by Mark Rice

Free homework help is now available online through the Chattahoochee Valley Libraries.

The service from Brainfuse is offered daily, except for federal holidays, from 2-11 p.m. Expert tutors assist students in K-12 math, science, social studies, English and preparation for college entrance exams. Students communicate with the tutors by using an interactive whiteboard to chat, write, draw, copy and paste text or images, and graph homework problems.

Brainfuse also offers “movie-like notes” through its Brainwave feature.

“Brainwave is a breakthrough tool that allows you to record a movie of your activity on the Brainfuse whiteboard,” said Tiffany Wilson, CVL’s marketing and fund development coordinator. “Students can create brainwaves for note-taking purposes or send them when an ordinary email isn’t enough. Brainwave is ideal for recording solutions to homework problems, class projects, or any other concepts that involve motion or sequencing. Students can create a Brainwave or search our Brainwave archive by keyword. Brainwaves are continuously added to the archive.”

The tutors are teachers certified in their area of expertise, Wilson said.

“A minimum requirement is a four-year college degree, and many hold a master’s degree for more advanced subjects such as calculus, chemistry, statistics or for those tutors providing feedback in the writing lab,” she said. “Brainfuse also provides daily coaching for their tutors to ensure quality. In fact, each day their staff reviews the previous day’s sessions.”

Brainfuse does a background check on its tutors, who work remotely from across the country, Wilson said.

“The tutors are trained to not simply provide answers but to help students master homework assignments and their underlying academic concepts,” she said. “All live sessions are saved and can be replayed as well as shared with friends and teachers by email.”

Students can submit writing assignments anytime to receive feedback. Brainfuse also enables them to form online study groups and create flash cards.

CVL patrons can access Brainfuse from the public computers at their local library or from any computer device with Internet service by using their library card number and personal identification number. The Brainfuse app can be downloaded from Google Play for Android devices and the iTunes App Store for iOS devices.

Muscogee County School District students also can access Brainfuse with their CLUE account. CLUE stands for Chattahoochee Libraries United with Education. Students can log in via www.cvlga.org/clue and use their Georgia Testing ID number and password.

“Students visit our libraries daily seeking homework help and assistance,” CVL director Alan Harkness said in a news release. “Through Brainfuse, we can offer live online homework help and tutoring services to ensure that students in our community have access to expert academic support whenever they need it. If Muscogee County School District students do not have a library card, they can utilize their CLUE account to get the help they need.”

Besides linking to Brainfuse, CLUE accounts also allow access to:

• Every issue of National Geographic Online.

• Foreign language instruction through Mango Languages.

• Standardized test preparation through LearningExpress Library and RB Test Prep.

• Online encyclopedias.

• GALILEO, the University System of Georgia’s virtual library.

The annual cost for the Brainfuse bundle of services is $25,000, funded by the Muscogee County Library Foundation and an anonymous donor. CVL vetted both known providers of live online homework help available through libraries, Brainfuse and Tutor.com, Wilson said.

“Brainfuse stood out to our staff during the trial period among its competitor because it was essentially the same product with the addition of unlimited live homework help sessions,” she said. “We also reached out to many of the most respected library systems in the country, including Baltimore County Public Library and Orange County Library System, for their feedback validating that Brainfuse is a quality provider and that the option for unlimited sessions is of tremendous impact to their communities.

Mark Rice, 706-576-6272. Follow Mark on Twitter

LEARN MORE

For more information about Brainfuse online homework help, visit www.cvlga.org/brainfuse. For more information about CLUE, call 706.243.2687 or email [email protected].

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