Distance learning

Distance learning is the form of teaching and learning without the physical presence of students and teachers, and the process of teaching and learning is taking place in a virtual surrounding with the support of digital technologies.

The web page Distance learning presents systems, tools, and resources that, concerning their functionalities, can support teaching and learning in a virtual surrounding, both a combined model of teaching and learning and distance learning.

The process of planning distance learning starts before the final selection of the system, tool, or resource. However, to select a suitable system for distance learning, a specific tool or resource, it is necessary to know their main characteristics to be able to fully realise the planned activities.

This page will help you select adequate technological solutions which will fully support your plan for distance learning, provide information on their use and additional resources about teaching in a virtual environment.

Tips for principals, teachers, parents, and students, stated on this page are based on experience gathered through the research CARNET conducted from March to July 2020. 

These tips don’t cover all aspects of distance learning. They are related to elements that proved to be crucial in teaching in the online environment. To obtain the overall picture, it is necessary to study the instructions issued by the Ministry of Science and Education and rely on own knowledge and experience concerning the specificities of each school. 

The following document provides options and recommendations for implementing specific types of teaching activities, using the internet and digital technologies in line with different internet connection speeds available to users (teachers and students) in their homes.

CARNET’s services are available to users with electronic identity in the form @skole.hr in the AAI@EduHr system.

Electronic identity is given to individual users in their institutions, enabling user authentication for different CARNET services, and it is necessary to gain the right for its use.

In schools, the registry administrator opens the electronic identity to students and teachers. The following link provides contacts of the administrators who can open the electronic identity.

The validity of the @skole.hr user account can be checked on the following link.

Online systems for learning management offer various solutions for organising and implementing distance learning. Each of the systems has integrated specific functionalities necessary for setting up a virtual environment for teaching and learning.

Learn more about each system and choose the one which best suits your plans for implementing distance learning:

Loomen

Loomen is CARNET’s version of the Moodle learning management system. It offers a comprehensive solution for organising and implementing distance learning, with many integrated tools.

MS Teams

Microsoft Teams system is a part of Office 365 services. It offers simplicity in forming a group and individual channels for communication via video, audio, and chat, as well as connecting with other Office 365 services for storing and sharing data.

Google Classroom

Google Classroom is the system for learning management, and a part of Google Workspace for Education service. With its simple and intuitive interface and possible integration with Google Docs, it facilitates the organisation and implementation of teaching in a virtual environment.

Yammer

Yammer is one of the social networking services in the Office 365 services bundle, enabling communication through group or private messages, publishing and exchanging files. Compared with other, more robust systems, Yammer doesn’t support functionalities featured in other systems, contributing to the comprehensive organisation and managing distance learning. 

Office 365

Office 365 is a set of services enabling teachers and students to create and jointly use resources and communicate from any device anywhere.

The service is available from a computer, mobile phone, or school computer. Microsoft Office can be installed on a computer and used when there is no internet connection.

This service includes tools such as Microsoft Excel, Word and Outlook, and advanced tools such as OneDrive (storing files in the cloud), Microsoft Teams (for online collaboration and communicating through videoconferences) and OneNote Class Notebook (tool for a classroom). More information about offered tools in this service is available on Office365. 

Google Workspace for Education

The service enables access to Google applications for distance learning and collaboration to users with the @skole.hr account. It includes Gmail, Google disk (for storing documents in the cloud) offering online collaboration applications Google Documents, Tables and Presentations, Hangout application (for textual messages, audio, and video calls), and Google Classroom platform with tools for distance learning.

Adobe Connect

Distance collaboration is possible through web conferences and webinars. Adobe Connect enables participating in webinars, meetings, testing, classes, and distance training. It offers many options, such as boards, conversations, screen sharing, window sharing, applications, audio and video transmission, polls, etc.

Google Meet (previously Hangouts Meet)

Google Meet is a communication software made by Google, and it is a part of the Google Workspace for Education package. It enables audio and video communication and content sharing, which can support teaching in a virtual environment. Google Meet can serve as one of the tools for online classes. 

MS Teams

In addition to forming group and individual communication channels and connecting with other Office 365 services, Microsoft Teams offers video communication. More information and MS Teams manual are available in the module Online systems for organisation and implementation of distance learning.

Edutorij

Edutorij is a repository of digital educational resources containing various types of digital educational resources: manuals, textbooks, books, compulsory reading material, workbooks, online courses, educational games, teaching scenarios, preparations for classes and other content related to education, produced by teachers, students from Croatian schools, and experts from other educational institutions and publishing companies. As well as other users, teachers and other school employees who have the @skole.hr user account can upload content.

Along with other content, Edutorij contains  e-Schools digital educational content (DEC) and e-Schools teaching scenarios for different subjects and cross-curricular topics from 5th grade of primary schools to 4th grade of a general programme gymnasium. e-Schools DECs are peer-reviewed multimedia curricular content for self-study, work from home or in class. e-Schools teaching scenarios are peer-reviewed instructions for teachers, helping them in planning and realisation of classes based on active the role of students, with the application of digital tools and content.

CARNET Meduza

CARNET Meduza is a service for distribution and viewing educational and informative video content. One of CARNET Meduza integrated services is the Baltazar video portal, which contains the entire pedagogical educational program of Zagreb film. The portal includes more than 790 video materials in 13 categories.

Part of the CARNET Meduza is the Listening booth section, containing 100 radio drama shows. All content is aimed at developing media culture and literacy and learning about radio drama as an art form. This content supplements the existing teaching material from this segment in Croatian language and literature teaching in primary and secondary schools. 

CARNET Meduza is available to educational and academic institutions and individual CARNET users. To watch the protected content, users have to log in with @skole.hr credentials. 

e-Lektire (compulsory reading material)

The e-Lektire portal contains complete works of Croatian and foreign writers from the list of compulsory reading material and more. Access to content is free, and it is available to students and teachers with @skole.hr user accounts, and to all other people who register an e-Lektire user account.

Nikola Tesla portal

National portal for distance learning Nikola Tesla is a teaching and learning system using digital educational content.

The portal contains digital educational content in mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry and English language for secondary schools, ECDL modules for self-learning and practice for obtaining a diploma in basic information literacy, and courses about tools and application of technology in education.  

All content is in Flash, adapted for use on computers but not on tablets. 

Video lessons for application in class

škole.hr portal

Portal škole.hr is the central place for exchanging knowledge, news and information about the Croatian education system and publishing texts related to contemporary education.

OneNote Class Notebook

Class Notebook is a tool helping teachers to create and set a digital notebook for subjects they teach and to share teaching material, worksheets, quizzes, etc. It enables cooperation between teachers and students, cooperation between students on class projects, sharing tasks, and giving fast and simple feedback to students.

e-Laboratory 

e-Laboratory is the portal providing all information about tools, interactive content, and e-learning applications.