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Review: Easy Grade Pro v3.6Reviewed By: Jack Jose Review Date: February 6, 2002
[Editor's Note: Jack Jose has taught high school English for 9 years in the Cincinnati Public Schools. He is also a National Board Certified Teacher.] Having tried in the past several different grade book programs, including my own database and paper and pencil grade books, I was excited several years ago when I came across Easy Grade Pro. The format was simple to use. There were all of the benefits of computer grade books, such as easy grade calculation and posting of the grades for students, but this program added customizeability that many other programs lacked. It became my grade book, and I recommended it to other teachers who asked my advice.
"You'll lose your data," I was warned. "It's too hard to keep straight," suggested the naysayers. But I tried anyway. After 20 weeks of regular use, 2 battery changes, and semester finals, I have not lost any student data, and the only thing I'm having trouble keeping track of is a coherent order in which to present my praise of Easy Grade Pro 3.6 and the companion Clipboard program. The format of the Palm version is similar to the desktop, only limited by the space available on the screen. All my customized grade names and attendance records were available for use on the Palm after syncing. The only disappointment is that the Palm version does not do any of the grade calculations. You can enter grades, assignments and even new students as necessary, but this data is merely held until you sync up with the desktop. The grades are then calculated and placed back on the handhold as student data available on the individual student screen. The daily recording of grades and attendance was simple using the handhold version of the program. This was an improvement on the previous pattern of recording information on paper and later entering it into the program. Don't worry, printouts are still available. I just recommend using them to spot attendance or grade trends, rather than a place to record information to be entered in the computer later.
I recommended this product before the improvements above, and it only got better. With limited preparation time, Easy Grade Pro 3.6 can save a classroom teacher time while making it easier than ever to keep parents and students informed of progress on a regular basis. It is exactly what technology in the classroom should be; simple and performance-enhancing.
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Last summer, Orbis offered a new version: 3.6. I am usually loathe to upgrade any program because the extra features are seldom worth the cost, but the Easy Grade Pro 3.6 package was too promising to pass up. Most interesting was the Clipboard program that enabled me to use my Handspring Visor (or any Palm OS device) as my data entry point. Like many people, I found the idea of keeping track of all my information in one small handhold device irresistible, and dove into this program.
Among the other items offered in this upgrade is the ability to post grades to a website in HTML, utilizing password security. This can be done on your own website or through a service called Edline, which charges based on the number of students you teach. Though these options are a bit time consuming to set up, especially in a district such as mine where student home access to the internet is still the exception rather than the norm, the task is not difficult. After the original set-up, updates are quicker, and the access this allows parents and students is worth the time. Additionally, Easy Grade Pro 3.6 offers the ability to download student data from the school database, which can save a great deal of time in data entry. In a time when many school districts, including Cincinnati Public, are experimenting with district-wide grade book programs, this ability to sync up could become an even larger time saver, as the quarterly grade reports could be synced instead of reported through handwritten or typed reports. Of course, the functionality of this depends on the availability and type of program in the individual teacher's school or district, but the timesaving potential is large, especially at report card time.