Belouga: Online global learning

Belouga, not to be confused with the beluga whale, is a learning platform, that connects classrooms with global topics created by worldwide educators. This tool would be greatly beneficial in opening the eyes of students to the world. I went to the 9-12 grade section as I intend to teach highschool, and to be entirely honest, this tool caught my eye because of its name and logo. I saw a whale and I, an animal lover, instantly clicked. I must say, the click did not lead me to disappointment. Upon reading into Belouga, I found it to be a rather interesting tool, with a lot of potential in the classroom, especially a classroom that wishes to have global thoughts. I must say, this path to finding Belouga is quite silly, but I think that ultimately that is perfect. That showcases how an intriguing brand name can increase site traffic, and in turn potentially increase Belouga users!

What a mascot!

But that is getting off track; Belouga seems to be a great tool for a myriad of reasons. They claim to be able to connect "K-12 students and teachers worldwide with real-world content and personalized, self-paced learning."(Belouga.org)What stuck out the most to me is that this tool allows for self pacing, allowing students to be able to work at their pace, without worrying about time constraints. The homepage touts their variety of resources and learning programs. Variety is really awesome because what that alludes to is that this site really has near endless opportunities for learning which can give a classroom endless opportunity to learn. Being a global brand,  educators across the world can contribute to and/or be recipients of the learning programs created on Belouga. Perhaps the most important thing, Belouga can foster a sense of community across borders, across oceans, across the world, and that community is crucial for bringing all corners of the world together, building a better tomorrow!

Bringing Belouga into my classroom could yield great results; as an aspiring history teacher, the global story is a story that is uber important. Being able to pull from all over the globe can help American students gain a broader perspective, allowing them to exit the bubble they live in. Belouga has the potential to be both a major aspect of the delivery of education or a minor aspect. Regardless, the capabilities are there, and through the aforementioned positives of this tool education can be heightened. Since Belouga is aligned with the UNs SDGs, in my classroom it can be used as a method to bring light to these goals. In my K-12 years I never once heard of the SDGs, so utilizing Belouga in such a manner could be a way to expose a classroom to said goals. Overall, this is a versatile tool with a great potential of manners it can be used in the classroom.