The pandemic has certainly affected the education system globally, and no one can say for certain when it will be over. While physical classes may still be impossible, the national government has imposed distance or remote learning to avoid further risk of infection. Lessons are being delivered in various ways including print (modular) and TV, but majority prefers the online medium.
For a successful remote learning session to take place, the teachers and learners must have comprehensive lesson plans, stable Internet connection, and modern PCs or laptops equipped with the latest tech features. This is so it can handle long hours of video conferencing and online tasks, among others. While these features may seem to cover everything, there are also online tools and applications that both teachers and learners can utilize to maximize the remote learning experience.
Given that Microsoft Windows is the most commonly installed OS globally, we take a look at some of the best tools compatible with the platform on this list. These are tools beneficial for creativity, critical thinking, and classroom management.
Microsoft Teams
Never has there been a more conducive online meeting environment that Microsoft Teams. Aside from video-conferencing, students and teachers are able to collaborate live in real time and share files via OneNote or OneDrive so no one gets left behind. It also comes fully integrated with the Office 365 and has direct link to e-mail, Skype, and SharePoint, therefore reducing e-mail correspondence to just the essential.
OneNote
A digital version of a classroom notebook, OneNote is more efficient and instant when it comes to sharing lessons plans, handouts, and course materials within the virtual room. It easily becomes a content library as well that can be shared between learners and teachers; while its digital ink feature lets one create videos, sketches, illustrations, and helpful diagrams for interactive reporting.
Minecraft: Education Version
An ingenious way to heighten students’ creative interest is through this app. Teachers are able to impart knowledge on urban planning, science, geography, and the environment while students build their own version on each subject. Microsoft also incorporated the Hour of Code fetaure to help students code in an engaging way.
Immersive Reader Tool
Students with learning difficulties can rely on the Immersive Reader tool to build their confidence in reading and comprehension. Teachers can incorporate features like Line Focus, Picture Dictionary, and Read Aloud to better help students cope with the lessons easier.
Codeacademy
For college and career prep, Codeacademy is a fun tool to learn real-world coding skills, data science, and online creativity. Working on a project using the tool simulates that of a computer engineer’s working environment, thus enhancing the skills of students to build their own websites and applications. Meanwhile, its intuitive interface lets teachers provide instant feedback on the lesson.
Kahoot
A teacher’s essential tool to assess the students’ overall learning experience. It goes beyond memorization by allowing the quiz maker to introduce interesting questions and prompts. Teachers can also make use of existing public Kahoots and remixes for quick review, or can assign a student every week to create the quiz for a more collaborative and relatable approach.
Flat
For creating media and the musically-inclined, Flat is a composition tool where budding musicians can create their own piece and share it with others. Teachers can encourage students to upload original compositions or create ensemble pieces for a live group performance.
Quizlet
It’s a hip way to use digital flash cards to help with reviews or assessments. Moreover, it’s not just an innovative learning tool to pass idle time, it can also be utilized to enhance foreign language learning. While beneficial to teachers, students can also generate their own for peer-to-peer review and assessment.
OneDrive
A cloud storage solution of up to 20GB where students and teachers can share files, documents, and portfolios in one place.
myHomework Student Planner
Students are able to improve or learn time-management through this tool, and it can be paired with the Teacher.io app for daily homework monitoring. It features a simple interface that allows its students and teachers to monitor due dates and assignments in one system.
When paired with the latest laptop or PC, there’s no doubt these apps will help make the transition from traditional to online learning a tad bit easier for learners and educators. Those who would like to avail the latest Microsoft solutions can visit this site where they can also save up to USD 9.5 when they purchase from VST ECS authorized resellers.
