Educational companies encourage learning from home during quarantine
Educational companies in Israel and around the world are offering compromised services due to the novel coronavirus.
By TAMAR URIEL-BEERIThe Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot.(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Companies within various realms of life, in particular those working around education, have been reaching out over the past few days to their customers and to those affected by coronavirus to offer services applicable to those in hospital, quarantine, or social distancing.Kotar, an Israeli online library, is offering all of its resources for free for the next month to give people in solitary confinement something to read for the time being. The only thing that they require is to like and share their Facebook post and comment saying that they have done so, and a user code will be sent to whoever does so.Davidson Institute, the educational division of the Weizmann Institute of Science, is offering educational activities on the official website of the center, including trivia, videos, experiments and the like so as to pass the time of those bored at home.Coursera, the online university learning platform, is offering "every impacted university in the world with free access to our course catalogue through Coursera for Campus." EdX, another online learning platform, launched the Remote Access Program, which allows its community to provide students with "free access to courses and programs not just from their own universities, but from all edX partners participating in the initiative, helping students continue to learn online even as campuses close."Other than educational platforms, several companies throughout Israel have been offering adjusted services due to the outbreak.Bank Hapoalim, for example, is allowing its customers to delay the payment of their mortgage by three months due to the outbreak. Anyone with a loan or mortgage from the bank may contact them immediately to request it.Israeli community crisis aid organization Lev Echad is operating a web of volunteers who can help people do their shopping. They are also offering farmers to help them with the harvest, as well as cleaning schools and any other need that may come forth due to quarantines and the like. Anyone wishing for help may submit a form.The Ramat Gan municipality in central Israel opened three new hotlines to aid people affected by coronavirus. They are split up into groups: a hotline for everyone, a hotline for the elderly and their families, and a hotline for people with disabilities and their families. They intend to provide emotional support in a time of rising fear and panic.Uniper Care, an Israeli start-up, is assisting the patients quarantined at hospitals throughout Israel by providing medical and emotional assistance: a service they usually provide to the elderly confined at home.Bituach Leumi, the Israeli social security service, released a statement a week ago stating that anyone who was placed on unpaid leave from work may be entitled to unemployment benefits.
