3 years after covid shutdowns, Fox Chapel Area Adult Education maintains online learning as convenience for students
Share this post:
While the covid pandemic shut down most of the world in 2020, it opened an opportunity for online learning.
Fox Chapel Area Adult Education, kicking off its winter class schedule, has learned to lean on the convenience of Zoom to draw a wider enrollment for language, cooking and fitness sessions.
Registration is open online for courses that include chair yoga, cooking with Chef Jon, French, Italian and Spanish.
Director Sue Goodwin said the ease of at-home learning is perfect for adults of all ages, from busy parents, snowbirds, people who don’t drive and everyone in between.
“While Zoom was a necessity during the pandemic, it continues to play a valuable role in our semester offerings,” Goodwin said. “We recognize that not all adults can easily attend in-person classes.”
Benefits are plentiful, she said. In addition to receiving a recording of the live Zoom class that students can use to practice until the next meeting, online options also help adults avoid inclement weather, make social connections and learn on their own time.
For foreign language classes in particular, online learning allows plenty of prompting and practice time.
Instructor Diana Morales teaches Spanish for Beginners and “Beyond Beginners.”
“I did in-person before covid but after, we needed to learn how to do it remotely. It works very well and actually the number of students grew,” she said.
Morales believes in-home learning allows students to feel comfortable in their own surroundings.
“I noticed the students participate more in conversation practices because they do not feel the pressure that they are in front of the class,” she said.
She said it’s also more lenient for people who travel for school or work because they don’t miss the class.
“They can connect in any place or just later review the recorded class,” Morales said.
Goodwin said the technology is easy enough for anyone to grasp – “as long as you have email, you just click on the link,” she said.
Many instructors have said Zoom offers a camaraderie that’s unexpected.
“While waiting for everyone to log in, there are lots of conversation about how the week went or what their practices looked like,” Goodwin said.
Online learning is so heavily sought that even the cooking classes are offered remotely. Students can purchase pre-measured meal kits to cook at home, following Zoom instructions.
Founded in 1962, FCAAE is an outreach program of the Fox Chapel Area School District that provides enrichment classes to adults at a low tuition. One-night and multi-week classes are offered. Participants do not need to be residents of Fox Chapel Area communities.
The program receives facility support from the district but operates solely through student tuition.
While many students still enjoy the socialization of in-person classes, Goodwin said the cold, dark winter nights are an ideal time to try an online course and learn something new or improve an existing skill.
Instructor Beth Ryce teaches three fitness classes for FCAAE, one in-person and two online.
“The biggest differences I’ve noticed is that with Zoom, we’ve reached a broader audience,” Ryce said.
She has students who tune in to strength train from as far as Arizona.
“They can join the live sessions when they would not be able to participate otherwise,” Ryce said.
Ryce said she also has people sign up for class who solely use the recordings because they can exercise on their own schedule.
“Some prefer to work out in the morning as opposed to evenings because their energy levels are so different at those times of day,” she said.
“Not everyone is a fan of the recordings, of course, as they prefer the accountability of the live session, but there are many who have mentioned it’s nice not to have to worry about driving in inclement weather as well as not to have to worry about risking flu/cold/covid infections.”
An added boon to Zoom is that if participants miss a live session, they can “make it up,” Ryce said.
They can also use the recordings multiple times to increase their fitness levels, she said.
“With fitness, even repeating a workout one time is a game changer so it’s nice to have that option,” she said.
To register for classes, visit fcaae.org.