Coronavirus Lockdown: Tips to Kill Boredom(part 1)

CORONAVIRUS LOCKDOWN: TIPS TO KILL BOREDOM 

Learning is Fun

The Coronavirus also called COVID 19 is a big war nobody saw coming this 2020. Not only has it made everyone to be on their heels, but it doesn't discriminate as both the rich and the poor, the public figures and the commoners, etc are affected or stand a chance to be affected by it.

However, in times like this stay-at-home, a lot of things happen, boredom usually the most common. In a bid to help curb boredom this write up was made to give us a guide on anti-boredom tips to do. Also, this period can also be a good time to learn new skills and do new things. Who says staying at home is frustrating!!!

I will cover many areas that we can engage in to make our stay at home much easier and happier, however, for starters, we will cover educational enrichment now which can be summarised into:

1. Dive into the online learning platform.
2. Online learning platforms and features.
3. Introducing you to it.
4. Who should take part in this and the advantages?
5. What next? 

DIVE INTO ONLINE LEARNING PLATFORMS.
An online learning platform is a good option for many people. Not only does it give you the comfort of learning from your home, office, etc, it also gives you the opportunity to interact with lecturers or instructors from other countries in the world and learning from their rich educational syllabus. Additionally it gives you the grace to interact with learners from around the world too. A certificate is given on completion and it's just a really exciting way of learning and for somebody like me, it almost like the only time I get to learn and be super happy why receiving lectures,
So I will move straight into the list of some of the online learning platforms out there for you.

TOP FIVE ONLINE LEARNING PLATFORMS AND THEIR MAJOR FEATURES
All the platforms have either a website or a mobile application while some have both. However, in some, the website is way better than the mobile app while in others the mobile app gives a better experience than the website. Read the tip to know which you should make use of in any of the platforms.

1)  ALISON. ( https://alison.com/ )
I had my first online learning courses from here and it was super amazing. Alison is more like a charity home, in the sense that they practically offer all their courses for free. However, you will have to pay some money to get the certificate (it's worth it!)

TIPS:

• There are loads of courses here, so it will be okay if you get confused on the exact course to choose.
• The courses are grouped into different fields, you will have to choose the category you want.
• The classes are divided into tiny sections and may either be in writing or videos and the videos don't have a transcript, you have to use your MB to play the videos.
• If you want more content in a course, Alison may be the option you should go for. The content of the course here is so voluminous,  especially if you are doing a diploma course. I am still doing a course on Microsoft software I started since last year!!
• Please don't bother downloading the mobile application, it's such a waste of MB

2). FUTURELEARN (https://www.futurelearn.com/ )

This UK-based learning platform offers a top selection of online degrees and free certification courses, available on mobile, tablet or desktop. The courses here are pretty limited, however, the ones available are very good. I enjoy learning here the most!!!

TIPS.

• The courses are either on video or write-ups. All the videos have a transcript!! This is really good to save data, so you can just be reading the transcript and ignore watching the videos especially if you have poor networks.
• All the courses are free but to get the certification you have to pay money. They do bonanza sometimes and offer certification for free.
• This is the most interactive learning platform ever because you have the opportunity to interact and comment on every lecture. And even ask questions.
• The only problem with futurelearn is that your access to a course is so limited and once that date passes you can't have access to it again. So you will have to plan your calendar very well to meet up with the course duration.
• Also every course have a starting date, so you can only access a course when it's commences.
• The website will do, you don't need the mobile application.

3)  EDX.  ( https://www.edx.org/ )
This is a really cool platform too. It's own by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the courses are very educative. If you want to see loads of Harvard University courses this is where to find it.

TIPS.

• The mobile application is the key here. Please just leave the website and use the app it's just about 14MB to download.
• The courses are either videos or write-ups, however, the videos have transcript!!! So you can easily read it if you are having poor network. However some courses are in a way that you can't learn it without videos and so transcript will be useless, here you can easily download the videos for the future.
• Your access to the course too is limited like future learn so you need to work with a calendar.
• Courses here too also have starting date and you can only access a course when it commences

4)  UDEMY.  (https://www.udemy.com/)

It offers something for everyone, from business development, finance and accounting, to design, marketing and office productivity. Udemy allows you to pick and choose the topics you are interested in, rather than committing yourself to a strict lesson plan, which makes this educational platform extremely flexible and user-friendly.

TIPS.

• Since practically anyone can become a course instructor on Udemy, make sure to choose courses with high ratings and excellent reviews to maximise the money and time spent learning a new skill.
• Additionally, if you’re a business owner, you can opt for a business account, which will unlock thousands of relevant courses for all your team members and in very specific fields.
• The website and mobile application are super wonderful. 

5).  COURSERA. (https://www.coursera.org/)
This list will be incomplete without Coursera. This is like the biggest and most trusted learning platform ever. They offer courses from top universities in the world like Harvard, Yale, Oxford University etc and the course content is super amazing.

TIPS

• The courses are available on payment of fees  so you need a financial budget to learn here but its worth it
• You can do masters and doctorate degree here. You can basically go to school. Like even do your B.SC here. There are more platforms but I will like to stop here.
• You can sure of getting your money's  worth from any course you choose to offer.
•  There are one week free access for some courses though.
• The mobile app is great.

INTRODUCING YOU TO ONLINE COURSES.
To get started with online learning there are things you need in place. Such

• EMAIL ACCOUNT: Most Online platforms will require you to sign up using an email or yahoo account. So, you need one to get started. Also, it has to be a functional email as most times they send a verification message to your email for you to click on before you can complete your registration on the platform.
• BROWSER: You need a good browser to access most online courses. For those using their laptops, Windows, Linux and Mac are pretty good. However, for those using their mobile phones to access these platforms then Chrome is a great idea that I will personally recommend. Firefox too may be okay. Generally, all browsers are okay, but some browser won't load the pages well of these courses and it will affect your learning experience so start the course. But as you go you can notice which browser works better for you.
• ELECTRICITY: The one thing that can make a vacation so frustrating is lack of electricity. So, yes you need electricity as your data is on while doing the courses and your phone battery may be running down fast. However, you can easily load all the pages you want to read and off your data so as to reduce battery consumption.
• NETWORK: You don't want to play a video with a bad network, you will practically run mad. So the network is really necessary to enjoy your experience here. However, don't lose hope simply download the pages in a place with a good network and then go back to your comfort zone to read it.
• DISCIPLINE: This is a VIRTUE when it comes to the online learning experience. Remember no lecturer is taking attendance or subtracting mark from you. So you need to be discipline else you may not meet your time table.
• TIME: Time is important too. Time spent on the learning platforms and time for exams etc is something you choose in your convenience so I advise you choose something you can work with.
• OBSERVANT: you need to be really observant of the learning environments for you to do well in it. So yes I advise you click on everything you see, go through every page and learn
• FUN: Who says learning is not fun. Learning can really be so much fun too.

LIST OF ONLINE PLATFORMS FOR PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS STUDENTS 

https://outschool.com/   yeah, it's top of the list so it's my favourites for secondary students and pupils too.
https://primetech101.com/my-number-bond-app-3/   offers exciting classwork an assignment for kids to stay busy.
https://emea.scholastic.com/en  Woww parents watch out for this
https://www.varsitytutors.com/  This is perfect for both primary and secondary schools students
https://mysteryscience.com/   This one inspires children of 3-16 years old to love science.
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/preparing-for-uni   This one is for SS3 students to prepare them for University

OTHER STUDENTS
For those in the higher institution especially those in federal and state universities, it seems your vacation will be very long because of the ASUU strike. So I will list the courses for law students. There are lots more. Remember to try the platforms I listed above.

LAW STUDENTS 
https://www.shortcoursesportal.com/studies/194014/international-human-rights-law.html This one is on edx. Read the section I explain how to go about edx platform.
https://www.shortcoursesportal.com/studies/194009/international-law.html  This is good for those that want to do international law.
https://www.shortcoursesportal.com/studies/254663/international-investment-law.html  Investment lawyers look here
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/mergers-acquisitions-structuring-deals   This is good

https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/human-rights-and-international-criminal-law
http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=SAyYsTvLiGQ&subid=&offerid=451430.1&type=10&tmpid=18061&RD_PARM1=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.coursera.org%2Flearn%2Foilandgas&u1=gtc_ivy_league_courses_2020_fcc_medium     Oil and gas law course totally free on Coursera.

Other course of study have rich certification courses which are available at the platforms I listed. Just search for it there. 


WHO SHOULD ENGAGE IN THIS EXERCISE AND THE ADVANTAGES
Well for starters, everyone should take part in this mainly because the moment you stop learning then everything comes to a halt. So with our stay-at-home practice engaging in online courses can really be a great way for us to learn more skills, new skills, and just anything we wish.
Also, the courses listed are not exhaustive, meaning there are lots more, hence you can see more just by searching for it on google or those platforms listed. Everyone including parents, students, workers, teachers etc can benefit from this.
The advantages Everyone:

• Exposure to new knowledge
• Increasing your skills especially technological skills.
• Advancing in your career field.
• Improving on your CV through the certification from those courses.
• Networking with new people and lecturers from all over the world.
• General exposure into the online experience.

WHAT NEXT!!!!!

• Start signing up and doing the courses already!! 
• Ask as many questions as possible. Remember it your first time so you may have a lot of confusion but feel free to contact me through my contact details below or comment on the blog post.
• Don't be afraid. Be strong. Remember you will not be alone. People have done this before, people are doing it with you and people will do it after. So I will try to create a network with you and others if you wish to just contact me.
• We are aware learning is so much phone when done in a group. So if you wish to join a group of learners, feel free to identify yourself with me so I can connect you with others. So exciting right!!!
• Watch out for my next post on other things to engage in during this coronavirus stay at home.
• Don't forget to share to as many people as possible. Let's fight boredom and idleness in our community.