be demonstrated as a tool for all students to be used however they see fit (studying, test taking etc.). This means showing students on an electronic whiteboard (if possible, or use the computer lab) and detailing how it's used by giving an example of its functions. Without proper instruction this great tool loses its ability to engage students. Once they see how easy it is to take notes, listen to text read to them and research easily, the students are sure to be hooked!
You can't talk about the advantages of Kurzweil without mentioning the built in text-to speech functions. You can do this by highlighting text and the computer will read back anything you have selected. As mentioned there are free programs built into web browsers that can do this already but Kurzweil can select and organize any highlighted selections to be saved and used later for study purposes. Another neat feature of the text-to speech is the ability of Kurzweil to recognize text from scanned documents allowing for easy transition between computer and written text. The highlighting feature and the ability to save notes is an example of how Kurzweil benefits every student although it was designed to help struggling readers.
Built into Kurzweil are many customizable features that can be adjusted to each learners preference and needs. For example, tests can be easily adapted from a written form so that they can be taken using Kurzweil by simply scanning the document, webpages and other texts can be magnified or altered for better readability, there is a built in language translator for foreign language students, audio files can be recorded instead of typing (although Kurzweil does support speech-to text software) and there's much more.
To effectively implement Kurzweil it should be demonstrated as a tool for all students to be used however they see fit (studying, test taking etc.). This means showing students on an electronic whiteboard (if possible, or use the computer lab) and detailing how it's used by giving an example of its functions. Without proper instruction this great tool loses its ability to engage students. Once they see how easy it is to take notes, listen to text read to them and research easily, the students are sure to be hooked!