Hi Owl,
Yeah, okay, I forgot another day. This every-day-posting thing is harder than I remembered!
On Wednesday, Owl talked about our mutual love of languages and how we have started to use the technology freely available to us to learn them. Free educational technology is something that amazes and delights me. Mobile and web apps, Wikipedia, eBooks, software, and online classes have become normal, integrated components of our daily lives. I once heard it observed that many of us carry devices that store the entirety of human knowledge in our pockets and we mostly use them to look at cat videos and settle bets with friends. The Internet is an astonishing treasure trove, a digital archive of nearly everything we have ever known, wondered, or created. And the astonishing thing is that so much of it is free. Anybody with access to a computer that has Internet has, at their fingertips, immediate access to enough information to put the Library of Alexandria to shame. (That the predominant uses of the Internet seem to be mostly arguing over Youtube videos, posting pictures of food and cats, and finding ways to avoid doing whatever work you should probably be doing right now is a whole different discussion entirely.) Broadly speaking, if you want to learn something, the Internet can teach you. Take Youtube for example. If you've ever wanted to learn how to play guitar, brush up on your Spanish, weave a basket, create your own projectile point*, or even make an instructional video, Youtube has your back.
With so much information and so many useful tools for obtaining it, it's hard to know where to start. The first step is generally to figure out what interests you, but if you are anything like me this can be quite a challenge, as the answer to that, broadly speaking, is everything. Seriously, I just heard an NPR interview about a guy who wrote a book on office supplies and it sounds genuinely fascinating. So, narrowing down fields of interest can be tricky. Fortunately, you don't necessarily have to narrow down that much. One of the great things about the Internet is that it has made large expanses of information easily available in small, digestible portions, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Take, again, Youtube. CGP Grey specializes in short, explanatory videos, but his topics vary in range from politics to geography to economics to the upcoming robot revolution. Grey's videos are relatively short and he does not have time for in-depth analyses, but he gives phenomenal summary explanations, and when a viewer catches a topic of particular interest to them, they have the entirety of the aforementioned digital treasure trove at their disposal to find out more.
Today I'd like to provide you all with some of what I think are the most useful educational resources that the Internet has made possible. And best of all, they are all free. (Provided that you have access to the Internet, and in some cases a smartphone or a tablet. Some in-app purchases are available but not required. Batteries sold separately. Some exclusions may apply.)
So without further ado, MORE LISTS! This time, in threes! I'm leaving a lot of great stuff out, I realize. I'll try to do a more extensive list later, so if you have suggestions, leave them in the comments!
Apps
Duolingo: Great for learning languages, though options are limited. Read: No Chinese :(You can "enroll" in as many language courses as you want, and the app treats it like a game. You start each lesson with three hearts, and for every question you get wrong you lose a life. Complete lessons to earn experience and level up. The game even allows you to track your progress against friends, and Owl is currently kicking my butt since she tested out of the majority of the Spanish course. The app incorporates reading, writing, listening, and speaking, and one of the best language-learning aids I've seen yet.
Memrise: Utilizes image association to help recall terminology. User-submitted courses means that the variety is endless, though quality is variable. Currently Memrise is helping me brush up on archaeological terms, testing my knowledge of geography, helping me memorize herbs and spices used in cooking, and teaching me basic Russian, among a number of other things. It's not enough to help me master any of these subjects, but a few minutes every day makes a big difference in terms of rote memorization, and I don't need an in-depth explanation of oregano, I just need enough of a reminder so that I can pick out a fresh batch at the Farmer's Market without getting it confused with sage. Memrise sends you reminders to practice daily, lets you set daily goals of 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or 20 minutes of study each day, and treats lessons like seedlings that you have to water so that they can grow and blossom. It's a cute design, and a great way to keep up with skills you don't need a full class on, but want to maintain a working knowledge of.
Elevate: Elevate is a bit of a cheat, since it isn't really an "educational" app in the strictest sense of the word. It's a brain trainer---for the unpaid version, it gives you three daily games, rotating between 29 games total (most, though not all, of which are available in the free version). These games are target such things as estimation skills, brevity in writing, name recall, and reading connotation, focusing on five main areas: math, reading, writing, speaking, and listening. While the verdict is still out on whether or not "brain training" apps actually improve intelligence, they definitely help keep mental muscles well-honed. Elevate was selected by Apple as the 2014 App of the Year (don't worry, if you're an Android user like I am it's still available for you!) and with a sleek and clean design and fun, often surprisingly challenging games, it's easy to see why. This one is definitely a deviation from the rest of the list, but it's part of my daily mental exercise routine, and Owl and I both get a lot of use out of it, so I'm putting it on anyway! My blog, my rules :D
Video Channels
CGP Grey Mentioned above, these videos are simply wonderful. Beautifully designed, humorous and witty, they are absolutely worth checking out. He covers a broad range of topics, but his videos on geography and how it is occasionally exceedingly silly are some of my favorites. It's also a favorite topic of his, so there are tons. Thanks to Rook for reminding me that he exists and getting me hooked on his videos again.
Crash Course Brothers John and Hank Greek of vlogbrothers Internet fame (and The Fault in Our Stars real-life fame, in John's case) made a channel of truly well-done explanatory videos. Hank talks science, John, history and economics, with a bit of politics thrown in. Usually funny, always informative, and tons of fun.
Mental Floss The Green brothers have some influence here, too. John is just one of many recurring hosts, and the crew at Mental Floss talk about a stunningly wide range of topics. These videos are about as bite-sized as they come, so don't expect any sort of analysis or examination. This is primarily a list show, and is full of trivia, but not necessarily trivial in and of itself. Like Elevate, this is cheating a bit, since I wouldn't recommend Mental Floss in any sort of academic context, but it absolutely has its place in an educational, if not academic, setting. I primarily listen to Mental Floss when I'm at the gym (guys we have elliptical with TVs in them now. Guys, the future is here! And it's the reason I spend so much time doing cardio over weights...Call me when they put TVs on weight machines, please) because the videos are short, easily digestible, and don't require a lot of thought, but still teach me enough to pique my interest in an array of subjects.
Online Classrooms
Coursera The King of the MOOCs, Coursera takes lectures from real, often highly prestigious, universities and makes them available for free, online. Some courses even allow certification. Professors give lectures, students turn in homework and engage in class discussions, and everything is done online, with no set schedule. Students can listen to lectures whenever fits their schedule, and can turn in homework anytime before its deadline. Since all non-certification courses aren't graded, there is less pressure to perform, and more freedom to learn. I've taken courses on the art and archaeology of Ancient Nubia, Python programming, the impact of science fiction and fantasy on modern living, game design, and the intentionality of philosophy and science, to name a few. While the lecture-heavy course structure provided a stark contrast to the discussion-based courses of my alma mater, I nevertheless found all the courses I've taken so far to be both interesting and enjoyable. I don't think I will ever prefer online courses to the "real" deal, but you sure as hell can't beat the price.
Khan Academy Khan offers even more flexibility than Coursera, since most of its courses are archived, which means that they can be accessed literally anytime, not confined within the time period that the course is being offered. It focuses on math and science, but also offers a broad range of courses in the humanities, and is another good resource for language learning. Khan favors interactive exercises over homework to be handed in, and is less of a classroom structure like Coursera and more a self-guided learning tool like the apps mentioned above.
edX Created by Harvard and MIT as a digital platform for their lectures, edX is very similar to Coursera, though because it features almost exclusively highly prestigious universities like the founding universities mentioned above, the selections are somewhat more limited. Like Coursera, edX works on the honor code system: because all non-certified courses are free and ungraded, the philosophy is that if you cheat, you're the only one who loses out. The ideal edX user is self-motivated and has a drive and a desire to learn, and all edX courses and materials are presented with this ideal user in mind. The lectures are all of a high caliber, and the course selection, while not quite as impressive as Coursera's, is still remarkable.
That's all for now. Questions? Comments? Additions to these lists? Complaints? Leave them below!
*A more academic demonstration can be found in this video featuring Dr. Benjamin Bradley
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