Happy New Year 2022!

 

I’m taking a little break from researching and writing blog posts to celebrate the December holidays and the New Year. Hope you have been doing the same (enjoying quality time with family and friends).

 

Here’s a few highlights from 2021 if you’re looking for something to read:

·      Top 100 E-Learning Blogs and Websites (Dec 2021)

·      The 50 Best Education Blogs (Oct 2021)

·      25+ Best Free Online Education Sites (Dec 2021)

·      The 10 Best Educational Websites for Taking Online Courses in 2022 (Dec 2021)

·      Best Online Courses and Online Class Sites of 2021 (Sept 2021)

 

I’d love to hear what online education topics you, our readers, are interested in learning more about.  Email me your suggestions here, and we’ll see what we can do.

 

Happy New Year!

An Example of Successful Transition to Online Learning Due to Covid

Today I’m going to share a personal story. I teach English as a Second Language (ESL) as a volunteer. In March 2020, the local in-person program I was working with shut down. I was fortunate to find a class at the local university that focused on American English pronunciation for non-native speaking graduate students serving as teaching assistants. The classes went online in spring 2020, and all went well. At the end of this spring semester, however, the university stopped offering the class.

 

For the summer and fall semesters, I couldn’t find a local ESL opportunity that was easy to volunteer for or where I would feel safe. In October, I was visiting a newly-retired friend in Boulder CO who was very excited about volunteering as an ESL teacher online. I followed up with the sponsoring organization and have now been assigned to my own student.

 

I am very impressed with how nimbly this ESL program transitioned to providing their services online at the beginning of Covid, and how this transition has enabled the program to greatly expand their services, probably permanently. Intercambio was started in 2001 to connect volunteer teachers with Latin American immigrants needing to learn English (the students pay a small monthly fee to have some “skin in the game”). Intercambio developed an ESL curriculum and offered in-person classes that taught English with an emphasis on cultural exchange. Both teachers and students were drawn exclusively from the Boulder Colorado.

 

Once Covid hit, they developed a Zoom-based online platform to host their existing curriculum and started offering classes online. Not having had any experience teaching online before, they limited class size to one teacher and one student. As a volunteer teacher, I can access all curriculum materials and PowerPoint slides for class presentation through the CC English web platform. Both teachers and students can message each other through the CC English web platform, and use that to access the zoom link for each class session. The various capabilities of PowerPoint and Zoom enable me as teacher to add to the slide materials in-the-moment, allowing prompt response to my student’s questions during class.

 

At the beginning of Covid, CC English teachers and students came from the Boulder area only. By now, they have recruited volunteer teachers from across the US and students come from outside the Boulder area as well. I live in Salt Lake City and am working with a student in Colorado. My friend lives in Boulder and is working with a student in Maryland. The geographic boundaries for this program are limitless, but I don’t think they’ve expanded internationally … yet. CC English also plans to start offering ESL instruction in the new year with larger-than-one class sizes. Who knows how big this program could get?!

 

 

What is a mental health gym? Can you attend online?

 

We’ve all heard that physical exercise is good for your mental health, right? And many people seek therapy to address more emotional and mental health issues. But what if there were a way to do “emotional push-ups” and “weight-lifting for your mind”? Virtually? There is.

 

Liberate Mental Fitness Studio, available online since May 2020, offers classes via zoom that “decrease stress and increase joy.” Taught by a certified instructor, the classes offer a combination of mindful movement (think yoga), journaling, conversation and meditation.

 

Coa, started around the same time, bills itself as a mental health gym. Coa sessions were designed by a clinical psychologist, are led by therapists, and are built around seven traits of emotional fitness: self-awareness, empathy, curiosity, mindfulness, playfulness, resilience and communication.

 

Your Life Gym, self-proclaimed as the first mental health gym of all, is focused equally on physical and mental health, positing that physically fit individuals are also mentally resilient. The gym’s mission is to “emulate positivity, unity, and transformation.” While most of their classes are only available in person at the gym in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, mental health classes are available virtually.

 

Inception, also self-proclaimed as the first mental health gym of all, uses a circuit model training approach focused on relaxation as the pathway to mental health. Relaxation is promoted through physical experiences (infrared sauna, lymphatic suits, salt therapy) and brain training. Because many of their activities require special equipment, it looks like the Inception experience is only available in person at their Farmington Hills, Michigan location. Or you can buy some of their relaxation-promoting products online.

 

None of this is free, of course. But then, neither is going to a physical exercise gym. Fees for mental health gyms are structured essentially the same way as your fitness emporium. For some, a monthly fee gives you access to a variety of pre-recorded sessions and resource materials and a maximum number of exercise sessions. Additional services are priced accordingly. Other mental health gyms simply charge by the class or activity.

 

Finally, mental health gyms are not a substitute for professional counseling or therapy. Think of it more as preventive medicine.

Free Computers/Devices Available, Mostly for Low Income Families

The big news this week is that US President Biden signed the long-awaited infrastructure legislation, which includes $65B for universal broadband.  Gina Raimondo, US Secretary of Commerce, said:  “We’re going to bring high-speed, affordable, and reliable broadband to 100% of Americans.”  While the money cannot be spent immediately, the imminent broadband infrastructure will bring affordable internet access to many rural and low income students.

 

In our last blog post, we explored ways to access the internet for free (or very low cost).  That information is, of course, not very helpful if you don’t have a device (computer, laptop, tablet, smartphone). 

 

There is one easy way for anyone to get access to a computer for free.  Public libraries often offer use of a computer for a set period of time.  As mentioned in the last blog post, the internet access at libraries is often not secured (not password-protected), so you probably don’t want to pay your bills or check your bank balance at the library.

 

There are additional options for getting a free computer or other device.  Most require that  you meet certain low income criteria, but anyone can look for used laptops available for free.  I’ve found several articles that identify various ways to do just that (find free computers or other devices).  Rather than repeating their excellent research, I’ll just send you there:

 

·      51 Best Ways to Get a Free Laptop (Even from Apple, Amazon & Dell) (updated May 2021)

·      7 Ways to Get Free Computers for Low Income Families (updated September 2021)

·      8 Ways to Get Free Laptops (updated November 2021)

·      6 Places That Will Send You a Free Computer (updated December 2020)

·      27 Best Ways to Get a Free Computer from the Government (updated March 2019)

 

Free internet access can be found

 

Universal broadband, aka easy access to the internet for all, includes a geographic component (any person should be able to access the internet regardless of where they live or work) and a financial component (access to the internet should be affordable).  In our last post, I outlined some options for low-cost monthly internet services, even before we have universal broadband in the US.  But that only piqued my curiosity about free internet access.  Come to find out, it does exist in predictable and non-predictable forms.

 

As any student or unhoused person can tell you, you can get on the internet for free at most public libraries.  Your access may be time-limited if you’re using the library’s computer (especially if there is a line of people waiting to check their email), but bring your own laptop and you can go down internet rabbit holes all day for free.  I know, I’ve done it! 

 

Most coffee shops and restaurants offer free wifi as well.  You will probably need to buy something to eat or drink, but a small cup of coffee can last the entire afternoon while you’re enjoying the free wifi.  Especially pre-Covid, many of my friends and I lovingly referred to the local coffee shop as our “other office” because we spent so much time working there (and taking advantage of the free wifi). 

 

Come to find out, many nationwide chain stores also offer free wifi.  Stores like Office Depot, Target, Barnes and Noble, Best Buy, Apple, Marriott Hotels.  Unlike a coffee shop or a restaurant, it may be more complicated to set yourself up for a long work session in a store, but if you just need to quickly check your email, it might be the perfect spot.  WiFi Free Spot helps you find free wifi locations open to the general public, customers or guests by US state.  There are additional lists for free wifi locations in Europe; Canada; Carribean, Mexico, Central America and South America; Middle East and Africa; Asia; Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific. 

 

The internet access at libraries, stores and restaurants/coffee shops is often not secured (not password-protected), so you probably don’t want to pay your bills or check your bank balance at the library.

 

The ways of accessing the internet for free I described above are not that hard to figure out.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that there are also internet providers who offer limited free internet service.  FreedomPop offers a “Freemium plan” that includes unlimited wifi calling, 10 free text messages a month, and 25 MB data access per month (enough to access maps and check email not too frequently).  You pay $10 for a SIM card for your existing cellphone (which may be refundable if you return the card within one year), which then serves as your wifi hotspot whenever you want to access the internet.  If you need more internet access than offered for free, their more data-rich plans start at less than $10/month.  NetZero provides free dial-up internet access (via a CD uploaded to your computer), but your usage cannot exceed 10 hours per month.   NetZero also offers free email service through your cellphone with no apparent usage limitations.  Similar to NetZero, Juno also provides free email service through your cellphone.

 

Connect2Compete, run by Everyone On, helps low income families find free or extremely low cost interest access (and devices).  Click the “find low-cost offers” to see what’s available where you live.  The ISP-in-Area website lists internet service providers by state.  Some ISP providers have programs through which they offer free or low-cost internet service to low income customers.  It just takes a little research to find them.

Broadband company takes steps toward universal internet access

In previous posts, we’ve explored the problem of unequal access to the internet across the US, as well as some of the possible solutions.  We made the case for universal broadband, described proposals for universal broadband funding, described the US federal government’s emergency broadband benefit program, and linked to an interactive map documenting the digital divide on the US.

 

The United States’ largest internet provider is showing how the private sector can be part of the solution as well.  I’m most familiar with what Comcast (aka Xfinity) is doing in my back yard (Salt Lake City).  The company recently announced they will be giving $100,000 and 1,000 computers to local non-profit organizations that work with children living in poverty.  Comcast will also be providing free wifi hotspots (“Lift Zones”) in 35 community centers throughout our state, expanding the free internet access currently available mostly in libraries, which often have limited opening hours.

 

You can plug your zipcode in at this website to see what similar services Comcast is providing in your community.

 

The recent donation of cash and equipment builds on Comcast’s ten-year history of offering low-cost internet access to families living below the poverty line.  While that opportunity still exists, Comcast is now also facilitating access to free emergency broadband benefits temporarily provided by the federal government.

 

Comcast is not the only entity to provide free devices to access the internet.  In future blogs, we will explore a variety of options to find a free computer or tablet, as well as ways to access the internet for free.

Free Homework Help at Your Local Library

 

I recently got an email from my county library alerting me to resources available for homework help.  The best line of the email:  “It's all FREE with your County Library card.”  Now, I think you do have to be a county resident to get a library card, but I’m sure other libraries have similar access.  Many of these resources can probably be accessed another way as well.

 

The resources are broken into three categories: 

 

·      Pre-K and elementary includes live tutors, magazines, encyclopedia (Funk & Wagnalls), pre-K prep, math and English, science experiments, videos and stories.

 

·      Middle and high school includes biographies, live tutors, career prep (licensure), college admissions help (essays), magazines, US and world history, HS equivalency (GED), military and government documents, poetry and short stories, points of view (controversies), school center (practice questions), science experiments, encyclopedia (World Book).

 

·      College and adult includes academic search (peer review), biographies, live tutors, career prep (licensure), college admissions help (essays), college students (test prep), magazines, HS equivalency (GED), US and world history, military and government documents, poetry and short stories, points of view (controversies), religion study and history, science experiments, tuition funding (scholarships), universal class, encyclopedia (World Book).