Talk:courseware

Definition too broad, too narrow?

Is all educational software "courseware"? It's hard to imagine the word being used of e.g. multimedia CD-ROMs for home use with small children. And are there things other than executable software (such as electronic documents and presentations) that might count as courseware? Equinox ◑ 19:27, 8 April 2018 (UTC)

Changed to say it is used in teaching a course. Equinox ◑ 11:25, 4 December 2023 (UTC)

Courseware doesn’t just have to be for teaching a specific course, it can, for example, be a more expansive platform by which an educational institution facilitates communication between faculty and students, delivers grades, chooses courses in some cases.

As one source puts it:

2016, Kin Wai, Michael Siu, Giovanni Jesue Contreras García, “Chapter 28: Disruptive Technologies and Education: Is There Any Disruption After All?”, in Viktor Wang, editor, Handbook of Research on Learning Outcomes and Opportunities in the Digital Age‎^[1], volume 2, →DOI, →ISBN, page 658:

Term given to materials which are part of an educational course or class. Although courseware refers to all types of materials, it is mostly associated with technology-based materials particularly software, and often times is found as synonym with educational software in general. The term is particularly common to talk about training for computer packages or IT industry’s certification programs.

Hermes Thrice Great (talk) 19:57, 5 December 2023 (UTC)

@Hermes Thrice Great: Okay. But not all electronic material for teaching is "courseware". For example the instruction manual for a C++ compiler for general use (not for newbies). Equinox ◑ 20:00, 5 December 2023 (UTC)

Sure, that is also true.

So, might I suggest it read something like “software used to facilitate course-based learning” or somesuch?

Hermes Thrice Great (talk) 20:30, 5 December 2023 (UTC)

Nice, I'm happy with the current def. Equinox ◑ 12:04, 6 December 2023 (UTC)