Thank you, COVID-19 pandemic! No, really – I want to express my sincere gratitude to this nasty virus that has broken the habitual way of life of virtually all people on Earth, regardless of the usual way of life. And the main reason for such an attitude is the way people have responded to this challenge by using existing technologies and inventing new ones to get things done. And I would venture to say that perhaps the most successful answer has been given in the field of education. Why? Because emerging tools and solutions will be used to help millions of students study long after the last lockdown has ended and every strain of coronavirus will have been defeated. So here are some of my best online study tools that have blossomed during the pandemic and are now definitely here for a long time to come.
Video conferencing solutions as educational technology tools
In the good old days, teachers forbade students from using gadgets during class. Nowadays, it is impossible to imagine lessons without students and teachers using all kinds of gadgets themselves. This is largely because of remote study, which is impossible without video conferencing solutions for small and large groups. The most striking example here is Zoom – arguably the best cloud-based video communication platform. The app has had a hard time due to security issues, but these days it’s hard to think of having a remote class or conference with up to several hundred participants through an app other than Zoom.
Yet Zoom’s exceptional functionality allows it to go far beyond a simple app for online classes and lectures. Cross-platform support, meeting recording, file sharing, screen sharing, built-in chat, breakout rooms, interactive elements, vast customization possibilities and other features allow Zoom to quickly expand to a corporate domain. If the creators of the app don’t do anything stupid and nothing bad happens with the app’s security, Zoom will be a staple of the e-learning and video conferencing landscape for years to come.
Digital learning tools and courseware from top universities
Generally, online open courseware has been around in education for quite some time now. However, until the pandemic broke out, it was seen as something complementary, second only to “real” in-person education at physical universities. After COVID pretty much locked everyone in their apartments and houses, many students have rediscovered online learning opportunities and are now taking advantage of their benefits.
In case you still have a pretty rough idea of what an online courseware is, I suggest you visit the Open Education Consortium website right now. There you can browse schools and universities and access their websites to see what free tutorials they offer. The OEC comprises several hundred member institutions from 37 countries. For example, the United States is represented by MIT, the University of Michigan, UC Irvine, Johns Hopkins, and more than a hundred other schools.
Still, OEC isn’t the only place to look for high-quality open source tutorials. Virtually all well-established universities in the United States and around the world have their free education projects – Harvard, Yale, Stanford, UC Berkeley, UTokyo, Middle East Technical University, Delft University of Technology, University of Hong Kong, yadda, yadda, yadda. It is obvious that as the prices of college education continue to rise as students realize they can successfully study remotely, open courseware will only grow in popularity.
Online databases of article and essay samples
Another free resource that students have started to use more actively during the lockdown is college essay examples. Perhaps this happens because in the past, students were given enough guidance and examples during in-person lessons, but with remote learning, this aspect remains unaddressed by teachers. Not only do high-quality samples show how a particular type of paper should be written, structured, and formatted, but they also showcase topic-specific writing practices and techniques used by professional writers.
In this context, there is nothing surprising about the growing popularity of WowEssays – arguably, the largest database of free trials on the market. It includes around 100,000 sample articles of every possible type on hundreds of topics. The service claims that almost every article was written by a qualified writer with relevant expertise. The main idea of the service is to help high school, college and university students find decent examples to use as role models, as well as serve as a source of general inspiration and ideas for new topics. . Certainly, once used successfully, these platforms will remain in vogue thereafter.
Online Writing Tools and Services for Students Who Can’t Even
It’s great when coping with all the homework, projects and homework is no problem for you. Yet many of us have been in a situation where we can’t even do it, no matter how hard we try. A critical lack of time, health issues, lack of writing skills or fluency in English, a wild pool party your friend is throwing – these and other factors can get in the way of achieving any what task at any time. At this point, it’s already a bit late to take a Essay Composition 101 course or even an expertly crafted sample piece of work. Perhaps the only effective way left is to go to a custom writing website. Like many other things on my list, the on-demand academic writing industry existed before the COVID pandemic hit the world. However, the lockdown has really taken it to the next level – ordering original articles from experts in the field has become routine for many people.
A student favorite is PaperHelp. This article writing service can deliver anything from a simple 5-paragraph essay or simple research paper to a full-fledged bachelor’s or doctoral thesis. memory chapter. And don’t forget presentations, speeches, calculations, STEM assignments and other tasks – there are capable people who can do all of this among several hundred experts on PaperHelp’s staff. Unfortunately, paying someone to write a creative piece or solve a math problem for you is a bit dodgy in terms of ethics and legality. You see, all of these services deny that you are not supposed to submit received documents as your own, at least not unchanged. On the other hand, they guarantee the confidentiality of the customers and the originality of the paper, so it is impossible that someone can discover your little secret…
Screw the confinement with an educational platform to your liking!
The list I have presented above is by no means exhaustive. Despite all the suffering caused by the pandemic, one of its side effects has been – and in fact is – the explosive growth of useful online tools in virtually every sphere of human life. In my humble opinion, education is perhaps the most important because it lays the foundation for years and generations to come. And there’s not a single reason not to use the opportunities this monumental shift opens up. From some of the best online learning platforms for kids (Adventure Academy, ReadingIQ, Mathseeds, CodaKid, etc.) to comprehensive educational resources for adults (Coursera, Skillshare, EdX, MasterClass, etc.), and of course, in Using the tools I’ve described – you can screw up the lock, learn effectively now, and use them to broaden and deepen your knowledge in the future, because the vast majority of these resources are here for a long time!
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