Software/Website Evaluation #2


Website Title: English Grammar - The Easy Way

Website URL: www.english-the-easy-way.com

Grade/Age Level: ESL Freshman University; mature, immigrant starting out as a professional in the corporate world; upwardly mobile young person.

Language & Content: English; Grammar and Composition Style Sheet

1) What is the intended purpose of the website?

Primarily to provide a comprehensive reference manual for foreign language students in the areas of grammar, punctuation, editing, and proofreading. However, the page is also an advertisement site for English services, resources, and teaching jobs linked mainly to Google.

2) What is the content of the website and how is it presented?

English Grammar the Easy Way is composed of two main elements - English Grammar and English Writing linked to two subsidiary pages containing more than 100 items of grammar and English composition presented on a wallpaper background. Grammar elements are categorized by parts of speech, with an emphasis on verbs and tenses, while writing elements are composed of links to sentence structure, editing, proofreading, and resume writing. Each grammar and writing element is hyperlinked to an inner page on which brief rules, examples and practice quizzes are provided. The site is connected to Google, Amazon.com, and copious education resources. The layout is an appealing, easy-to-access, color-coded, grid format. A sidebar on the inner pages with their rules and examples leads back to the homepage, the subsidiary grammar and writing pages, and to other inner content pages with their rules. The sequencing of items is not easy to follow.

3) What external documents does the website include? Are they effective?

Google ads are discreetly, but prominently nested in the middle column of the home and subsidiary pages that carry the grammar and style sheet items. The bottom of the homepage also carries 6 teachers’ sites, including a TESOL site, and UK Best 50 Sites for Kids carrying a safe rating. The linked sites are very effective, in that they do not challenge the study manual with its 100 or so items.

4) In what ways is the website interesting to the target audience?

Each study page is headed by a confidence-booster such as, ‘Student and Non Students Can Understand English Grammar Like an English Professor!’ The upwardly mobile student or young professional is likely to be impressed by the voluminous, but concise coverage of basic English elements in everyday usage.

5) For what language goal(s) is this website useful/effective?

The website is suitable for academic and written, independent, language study. It is more suited for mature foreign language students, who have already studied the fundamentals of English language up to high school level. It is also a good revision for American students taking college entrance exams such as the SAT or TOEFL.

6) Does this website offer practice? Assessment? Feedback? Of what kinds? (give examples)

Limited practice offered. Minimal assessment. Extremely limited feedback, even in the few quizzes which offer a choice between either 2 or 3 answers, with correct answers easily visible on the far right of the page; e.g. the ‘Determiners,” quizzes on the indefinite article, and on ‘some-and-any.’

7) Is this website easy to use? (i.e., navigation, layout, etc.)

Very easy to use and to navigate; pages load quickly. The ruled format, bulleted information, simple, table, graphic organizers, make the material easily readable. Not time-consuming. Rules and examples are written in simple language.

8) What are the strengths of this website?

Extremely handy resource for home and independent study; good teachers’ resource for building learner’s autonomy among goal-driven students; useful for quizzes and projects.

9) How can this website be improved?

The site lacks a user’s guide. Progression within a topic is not always clear from the inner study pages. Provision for oral and written work would enhance this very useful grammar compendium. The examples are isolated sentences and lack context. Therefore, connected text would be useful. Generally, the information on the site is accurate, but the site needs to be carefully checked for inaccurate spelling of terms, for example: Model Verb Rules instead of Modal Verb Rules.