blog
In light of the Coronavirus, we are all getting used to the new normal that is everyday life. Phrases like ‘social distancing’ and ‘flattening the curve’ have become phrases to live by as communities up and down the country try and adjust.
For many, working from home has become almost ubiquitous, and for many it will be the first time they have worked from home. Kitchens, bedrooms and living rooms have all become places of work, and they’ll remain so for some time yet.
As a result, huge demand is being placed on internet providers to keep us connected – at a time when connection has never mattered more. CityFibre, the UK’s third national digital infrastructure platform, is doing everything it can to support people in Peterborough by providing best-in-class digital connectivity to almost every home and business in the town/city.
Through our Gigabit-capable fibre optic network, people in the city will benefit from much more reliable access to apps that make working from home easier, online education platforms for children as well as a mixture of other online workshops/ classes for all ages.
This is about more than just broadband; it’s about making sure we are doing everything to help keep our economy strong and making sure our children are still learning valuable skills during this tumultuous period.
To help keep you up to speed, we’ve listed our top ten apps. Whether it’s providing infotainment and education or supporting home working, all of these apps are designed to support people working or learning remotely.
- itslearning
The itslearning platform allows education professionals to personalise learning by collating curriculum resources, instructional strategies, objective-based lesson plans and assessments, and real-time reporting all in one easy-to-access central location.
In addition, the system provides many different opportunities to develop interactive/ engaging lessons as well as offering different paths for students to collaborate with their teachers and easily share materials, allowing teachers to spend more time on teaching their students.
Google has teamed up with educators across the country to create ‘Classroom’, a streamlined platform which offers a number of key useful features to teachers and students where anybody can sign in from any computer or mobile device to access class assignments, course materials, and feedback.
Following this, practitioners can track the progress of their students so they know where and how to give extra feedback. With simplified workflows, there is more time for teachers to concentrate on giving students constructive, personalized recommendations.
Most importantly, it is also totally free to use and set up!
Fairly new to app stores, EdPlus Kids has been developed by an Oxford University Spinout with the aim of making out-of-school learning easier for parents and more fun for learners.
Specialising in maths, it also offers study subjects in a range of subjects including science, English and other foreign languages.
What’s more, it keeps learners motivated by allowing them to unlock games as a reward as they complete tasks. Parents and guardians can also keep an eye on progress by receiving notifications when milestones are achieved.
Microsoft Teams is an online platform that is part of Office365. The platform can be used for several different purposes, whether its socialising with friends, speaking with colleagues or holding online education classes.
Members can join an online conversation from anywhere – either in the form of a group chat or a video conference to teams of up to 10,000. More impressive is the system’s ability to access, share, and edit Word docs, PowerPoint, and Excel files in real time – meaning no more frantic searching-for-files ever again ahead of an important meeting.
Reading Eggs is built around the school curriculum and provides an excellent source of resources and strategies that make learning to read both rewarding and fun. The programme was developed by an experienced team of teachers, educational writers, animators and web developers, so you can be sure that it offers a quality learning experience for young learners.
Masterclass is an online streaming website where subscribers can learn and participate in workshops taught by the world’s leading professionals. The site includes online masterclasses in sports, cooking, business and much more held by individuals such as Gordan Ramsay, Serena Williams, Jodie Foster and Chris Voss.
Outsourcely is an online platform aimed at freelancers; the site connects freelancers with companies looking for external workers from customer support and data entry, to project managers, virtual assistants, recruitment and sales.
One of the best aspects of Outsourcely is that it aims to link individuals to companies who are looking for long-term workers, rather than those hiring for short-term projects – particularly important with more freelancers looking for work than ever before.
For self-confessed procrastinators, this app could help make your homeworking days more productive. It is based on the Pomodoro Technique, which encourage users to focus their work efforts into timed 25-minute slots, allowing for a five-minute break between each burst of activity.
The app allows you to tailor your focus sessions and set goals around the number of focus periods you want to achieve each day.
This is a great app for those who miss the hustle and bustle of the work place, as it allows you to mix your own ambient sounds so that it’s easier to get into the zone for a productive day’s work. It’s also perfect if you want to drown out other sounds, such as the washing machine, dishwasher or chatter from housemates when you’re working from home.
Finally, Evernote could revolutionise homeworking life for those of us who don’t have access to a printer, or want to reduce their paper consumption. It works by enabling users to save all of their ideas, notes, to-do-lists, and reminders in one place.
Even better, Evernote allows users to add notes in all sorts of different formats – Typed notes, attachments, web clippings, or recorded memos – while also making them searchable.
***
These are just a few examples, but there’s plenty of quality resources and applications out there, all designed to help us be more efficient and stay informed and entertained.
At CityFibre, our goal is to bring future-proof digital connectivity to up to 8 million homes across the UK, enabling even more of the population to enjoy the high-speed, high-capacity internet that helps us enjoy these fantastic resources; and without the lag or buffering so many of us have grown used to.
Construction to build Peterborough’s full fibre network began in 2018 and, once complete, almost every home and business in the local area will be able to access gigabit capable services over full fibre.
Our networks, however, are about more than just bringing gigabit broadband services to residents. We also serve thousands of critical healthcare, education and community sites too, including hospitals, GP surgeries, community buildings, schools and council offices.
As key workers, CityFibre has been asked by the UK Government to continue to expand the nation’s digital capacity. All contractors are being urged to follow the social distancing protocols as outlined by Public Health England to ensure our build partner’s safety.
For more information about our Gigabit City Programme and our response to the COVID-19 outbreak, visit www.cityfibre.com