ALEKS vs. Alta from Knewton, a Wiley brand

Among the specific scenarios where ALEKS is well suited would be independent work time during which each student could work on improving foundational math skills or on practicing topics recently learned in class. ALEKS is less appropriate when instructing more involved topics (i.e., Algebra 2 material), which would require whole-class instruction by the teacher first.

Incentivized

I think any computational based math class will greatly benefit from [alta from Knewton, a Wiley brand]. It simplifies the professor's work in terms of grading while also increasing the student's ability to get real time help on homework problems if they are struggling. I like that the questions are at a deep level and not all multiple choice. If a student gets a problem wrong they get a growth mindset message of encouragement.

• Differentiating instruction
• Tailoring individualized curriculum to cater to each student's unique needed.

Incentivized

• Adapts to students level.
• Supports students through a mastery program.
• Is user friendly from a manager point of view.
• Provides excellent support for course managers.

Incentivized

• Reports can confuse students
• Limited ways to solve a problem
• Can lead to mimicry

Incentivized

• Wider distribution--not many know about it
• Tighter line between objectives and learning
• Alternative testing to prevent student cheating

Easy to use

We did not need much support because installing and running ALEKS on Schoology was relatively easy; the department followed the steps outlined in the user manual on how to install ALEKS and were able to do so quickly. ALEKS help team has been helpful, but overall we did not need their help.

Incentivized

I was not able to find any other products on your list, that I feel are really like ALEKS. I think of ALEKS as more of a teaching platform whereas other platforms I have used--MyMathLab, WebAssign, Knewton--are more of a homework platform.

Incentivized

Compared to competitors, the Knewton system is much more adaptive and designed for mastery and learning rather than assessment. If those are your goals, then this is a good system to use. The complexity of the problems is generally lacking, so you will need to supplement with more difficult problems for your students to tackle, whereas many other systems have these more difficult problems built-in.

Incentivized

• Allowed some students to complete more than one course in a term.
• Can lead to financial savings for students who are able to complete more than one class.
• Allows for stacking of developmental classes.

Incentivized

• My students had an excellent learning experience at a reasonable price.

Incentivized