With more and more schools closing around the world, distance learning is becoming the new reality. This changes everything. The first thing on everyone’s mind is equity in access, especially with many students who do not have internet or devices at home. Internet access is already a topic of conversation in the US. Here is an article demanding action from US News. However, Comcast and ATT both have special offers for low-income families to get internet for free or little cost!
Even in a perfect world where everyone has a device and high speed internet, teachers still face challenges moving to online classes. There are resources out there to help and many companies are offering extended free trials to products that might help.
Here is an article boasting 105 Tools to help with student engagement and distance learning. This article provides tons of resources for teachers and even some tips for getting started. Seesaw has provided remote learning webinars and offers resources for teachers, parents and students to get to know the platform if you are not already using it. Zoom CEO is giving K-12 schools access for free, removing time limitations for video conference meetings. ISTE also has information, tips and resources for educators making the move to online teaching. There are so many more free resources for schools that have closed–Edpuzzle, Book Creator, Kahoot Premium, BrainPop, Buncee Classroom, Discovery Education, Peardeck, Tynker, and more: See Full Article.
In addition, although we are not distance-learning experts, Amber has taught online, and we both have technology experience at various levels of K-12 education. Lausanne Learning has a large community of amazing teachers, and we see our small contribution to this time of challenges as a resource for help with questions, tech, access, just to talk out your ideas – whether with us directly or, if we can’t help you, with someone who can. Contact us today if we can help in any way!
We are ALL in this together and have a great opportunity to connect with each other and our communities to provide the support our students need during this time. Learning never ends and when we work together, we can achieve anything. Good luck to everyone out there and remember to wash those hands!
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