Website Spotlight: Holistic Learning

 Holistic Learning, founded by neuroscience, physiology and meditation experts Eli Marx-Kahn and Kush Patel, announces the launch of its platform on a mission to “help create a generation of purposeful, confident, and happy young people who are ready to take on the many issues our world faces. By integrating services in multiple domains – academics, wellness, and career development – we aim to help students find their unique paths in life.”

The easy and fun to use platform incorporates timely and critical touch points for high school students: 1-on-1 tutoring, wellness & meditation courses, learning strategies, college counseling, career development, and life skills. Parents and educators see it as a valuable supplement providing their students with a number of individualized, self-select tools such as breathing exercises to reduce anxiety, STEM, English and writing tutoring, college application advice, and career seminars with professionals from dozens of fields.  

“We know that students who are healthy, happy, and stress-free are much more receptive to new knowledge. Holistic Learning equips them with the skills they need to manage their many obligations while prioritizing their own well-being,” states Co-Founder and Chief Wellness Officer Eli Marx-Kahn.

Holistic Learning comes at a crucial time in education amid continued covid disruptions, isolation and uncertainty. According to “Education in the Pandemic, The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Student”: Emerging evidence shows that the pandemic has negatively affected academic growth, widening pre-existing disparities. In core subjects like math and reading, there are worrisome signs that in some grades students might be falling even further behind pre-pandemic expectations.

Further, “The Mental Health of High School Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic” report states: “The American Psychological Association (APA) reports 81% of Gen Z teens (ages 13–17) have experienced more intense stress during the COVID-19 pandemic….Exercise time helps reduce mental health degradation (β3 = -0.153, p = 0.037). Many other factors such as gender, homework time, school time, pre-existing mental health issues, and therapy did not have a significant influence on mental health degradation. Analysis of freeform feedback identified the following three recurring themes: increased stress due homework (13.2%), social isolation or lack of social interactions (8.5%), and lack of support for mental wellbeing (12.3%).”

“I am very interested in how the brain works and am passionate about using my knowledge of neuroscience to make studying more fun and manageable for students at every point in their education,” shares Kush Patel, Co-Founder and Chief Learning Officer at Holistic Learning. “Throughout my college years, I helped hundreds of students achieve their academic aspirations through my role as a tutor, peer mentor to students with disabilities, study group leader, and learning strategist. I enjoy creating learning strategy content for students as well as designing a holistic tutoring curriculum to ensure that true and meaningful understanding is achieved.”

Based on frequency of tutoring desired, tiered subscriptions are available at www.holisticlearning.co, and are priced well below standalone tutoring and counseling programs. Sliding scale scholarship opportunities are available for low income families, by inquiring at info@holisticlearning.co. Holistic Learning is also committed to partnering with high schools and encourages opportunities to best meet needs of schools.

“Holistic Learning is committed to accessibility and equality of access,” states Marx-Kahn. “It was created as an online space designed to meet the needs that high school alone cannot meet, to help students grow, and to help them visualize their path towards a meaningful and fulfilling future. The Pandemic has made the need for a service like Holistic Learning greater than ever.”