COVID-19 Pandemic storm has fasten the world and has especially impacted education system. Over 80% of the world’s students are not attending school or Universities. The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing all educational institutions to shift rapidly from in-person to online learning.
The EdTalk Team has come up with the list of educational applications, platforms and resources below aim to help parents, teachers, schools and school administrators facilitate student learning and provide social care and interaction during periods of school closure after extensive research. Most of the solutions curated are free and many cater to multiple languages. While these solutions do not carry The EdTalk explicit endorsement, they tend to have a wide reach, a strong user-base and evidence of impact. They are categorized based on distance learning needs, but most of them offer functionalities across multiple categories.
Self-directed learning content
- Byju’s – Learning application with large repositories of educational content tailored for different grades and learning levels.
- Discovery Education – Free educational resources and lessons about viruses and outbreaks for different grade levels.
- Khan Academy – Free online lessons and practice in math, sciences and humanities, as well as free tools for parents and teachers to track student progress. Available in 40+ languages, and aligned to national curriculum for over 10 countries.
- KitKit School – Tablet-based learning suite with a comprehensive curriculum spanning early childhood through early primary levels.
- LabXchange – Curated and user-created digital learning content delivered on an online platform that enables educational and research experiences.
- Mindspark – Adaptive online tutoring system that helps students practice and learn mathematics.
- OneCourse – Child-focused application to deliver reading, writing and numeracy education.
- Quizlet – Learning flashcards and games to support learning in multiple subjects.
- YouTube – Huge repository of educational videos and learning channels.
Digital learning management systems
- Blackboard – Resources and tools to transition and deliver quality teaching and learning online.
- CenturyTech – Personal learning pathways with micro-lessons to address gaps in knowledge, challenge students and promote long-term memory retention.
- ClassDojo – Connects teachers with students and parents to build classroom communities.
- Edmodo – Tools and resources to manage classrooms and engage students remotely.
- EkStep – Open learning platform with a collection of learning resources to support literacy and numeracy.
- Google Classroom – Helps classes connect remotely, communicate and stay-organized.
- Moodle – Community-driven and globally-supported open learning platform.
- Schoology – Tools to support instruction, learning, grading, collaboration and assessment.
- Seesaw – Enables the creation of collaborative and sharable digital learning portfolios and learning resources.
- Skooler – Tools to turn Microsoft Office software into an education platform.
Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) Platforms
- Alison – Online courses from experts.
- Canvas – Lifelong learning and professional development for educators.
- Coursera – Online courses taught by instructors from well-recognized universities and companies.
- EdX – Online courses from leading educational institutions.
- University of the People – Online university with open access to higher education.
- Future Learn – Online courses to help learners study, build professional skills and connect with experts.
Tools to create of digital learning content
- Thinglink – Tools to create interactive images, videos and other multimedia resources.
- Buncee – Supports the creation and sharing visual representations of learning content, including media-rich lessons, reports, newsletters and presentations.
- EdPuzzle – Video lesson creation software.
- Kaltura – Video management and creation tools with integration options for various learning management systems.
- Nearpod – Software to create lessons with informative and interactive assessment activities.
- Pear Deck – Facilitates the design of engaging instructional content with various integration features.
- Squigl – Content creation platform that transforms speech or text into animated videos.
Collaboration platforms that support live-video communication
- Zoom – Cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, collaboration, chat and webinars.
- Skype – Video and audio calls with talk, chat and collaboration features.
- Dingtalk – Communication platform that supports video conferencing, task and calendar management, attendance tracking and instant messaging.
- Lark – Collaboration suite of interconnected tools, including chat, calendar, creation and cloud storage.
- Hangouts Meet – Video calls integrated with other Google’s G-Suite tools.
- Teams – Chat, meet, call and collaboration features integrated with Microsoft Office software.
Systems with strong offline functionality
- Ustad Mobile – Access and share educational content offline.
- Can’t wait to Learn – Gaming technology to deliver quality education to children, including those in conflict contexts.
- Kolibri – Learning application to support universal education.
- Rumie – Education tools and content to enable lifelong learning for underserved communities.
Systems purpose-built for mobile phones
- Ustad Mobile – Access and share educational content offline.
- Cell-Ed – Learner-centered, skills-based learning platform with offline options.
- Eneza Education – Revision and learning materials for basic feature phones.
- Funzi – Mobile learning service that supports teaching and training for large groups.
- KaiOS – Software that gives Smartphone capabilities to inexpensive mobile phones and helps open portals to learning opportunities.
Mobile reading applications
- Global Digital Library – Digital storybooks and other reading materials easily accessible from mobile phones or computers.
- StoryWeaver – Digital repository of multilingual stories for children.
- Worldreader – Digital books and stories accessible from mobile devices and functionality to support reading instruction.
