A-Z Tools & Technologies: iSpring
What is it?
iSpring is a toolkit for developing e-Learning content which can be delivered to the variety of devices; Desktops and Laptops (Windows & Mac) and iPads, iPhones and Android devices.
How does it work?
iSpring is integrated with PowerPoint. See the image of the toolbar for the features it offers all in one tool; embedded video, voiceover or text speech software, interactive quiz, inspiring learning music etc. Publish your content on the web through your VLE. And students can then view with the iSpring Viewer which is a free mobile app and compatible with apple and android.
What are the implications for Teaching, Learning and Assessment?
iSpring can be used as part of the flipped classroom or to enhance an e-learning course. As the content is all in one place it is more accessible and existing powerpoints can be adapted. It is a similar concept to Choose you own adventure books and students can become more independent learners through using this software. Assessment can be demonstrated through quiz completion. However, enough though you can adapt your existing powerpoints it will be time consuming to develop the materials and add/select the additional content.
For a free trial and advice from an online consultant visit the iSpring site http://www.ispringsolutions.com/ispring-suite?ref=slider
For a demonstration watch this youtube clip by Kevin Ashton. Blended Learning Showcase – Interactivity with iSpring
References
Ashton, K. (2014) Blended Learning Showcase – Interactivity with iSpring [Internet]. Available from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlvXj8xVsvw [Accessed 18th February 2015].
iSpring Solutions (2013) iSpring Pro Support [Internet]. Available from http://www.ispringsolutions.com/articles/how-to-manually-insert-flash-into-powerpoint-2010.html [Accessed 18th February 2015].
Would you consider using this software? Or do you have a better alternative? Or is it just too time consuming?
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca
You certainly picked an interesting tool/application to write your blog post on – the world of content authoring tools!
iSpring is a very powerful and feature-rich application, but it also comes with a hefty price tag (~$400) and a steep learning curve (very similar to Articulate Studio), possibly enough to put most academic users off!?
A great alternative would be Xerte, a collection of open-source (free) tools for producing interactive learning materials (http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/xerte/index.aspx). Xerte was developed by Uni of Nottingham, and is used widely across the HE sector.
Phil
Hi Phil,
Thanks for the link. I’ve just had a quick look at Xerte, it is certainly not as slick as iSpring but a useful free tool! I think I may need a bit of training on it though. iSpring has the benefit of looking like a PowerPoint document so a little easier to navigate and use. But yes! expensive!
Hi, Rebecca!
Thank you so much for reviewing iSpring Pro!
I wonder if you might be willing to give us your opinion the latest update, iSpring Pro 7.1. This news release (http://ispri.ng/cmjg) and comparison chart (http://ispri.ng/cmqj) might be helpful in making your decision.
Thank for your consideration, and please let me know if you have any questions.
-Brian Tarr