SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- As concerns over the Swine Flu virus continue to mount across the country, an increasing number of schools may opt to take matters into their own hands, sending kids home to wait out what they perceive will be the peak of the flu pandemic. Parents should prepare for Swine Flu school closures in the near future. For parents and educators, the fear is that homebound students will fall behind, faced with few alternatives for their kids to make productive use of the downtime.
According to Flu.gov, a federal government website managed by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, students should "have workbooks, learning videos, and other materials available at home that support classroom exercises."
The U.S. Department of Education recommends that some districts, schools, and states have some of the resources and capabilities for the distribution of instructional content via the Internet. Moreover, it urges the provision of "audio-visual learning supports that can be made available on the Internet using e-learning and other Learning Management Systems."
Yet with all these recommendations, homebound students are faced with a dearth of attractive yet effective sites that could ideally fit the bill. Stuart Ackerman, founder of the online tutoring site, TutorGiant.com, believes he's found the solution to fill that void. "You would think the Internet would be a great resource for supporting your child's education," Ackerman noted, "but when I started surfing the Internet, I couldn't find any decent websites that spoke to me."
Ackerman, a certified school teacher with 14 years of experience and a Masters in Education from New York State, came up with the idea of launching a comprehensive archive of instructional videos, employing himself as the featured instructor. "Originally, I planned to videotape different instructors for each video," Ackerman explained, "but then I figured, with my experiences, I could do it more effectively if I just did it all myself."
The results are impressive. With an archive, to date, of over 400 videos and 500 worksheets in math and English which span the early elementary grades to high school, TutorGiant.com offers a highly engaging online learning experience. With Ackerman front and center in each video, the website, which is available 24/7, offers instruction aided by eye-pleasing graphics that effectively illuminate key concepts.
"I originally designed Tutorgiant for tutoring, but I also realized that students who missed school due to sickness and other reasons had to get caught up on lessons. I believe I solved this problem." For concerned parents and educators looking for a website that will engage homebound students, that may well be the case.
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