E-Learning! This is my favourite word. Everytime we heard the word e-learning in school, all we really heard was a word that gave us a week long holiday. We think we know what e-learning meant. It meant that it was time to discuss answers with friends, a free pass to cheat. But in a way, this has meant that a generation of students had grown up perverting what e-learning actually meant.
In the age of dial-up connections and slow Internet speeds, e-learning was an idea that came before its time. It just took too long to download a 5min video let alone a 1hr lecture.
Fast forward to today. Such limitations no longer exist. Videos are downloaded in minutes and live streaming is no longer interrupted because a call came through on your phone line. With that said, what exactly is e-learning?
E-Learning or distance learning, is a way for someone to learn while not being in the same location as the teacher. Thanks to Pintrest for the handy infographic.
Or you can go to https://www.pinterest.com/pin/131800726567306285/ if you find the infographic too small. Sharp-eyed UB students would notice that BlackBoard is listed in this timeline. YES, you have been using e-learning without realising it.
Of course, nowadays, with companies tripping over themselves trying to provide a way to get information to everybody, I'm looking at you Facebook, even in the remotest part of the world, our technology has advanced to the point where we can attend virtual lessons held on another continent.....or not even in REAL LIFE.
Take Second Life. Yes I know, Second Life went passe a long time ago but when it was still being actively used, Universities around the world like Duke used it as a virtual meeting spot and to even conduct lessons.
Lets look at some of the more famous ones that people are aware of today.
1) Khan Academy
No list is complete without Khan Academy. Started in 2006, its founder, Salman Khan started his website by posting videos to YouTube to teach his cousin and other family members who needed help with their homework. Today, popular around the world, some Not-For-Profit companies have created offline versions of his work and distributed to remote parts of Asia to assist in teaching in schools.
Visit them at https://www.khanacademy.org/. You will need either a Facebook or Google+ account to access the content if you don't want to set up a Khan account. I guess you Khan do without one!.....ok sorry.
2) Coursera and EdX
These two are part of the growing wave of MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). MOOC is a fancy way of saying: E-Learning by <Insert Brand Name University>.
From Harvard to Stanford, HKU to Todai, every university worth its salt has at least one MOOC. Not only can you get lectures by some of the world's top professors, you can do so for a nominal sum and without the hassle of actually being in those classes.
In the age of dial-up connections and slow Internet speeds, e-learning was an idea that came before its time. It just took too long to download a 5min video let alone a 1hr lecture.
Fast forward to today. Such limitations no longer exist. Videos are downloaded in minutes and live streaming is no longer interrupted because a call came through on your phone line. With that said, what exactly is e-learning?
E-Learning or distance learning, is a way for someone to learn while not being in the same location as the teacher. Thanks to Pintrest for the handy infographic.
Of course, nowadays, with companies tripping over themselves trying to provide a way to get information to everybody, I'm looking at you Facebook, even in the remotest part of the world, our technology has advanced to the point where we can attend virtual lessons held on another continent.....or not even in REAL LIFE.
Take Second Life. Yes I know, Second Life went passe a long time ago but when it was still being actively used, Universities around the world like Duke used it as a virtual meeting spot and to even conduct lessons.
Lets look at some of the more famous ones that people are aware of today.
1) Khan Academy
No list is complete without Khan Academy. Started in 2006, its founder, Salman Khan started his website by posting videos to YouTube to teach his cousin and other family members who needed help with their homework. Today, popular around the world, some Not-For-Profit companies have created offline versions of his work and distributed to remote parts of Asia to assist in teaching in schools.
Visit them at https://www.khanacademy.org/. You will need either a Facebook or Google+ account to access the content if you don't want to set up a Khan account. I guess you Khan do without one!.....ok sorry.
2) Coursera and EdX
These two are part of the growing wave of MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). MOOC is a fancy way of saying: E-Learning by <Insert Brand Name University>.
From Harvard to Stanford, HKU to Todai, every university worth its salt has at least one MOOC. Not only can you get lectures by some of the world's top professors, you can do so for a nominal sum and without the hassle of actually being in those classes.
This 4min video will explain all there is to it with MOOC.
And Really, thats all there is to e-learning. It is fast, growing and it literally is giving you the ability to control your own learning. Want to study the Physics of Death but can't afford to do so? There is an MOOC for you. How about Statistics for Dummies ? Or Gender Through Comic Books? SIGN UP FOR An MOOC. Unfortunately, you still cannot get credits or a degree this way but hey, who knows, One day you actually might!
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