Questions from Special Educators

Laureate Learning Systems has been publishing research-based talking software for special education since 1982. All of our programs are authored by clinical experts who understand the needs of children with disabilities. Laureate offers over 40 programs specifically designed to teach critical language, cognitive, and reading skills to students with a wide variety of special needs. Here are the answers to some questions we frequently receive from special educators....

Q. How can Laureate software benefit my students?
A. Laureate software provides the consistent, supportive environment that students with special learning challenges require to achieve success. Our programs are designed to be used independently, so students can receive individualized language and reading instruction in their own classrooms five days a week. Not only will your students meet their IEP goals more quickly and efficiently, they’ll build confidence, independence, and self-esteem.

Q. Are Laureate programs theory and research based?
A. All Laureate programs are based on current linguistic and learning theory. The instructional techniques utilized in the software have proven clinical effectiveness in intervention with students who have disabilities. If you are interested in learning more about the theoretical and research bases of Laureate programs, we have monographs available for most of our program series.

Q. Does your software offer an integrated approach to learning?
A. Laureate’s programs are organized into a Linguistic Hierarchy that outlines seven stages of language development. We have programs for students functioning in each of these stages, from cause & effect to mastery of advanced category concepts and irregular verbs forms. Because the software is integrated, students can move easily from one program to the next as they meet their goals.

Q. Do Laureate programs come with a student management system?
A. Laureate software has a built-in management system that makes it easy for you to track student performance. All of our instructional programs include data collection and a performance summary that can be saved or printed out. Data can be imported into a word processor making it easier to generate reports as well. And the management system is integrated across programs. No matter how many programs a student is using, a single student log is maintained.

Q. How early can students use Laureate programs?
A. Laureate has software that can meet the needs of even the youngest and/or most severely disabled children. Our cause & effect Creature Games are designed for students functioning below six months of age. High-quality natural sounding speech, colorful graphics, and amusing animation captivate, encourage, and instruct the user...and no reading is required. All of our programs are easily accessible with a single switch, touchscreen, keyboard, or mouse.

Q. Do you have anything for students who are experiencing reading failure?
A. The Sentence Master is Laureate’s highly-effective approach to reading intervention for students at risk of reading failure. Authored by Dr. Marion Blank, whose approach is recognized worldwide, The Sentence Master systematically provides instruction to turn the non-reader into a successful reader. The program focuses special attention on non-content words (articles, pronouns, prepositions, etc.) and word endings (such as “s,” “ed,” and “ing”). By truly teaching this small set of non-content words, The Sentence Master enables a reader to instantly decode over half of any page of text that he or she will ever encounter. Our Sentence Master monograph is available free of charge and includes a placement procedure for determining which of the four levels of the program is appropriate for a particular student.

Q. I work with preschool and elementary students who are English Language Learners. Do you have programs that can help them gain basic oral English competence and learn to read?
A. For children who need to learn basic English syntax, we recommend Laureate’s Simple Sentence Structure, LanguageLinks, and Prepositions! programs. Natural sounding speech improves your students’ listening and speaking skills, while optional text encourages beginning reading. Because these programs are designed to be used independently, students can receive individualized language instruction in their own classrooms five days a week.

The Sentence Master is an ideal reading program for English Language Learners. The Sentence Master will help your students learn the essential structures of the English language. Each level of the program presents increasingly complex sentence patterns that have been carefully selected to represent ideas that are central to understanding any coherent text. For students who are English Language Learners, The Sentence Master eliminates frustration and ensures success.

Q. Can you offer suggestions for software appropriate for the various students I serve?
A. Laureate’s Linguistic Hierarchy can help you identify programs appropriate for students at various functioning levels. We have also put together packages at special savings for various students. We offer packages customized for: Birth to Three, Preschool Language & Literacy, Elementary Language and Reading, English Language Learners, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and Visual Impairments.