As part of its commitment to education, The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) published a list of educational applications, platforms and resources to help parents, teachers, schools and school administrators facilitate student learning and provide social care and interaction during periods of school closure.
Most of the solutions curated are free and many cater to multiple languages. While these solutions do not carry UNESCO’s 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.
Please find the full list below as well as my top 5 recommended resources for Nigerian schools
Digital learning management systems
- Blackboard(link is external) – Resources and tools to transition and deliver quality teaching and learning online.
- CenturyTech(link is external) – Personal learning pathways with micro-lessons to address gaps in knowledge, challenge students and promote long-term memory retention.
- ClassDojo(link is external) – Connects teachers with students and parents to build classroom communities.
- Edmodo(link is external) – Tools and resources to manage classrooms and engage students remotely.
- Edraak(link is external) – Arabic language online education with resources for school learners and teachers.
- EkStep(link is external) – Open learning platform with a collection of learning resources to support literacy and numeracy.
- Google Classroom(link is external) – Helps classes connect remotely, communicate and stay-organized.
- Moodle(link is external) – Community-driven and globally-supported open learning platform.
- Nafham(link is external) – Arabic language online learning platform hosting educational video lessons that correspond with Egyptian and Syrian curricula.
- Schoology(link is external) – Tools to support instruction, learning, grading, collaboration and assessment.
- Seesaw(link is external) – Enables the creation of collaborative and sharable digital learning portfolios and learning resources.
- Skooler(link is external) – Tools to turn Microsoft Office software into an education platform.
- Study Sapuri(link is external) – Japanese language online learning platform for middle school students.
Systems purpose-built for mobile phones
- Cell-Ed(link is external) – Learner-centered, skills-based learning platform with offline options.
- Eneza Education(link is external) – Revision and learning materials for basic feature phones.
- Funzi(link is external) – Mobile learning service that supports teaching and training for large groups.
- KaiOS(link is external) – Software that gives smartphone capabilities to inexpensive mobile phones and helps open portals to learning opportunities.
- Ubongo(link is external) – Uses entertainment, mass media, and the connectivity of mobile devices to deliver localized learning to African families at low cost and scale.
- Ustad Mobile(link is external) – Access and share educational content offline.
Systems with strong offline functionality
- Can’t wait to Learn(link is external) – Gaming technology to deliver quality education to children, including those in conflict contexts.
- Kolibri(link is external) – Learning application to support universal education.
- Rumie(link is external) – Education tools and content to enable lifelong learning for underserved communities.
- Ustad Mobile(link is external) – Access and share educational content offline.
Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) Platforms
- Alison(link is external) – Online courses from experts.
- Coursera(link is external) – Online courses taught by instructors from well-recognized universities and companies.
- EdX(link is external) – Online courses from leading educational institutions.
- University of the People(link is external) – Online university with open access to higher education.
- Icourses(link is external) – Chinese language courses for university students.
- Future Learn(link is external) – Online courses to help learners study, build professional skills and connect with experts.
- Canvas – Lifelong learning and professional development for educators.
Self-directed learning content
- Byju’s(link is external) – Learning application with large repositories of educational content tailored for different grades and learning levels.
- Discovery Education(link is external) – Free educational resources and lessons about viruses and outbreaks for different grade levels.
- Geekie(link is external) – Portuguese language web-based platform that provides personalized educational content using adaptive learning technology.
- Khan Academy(link is external) – Free online courses, lessons and practice.
- KitKit School(link is external) – Tablet-based learning suite with a comprehensive curriculum spanning early childhood through early primary levels.
- LabXchange(link is external) – Curated and user-created digital learning content delivered on an online platform that enables educational and research experiences.
- Mindspark(link is external) – Adaptive online tutoring system that helps students practice and learn mathematics.
- Mosoteach(link is external) – Chinese language application hosting cloud classes.
- OneCourse(link is external) – Child-focused application to deliver reading, writing and numeracy education.
- Quizlet(link is external) – Learning flashcards and games to support learning in multiple subjects.
- Siyavula(link is external) – Mathematics and physical sciences education aligned with South African curriculum.
- YouTube(link is external) – Huge repository of educational videos and learning channels.
Mobile reading applications
- African Storybook(link is external) – Open access to picture storybooks in African languages.
- Global Digital Library(link is external) – Digital storybooks and other reading materials easily accessible from mobile phones or computers.
- Lezioni sul sofà – A collection of Italian language books for children, complemented with read-aloud features as well as videos discussing books and art.
- StoryWeaver(link is external) – Digital repository of multilingual stories for children.
- Worldreader(link is external) – Digital books and stories accessible from mobile devices and functionality to support reading instruction.
Collaboration platforms that support live-video communication
- Dingtalk(link is external) – Communication platform that supports video conferencing, task and calendar management, attendance tracking and instant messaging.
- Lark(link is external) – Collaboration suite of interconnected tools, including chat, calendar, creation and cloud storage.
- Hangouts Meet(link is external) – Video calls integrated with other Google’s G-Suite tools.
- Teams(link is external) – Chat, meet, call and collaboration features integrated with Microsoft Office software.
- Skype(link is external) – Video and audio calls with talk, chat and collaboration features.
- Zoom(link is external) – Cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, collaboration, chat and webinars.
Tools to create of digital learning content
- Thinglink(link is external) – Tools to create interactive images, videos and other multimedia resources.
- Buncee(link is external) – Supports the creation and sharing visual representations of learning content, including media-rich lessons, reports, newsletters and presentations.
- EdPuzzle(link is external) – Video lesson creation software.
- Kaltura(link is external) – Video management and creation tools with integration options for various learning management systems.
- Nearpod(link is external) – Software to create lessons with informative and interactive assessment activities.
- Pear Deck(link is external) – Facilitates the design of engaging instructional content with various integration features.
- Squigl(link is external) – Content creation platform that transforms speech or text into animated videos.
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