Pointerpro vs. Renaissance Accelerated Reader

They get the job done. We were able to do everything that our client wanted and needed. Its a free quiz on their website, so having to pay $1,500 a year for this service is hurting our bank. My only complaint is the price. If you are able to lower your price or offer promotions, then I would have no problem staying. We are currently looking for cheaper alternatives.

Incentivized

I have found Renaissance Accelerated Reader to be well-suited for elementary readers. I don't have experience using it with high school students; however, I know that for our elementary readers, there are no shortages of tests available. Our students can read trade books, articles within the program, or even stories from our textbooks and take tests on them

• Intuitive branching logic mechanics. Survey Anyplace offers a nicely pipeline/process map format to visually see the branching logic for more robust question sets.
• Reliable results. Survey Anyplace offers important tracking data to evaluate and hold respondents accountable to completing the surveys.
• Users can save progress and come back. This allows busy respondents time to think about deeper questions, specifically when the surveys are being used in an interviewing approach.

Incentivized

• Automatically calculating ZPD ranges. Student level ranges are automatically calculated within the system to ensure that students are correctly choosing the most appropriate books for them.
• Easy goal setting. Whether you want to set a blanket goal based on 20 minutes per day of reading time for the class, or you want to individually set goals up to an hour a day, AR makes it very easy to manage and set goals for your entire classroom. Goals can be adjusted as needed easily as well.
• Comprehension monitoring through testing. I can easily see which students are struggling on comprehension through AR book quizzes. From student scores, I can either motivate students who are rushing through books to slow down and take time to thoroughly read, or I can help students who are possibly struggling to read harder books with specific strategies that will benefit them the most. Without the testing feature of AR, I would have a lot more work to check how students are doing on their independent reading.
• Data that is easy to understand and share with students. From either running a report on the entire class or school to just a specific student, AR makes data tracking easy. I can share reports with students and have detailed discussions about their progress towards meeting their goals or steps to take to overcome reading challenges they are currently having.

Incentivized

• Creating something highly customized at the ReportR level means you will need to have some savvy with CSS if you want to do it yourself. But it also means you can create something truly incredible and they do not have the same limitations as other similar software.

• Lately, Accelerated Reader has been adding "New Reports" which would help single class users such as a teacher with one class. But for a person with administrative rights, it creates a bit of a hassle to get the information needed at times.
• Cost - Accelerated Reader is expensive. For the price paid, I feel Renaissance should include some features instead of having additional fees paid.

Incentivized

[Renaissance] Accelerated Reader is a great way to track student progress, motivate students to read, and measure their comprehension. Accelerated reader gives both teachers and students immediate feedback. There are countless options of books for students and can help increase student interest in books and improve students' reading ability.

Incentivized

This is a great platform. The ease of use and ability to generate instant reports is killer. I highly recommend this platform for those who want to showcase a professional survey to impress their clients and employees. For us, this helps expand our product offering greatly, which also supplements our other services. [Survey Anyplace is a] great product and platform!

Incentivized

I give Renaissance Accelerated Reader a great 10 in usability rating. I give this rating because overall the program is very easy to use and for the most part easy to understand. I am currently in my first year working in the library and with the teachers using the Renaissance Accelerated Reader program so there is still much to learn, but it has been an overall great experience so far. All of the data is easy to read and there is so much information to look over in case anything is missed or not understood. I have so far been very happy with the Renaissance Accelerated Reader program and what it has done for the students.

I have not encountered any problems with availability

Quick loading, no issues.

Incentivized

I wish there was a better live chat feature. Seems like I have to wait 30-60 every time I need to talk to someone. Though once I am able to speak with someone via the chat in my account, they have been very helpful in answering my questions or pointing me in the right direction.

Incentivized

Renaissance Reader has a great support team, and generally, they are quick to respond when needed. The live chat tool is a life-saver when trying to get your problems solved in real-time. They also have a lot of online support articles that ensure that you can get your questions answered without necessarily having to use the live chat during the school day.

Extensive training on Ren Place is necessary. There are a myriad of reports that we need help understanding. I have joined Ren Royals and have learned a lot from that support piece.

Incentivized

Survey Anyplace is an excellent piece of software.

It can create in depth surveys and has a huge functional capability! I would highly recommend using Survey Anyplace for any business as it is so adaptable!

The support team are fabulous and always on hand to answer any queries and set up Zoom calls for more tailored help! Mark has been brilliant in helping me to create a complex survey!

Incentivized

I have not used any of the products listed. However, AR has been my choice of product. My school system choice this product because it interfaces well with all other reading and testing programs that have been purchased. It is an excellent product, but that is a given since it was developed by a teacher to address a problem that all educators deal with (How do you help a struggling reader best?). AR is the answer for me.

Because students can take tests on varying book levels.

• As a publisher, the quizzes provide us with compelling type of "advertising" product to engage our clients' audiences.
• We use the quizzes to direct respondents to thought leadership content for lead gen. The "correct response" feature in the quizzes provide the most interesting sample of our clients' content.

Incentivized

• The goal of AR is for kids to enjoy books, spread their wings, and experience a variety of literature & genres. Children need copious amounts of reading to become good readers. Incorporating Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 into our day sets a purpose for reading and holds children accountable.
• Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 is research based. The single biggest predictor of academic success is time spent reading. This program allows for that.
• Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 allows for scaffolding of reading material to get the kids into more challenging material. This program allows children to be successful and build on their strengths.
• Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 empowers students to take ownership in the learning process. It gives them a voice.
• Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 is a program that lets students practice and apply skills and strategies learned during mini lessons and strategy-group instruction.

Incentivized