For example, on a cloudy afternoon in Washington, D.C., Reggie Smith III stayed at home with his two daughters: a 20-year-old sophomore attended her course at Xavier University in Louisiana through Zoom, and an 8-year-old student contacted her classmates through Google Classroom. Smith, executive director of the American Distance Learning Association, a non-profit organization, has just finished a webinar for his team members. In a few minutes, he will help the youngest child finish his studies.
Like many parents, Smith is experiencing what he calls the "fire hose" effect of homeschooling. He said: "Parents are in a state of information overload. If you work full-time, especially if you are considered as an indispensable employee in the group, you can't spare too much time, then the course content of 6-8 hours will make you daunting. "
These hours may be standard course assignments, but some students may need or even hope to get a little extra support during their home study, and parents who may not have taken algebra or trigonometry classes for decades or more may also need some support.
Although students may encounter difficulties in any subject at any time, Kyle Somersall, a former primary school teacher in new york and now a tutor, said that mathematics is especially challenging for young people studying at home.
"For example, in traditional classes, mathematics is usually taught in a more practical way than oral English and reading courses," said Somersel, who holds a master's degree in education and now provides paid private mathematics tutoring and college exam preparation courses for junior and senior high school students during the current lockout period.
In his office in Harlem, Summersell said, "Teachers usually show students a problem, perhaps using building blocks or other props, and then students work together in groups to solve the problem. Studying at home is very good at this. "
MathBRIX website provides a six-month free experiment, trying to help motivate students to solve problems by providing virtual building blocks and other virtual math games, thus solving this challenge for students from kindergarten to senior two.
Summersall uses various tools to teach his students, including Google Docs, Zoom and Microsoft Whiteboard.
Bita Nazarian, executive director of San Francisco-based non-profit organization 826 Valencia, aims to help students aged 6 to 18 who lack resources learn reading and writing skills. He said that the fact that not all students' needs have been met masks the shortage of online tools.
Nazarian's two children, an 8-year-old and a 9-year-old, are running around her home office, laughing and saying, "There are all kinds of digital platforms to choose from, but not all families can use these platforms, devices or Wi-Fi. It is not enough just to get links from schools and expect parents and children to get the knowledge they need immediately. "
In addition to the resources provided by the local school district, many online tools also provide specialized courses and counseling help in mathematics and other disciplines. Although the number of courses offered may be overwhelming, education professionals and parents all say that some of the free online math resources they use most often in family education are:
● Khan Academy
● Mathematics that I can do.
● Mathematical space
● Mathematics Learning Center
khan academy
Like many experts interviewed, Nazarian and her children use the resources of the non-profit organization Khan Academy, which is one of the most popular online learning tools.
Nazarian said, "Khan Academy has prepared math demonstrations and exercises for children of different ages. This seems to be the standard for many students to learn now. "
According to the website of Khan Academy, it now provides free daily courses for students aged 2 to 18. The curriculum includes suggestions for math exercises, such as decimals in fifth grade math.
Nazarian also suggested using freckle for different age groups. According to its website, Freckle has provided more than 50,000 math exercises for students from kindergarten to ninth grade.
The math I can do
For students of different levels from primary school to university, I can be my machine for mathematics and help them complete long math exercises. The company provides its desktop application for free.
Mathematical space
This online education project is aimed at students from primary school to high school, providing learning resources such as textbooks, videos and lesson plans. Students can do it independently or together with teachers.
Mathematics learning center
The Mathematics Learning Center was originally funded by the National Science Foundation of the United States to help promote the teaching of various mathematics subjects. It provides a large number of free learning tools for students and their teachers, including applications, curriculum plans, publications and blogs, including suggestions for studying at home during school closure.
At present, helping parents and students helps to ensure students' learning choices, but Somersall warns that during this period, the ways and contents that students can actually learn are still limited.
He said, "If you think about how much students have forgotten in summer, I can't imagine what it will be like in six months. Many things that students need to learn cannot be copied by technology alone. "
However, Smith said that although the class may not meet the expectations of students and parents, the time spent at home can play another role.
Smith said: "I think during this time, many parents will really establish contact with their children in an unprecedented way." He said: "This is an opportunity to really know what kind of learners your students are, what their learning styles are, what they care about, and what makes them want to stand up and have a rest or walk around the house."
"Finally, parents will have a new understanding of their children, and I think they will be very grateful to the teacher."
Under the background of global education informationization, digitalization, network interconnection and media