In this episode of Why Distance Learning, Seth turns the spotlight to co-hosts Tami Moehring and Allyson Mitchell to explore the work they lead at the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration (CILC). For more than 30 years—long before the digital pivot of 2020—CILC has been connecting classrooms and communities to museums, zoos, aquariums, and cultural institutions through live, interactive virtual programs. But as demand grew, so did a problem: users loved the programming but struggled to find the right experience in a catalog of over 2,600 virtual field trips.

To solve this, CILC redesigned everything around two clear pathways: Field Ed for PreK–12 classrooms and Rome From Home for adults and older adults. Each gives users a curated entry point rather than a maze of search results. And instead of forcing teachers or community coordinators to juggle logistics, CILC introduced bundles and fully hosted webinar series—options that reduce prep time to almost zero while improving the learner experience.

What problems CILC kept hearing

• Teachers overwhelmed by too many choices, not enough guidance
• Adults and senior-living communities needing moderated, accessible programs
• Content providers unsure how to adapt or refresh virtual programming
• School budgets going unused because scheduling felt too complex

What the redesigned model delivers

• Field Ed: A clean K–12 catalog aligned to curriculum, standards, and CTE
• Rome From Home: Cultural and wellness programming designed for older adults
• Bundles: Flexible funds teachers can use anytime, without losing budget
• Webinar Series: CILC handles hosting, registration, moderation, and tech
• Consulting: Support for museums and cultural institutions building or rebooting virtual programs

The episode also explores what makes a virtual field trip truly work. Tammy and Allyson break down pacing, interactivity every few minutes, accessible visuals, and the presenter “presence” that makes a screen feel like a shared space. For older adults, the structure shifts—more narrative, slower pacing, and extended Q&A—because live virtual learning often becomes a social anchor, not just a lesson.

Moments from the field bring it home: students from Nicaragua to Minnesota solving a physics challenge together in Field Ed Live, or the older adult who said, “I never thought I’d see the Smithsonian again—and I did, from my chair.” These are the access and opportunity stories that define why distance learning matters.

Why distance learning?

Because it brings the world to people who might never reach it—and brings it back to those who thought they’d lost it.

Episode Links

• CILC: Field Ed, Rome From Home, Consulting – https://CILC.org
• Schedule Banyan’s Bridges of Portland Virtual Field Trip via CILC

In this special episode of Why Distance Learning, the tables turn—Seth Fleischauer steps into the guest seat as co-hosts Tami Moehring and Allyson Mitchell interview him about the purpose, design, and future of Global Learning Live, Banyan Global Learning’s next-generation experiential global learning program. They explore what authentic global learning really requires in today’s classrooms—and why the medium of live virtual learning matters more than ever.

Most schools want to build cultural competence, empathy, and real-world communication skills, but:

• Finding reliable global partners is inconsistent and often falls apart mid-year.
• Language learners rarely get opportunities to use English in meaningful, real-world contexts.
• Teachers lack simple, low-prep ways to bring global learning into existing schedules.
• Field trips and international travel are expensive and inaccessible for most students.

The result? Global learning remains an aspiration, not a system.

However, Banyan's Global Learning Live is structured, scalable model that connects students worldwide through live field trips, global collaborations, and authentic showcase moments. Seth shares how 20 years of partnership with Tsai Hsing School led to the creation of an experiential cycle that prepares students not only for academic success, but for a rapidly changing, interconnected world.

What the program delivers:

• Live Virtual Field Trips
  Bringing students into real places—Portland bridges, Renaissance fairs, and more—with authentic “whoa” moments that make learning unforgettable.
• Global Student Collaborations
  Cohorts, not brittle partnerships—designed to reduce dropout risk, increase diversity, and ensure ELL accessibility.
• Authentic Purpose for Language Learning
  English isn’t a worksheet—it becomes the tool students use to communicate across borders and share their original ideas.
• A Low-Overhead, High-Impact Design
  Schools can join four-week pilots with one live class per week + a showcase and asynchronous global exchange.
• ELL-Ready, Teacher-Friendly Materials
  Built to make participation meaningful for all levels, not just native speakers.

Impact to date:

• More than 42,000 student years of distance learning delivered.
• Students report increased confidence expressing original ideas in English.
• Meaningful growth in perspective-taking, curiosity, and cultural competence.

Practical steps educators can take—whether or not they join the pilot.

1. Bring the world into your classroom through personal live video.
Use your own life, community, or experiences as cultural text. Even small shifts build perspective-taking.

2. Integrate short, purposeful global exchanges.
Asynchronous collaboration—sharing artifacts, reflections, or questions—can be powerful without live schedules aligning.

3. Join the Global Learning Live Spring Pilot.
Schools receive a free 4-week experience including:

• One weekly live session
• A live virtual field trip
• A collaborative artifact exchange
• Access to a global cohort of classrooms across continents

4. Start planning for sustained global engagement.
Seth describes the future vision: a global network with diverse cohorts, built-in supports for ELL learners, and eventually a FERPA-compliant platform designed for authentic collaboration at scale.

Episode Links

• Global Learning Live – Spring Pilot Sign-Up
• CILC.org – Schedule Virtual Field Trips, Including Banyan's Bridges of Portland Trip

Educators often assume that clubs, activities, and school culture must happen in person—that building belonging in virtual learning is limited or even impossible. Many imagine distance learners as isolated kids behind screens, missing the social experiences that shape identity, leadership, and community.

But what if that assumption is simply wrong?

In this conversation, Cindy Carbajal, a 20-year veteran of Pearson Virtual Schools, shows us how vibrant, student-driven communities thrive online through thoughtful structure, flexible engagement pathways, and opportunities for real agency.

Cindy oversees a global clubs and activities program serving 11,000+ students across time zones, grade levels, and cultural backgrounds. Her work demonstrates that:

1. Student-Centered Design Fuels Real Belonging

• Clubs are built with a goal that at least 50% of live time is student talk time—not passive listening.
• Students share, present, lead, and create—driving engagement and ownership.
• Broad-topic clubs (like Art Club instead of Crochet Club) help students discover unexpected interests and communities.

2. Flexible Models Match Virtual Students’ Real Lives

• Every offering includes both synchronous and asynchronous pathways, ensuring access regardless of schedules, time zones, or family obligations.
• Live sessions build community; asynchronous challenges deepen skills and allow for self-paced exploration.

3. Clubs Quietly Reinforce Academic & Durable Skills

Cindy calls it “stealth learning”:

• Math skills reinforced in eSports strategies.
• Reading skills strengthened through participation logistics and peer review.
• Executive functioning, digital communication, and leadership built through planning, presenting, and collaborating.

4. Data Drives Program Evolution

Her team measures:

• Enrollment and attendance
• Student and caregiver satisfaction
• Withdrawal trends
• Overlap between global clubs and local school clubs
  These insights help fine-tune offerings and spark new opportunities—like peer tutoring, reading buddies, and eSports leagues.

How Educators Can Apply These Insights Today

1. Start with the student experience—not the content.

Ask: Where can students lead? Where can they share? How can this be theirs?

2. Build broad entry points.

Instead of a niche club for each interest, create umbrellas where kids can explore together.

3. Don’t replicate in-person school—capitalize on what’s uniquely possible online.

Global reach, time-zone diversity, virtual volunteer opportunities, and student leadership that scales across schools—these are advantages brick-and-mortar can’t match.

4. Teach students how to interact online.

Cindy’s programs explicitly teach:

• How to give feedback in writing and art clubs
• How to share space respectfully
• How to show kindness online (Kindness Club!)

5. Track what matters.

Attendance, satisfaction, enrollment, and student stories help shape future offerings.

Episode Links

• Pearson Virtual Schools — Learn more about their virtual school network and programs, including Cindy's Global Clubs.

Host Links

1. Discover more virtual learning opportunities at CILC.org with hosts Tami Moehring and Allyson Mitchell.
2. Seth Fleischauer’s Banyan Global Learning provides meaningful global learning experiences that prepare students across the globe for success in an interconnected world.