Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 (edited) I havent seen this mentioned here yet....https://www.coursera.org/ will be offering courses from top university professors...this looks SO amazing!! Courses in Calculus, World History, Greek Myths.....I am SO taking the world history and the greek myths courses....and Maybe the Cryptography course....and Game Theory.....and Pharmacology. Woot woot!! Who else wants to take some courses with me?? Eta: the Logic course looks great too! Edited April 20, 2012 by Halcyon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarrieF Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 That is pretty amazing and unbelievable!!! Thanks for sharing. :D Not that it matters, but how in the world did you FIND this?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Wow! That's awesome! TFS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Author Share Posted April 20, 2012 That is pretty amazing and unbelievable!!! Thanks for sharing. :DNot that it matters, but how in the world did you FIND this?! If you can believe it, i logged on to google plus after not having gone on for ages, because google plus sent out an email with "the most popular posts of the week" or smething like that, and this was one of them! If you are on google plus, the account you should friend to get updates is Andrew Ng. He's one of the founders of the project. I am ridiculously thrilled. I loved college and have wanted so much to go back to school, but its just not going to happen now...but this will be a pretty good alternative! :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usetoschool Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 (edited) Thank you! I heard about this on NPR on Wednesday in the car and spent a minute when I got home trying to Google it (mostly trying to figure out how they spelled it) without any luck and then got busy with other stuff and forgot about it. Here is the NPR story http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2012/04/18/150846845/from-silicon-valley-a-new-approach-to-education The classes are actual live classes with start dates - the Logic class begins on the 23rd, some others don't begin until September. Edited April 20, 2012 by jcooperetc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thank you for the link!!!!! I will join you on the mythology class. Soooo exciting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Author Share Posted April 20, 2012 (edited) Thank you! I heard about this on NPR on Wednesday in the car and spent a minute when I got home trying to Google it (mostly trying to figure out how they spelled it) without any luck and then got busy with other stuff and forgot about it. Here is the NPR story http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2012/04/18/150846845/from-silicon-valley-a-new-approach-to-education Thank you. Here's a New York Times story about it, too. Edited April 20, 2012 by Halcyon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Author Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thank you for the link!!!!! I will join you on the mythology class. Soooo exciting! Yay! And the poetry one looks so cool- the teacher himself seems like he knows what he's doing, too. Something about his video appealed to me. I've signed up for 5 courses already! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Yay! And the poetry one looks so cool- the teacher himself seems like he knows what he's doing, too. Something about his video appealed to me. I've signed up for 5 courses already! I hope they keep expanding their offerings. Do you have itunesU? Sometimes I spend hours at night listening to lectures. Not the same thing as a class, but still good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Yay! This will be fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlessedMom Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 :):) Thank you so very much for sharing this information!! :):) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danybug Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thank you for sharing! What a great opportunity! I signed up for the Greek & Roman Mythology course. I am also considering the Logic course and the Statistics course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicMouseTN Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I signed up for the mythology course too. Fun!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Author Share Posted April 20, 2012 Yay! So a bunch of us will be taking the Mythology course! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Running the race Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I'm trying to convince my kids to take some next year. I'll have to make sure to leave some room in their schedule! I received an email about the courses. Since we signup for a previous course, they emailed me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Excited!! Thank you!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 This is awesome! I signed up for Mythology as well. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomofAJ Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thanks for the information. I signed up for the Mythology class and the Modern History. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltop Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thank you for the link. I heard a snippet about this on NPR earlier is week and I wanted to find out more information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Logic!! Behavioral neurology!! Sci-fi lit!! Genome science!!!! Aaaaaaaaah :party: AWESOME. :D Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiberia Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I just signed up for Logic! I have a 2nd grader, so logic is in the near future for us, and I have no logic background... Thanks for the link! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meggie Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I signed up for Computer Science 101, A History of the World Since 1300, Intro to Finance, Fantasy and Science Fiction, and Greek and Roman Mythology. They don't all go at once, but this is great because I have been considering finishing my degree online. DH was hesitant since I"ll only have one go at it and not sure if I'll be too overwhelmed. I figure if I can handle these, I can handle the ones I get credit for. Makes for good practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoyRenee Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Wow, thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amsunshine Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I've been registered for the Comp Sci 101 class for awhile. The start date has gotten pushed back to Monday, the 23rd. Still not sure if it will actually start on that date, but I'm excited regardless! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janice in NJ Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 (edited) OK. Not interesting. Problematic. Where essays are required, especially in the humanities and social sciences, the system relies on the students themselves to grade their fellow students’ work, in effect turning them into teaching assistants. Dr. Koller said that this would actually improve the learning experience. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/18/technology/coursera-plans-to-announce-university-partners-for-online-classes.html My kids have taken scads of on-line classes. Some are classes. Some are tutorials which really amounts to no more than broadcasted lectures. This model will be everywhere soon. IMO: not because it's a better way to learn, but because it's easier to make money with this method. Venture Capital firms are interested in cash. Big cash. http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2012/04/18/venture-capital-deals-114/ http://www.kpcb.com/companies http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Enterprise_Associates Have you read Disrupting Class? I am NOT trying to be a Luddite here; I'm sure there are ways to use technology to improve education. In fact, I try to implement as many as I can to maximize the impact of the resources we have in our homeschool. But based on our experiences with on-line learning/DVD courses/etc, this book, Disrupting Class, made me shudder. We are headed for some choppy waters. Technology can help. Certainly. Technology in the hands of folks who know how to squeeze the life out of every dollar invested? I'm pretty sure those folks are the wrong people to have at the helm. Their goals are most likely not aligned with most parents/self-educators. http://www.amazon.com/Disrupting-Class-Expanded-Edition-Disruptive/dp/0071749101/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1334915965&sr=8-2 Remember that these boards exist because we all get stuck once in a while. Sometimes you need a person to help you get unstuck. Imagine the depth of the learning experience when your essay is randomly assigned to one of your classmates for review. A classmate who is receiving a reduced-priced "certificate" rather than a student who has invested time and money into his education. Universities have a massive problem finding and training good TA's, and these are graduate students who are heavily invested and have a reason to care about the student papers they are grading. Even then, there is little to no recourse for a student who gets a poor TA. The University just doesn't have the time to sort through who is doing a good job and who isn't. Enough said. ITunes U offers a ton of free lectures. Many have course materials to supplement the lectures. The Open University movement was created by teachers. This one is being created by a different group of folks. Please keep your eyes open. Peace, Janice P.S. A few more searches yielded this: https://www.coursera.org/about/terms Online Course and Certifications The Sites will, from time to time, offer online courses in a specific area of study or on a particular topic (an “Online Course”). Coursera and the instructors of the Online Courses reserve the right to cancel, interrupt or reschedule any Online Course or modify its content as well as the point value or weight of any assignment, exam or other evaluation of progress. Online Courses offered are subject to the Disclaimer of Warranties / Limitation of Liabilities section below. For some courses, subject to your satisfactory performance in the Online Course as determined in the sole discretion of the instructors and the Participating Institutions, you may be awarded a statement acknowledging your completion of the class (“Letter of Completion”). This Letter of Completion, if provided to you, would be from Coursera and/or from the instructors. You acknowledge that the Letter of Completion, if provided to you, may not be affiliated with Coursera or any college or university. Further, Coursera offers the right to offer or not offer any such Letter of Completion for a class. You acknowledge that the Letter of Completion, and Coursera’s Online Courses, will not stand in the place of a course taken at an accredited institution, and do not convey academic credit. You acknowledge that neither the instructors of any Online Course nor the associated Participating Institutions will be involved in any attempts to get the course recognized by any educational or accredited institution. The format of the Letter of Completion will be determined at the discretion of Coursera and the instructors, and may vary by class in terms of formatting, e.g., whether or not it reports your detailed scores or grades in the class, and in other ways. Disclaimer of Student-University Relationship You agree and acknowledge that nothing in these Terms of Use or otherwise with respect to your access or use of any Online Course or Site (a) establishes any relationship between you and any university or other educational institution with which Coursera may be affiliated, (b) enrolls or registers you in any university or other educational institution, or in any course offered by any university or other educational institution, or © entitles you to access or use the resources of any university or other educational institution beyond the Online Courses provided by the Sites. Edited April 20, 2012 by Janice in NJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingmama Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I signed up for the vaccines one :toetap05: It's nice and short - hopefully doesn't have an essay to write :001_huh: Just not in the mood right now. I agree I'd hate to have my essay marked by a fellow student --- I remember doing that in school and everyone agreed to give everyone else an A if they would give one back :glare: It was a useless exercise in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Yes, the business model is an interesting one. When "the customer is always right," how do you deal with bad students? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter's Moon Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I wonder how long they will keep these courses free. I would really love to take World History and Mythology, but I'll be attending college full-time in the Fall. Taking Pharmacology in June, though :D I also don't like how the essays will be graded, but I don't rate the effectiveness of a class on my grade, but by how much I've learned. So, it doesn't bother me too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janice in NJ Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Ummm. You don't. The only bad students are the ones who aren't paying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in PA Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Oh my. I just signed up for 5 courses, all starting in July and September. I am really tempted by a couple that start next week, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for the time commitment involved. Talk me into it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Did anyone notice that the link for the history course takes you to the wrong text? I really would love to have the text but am afraid to buy it. He says Vol 2 but links to volume 1-thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lillysmom216 Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I signed up for Listening to World Music, Greek and Roman Mythology and History of the World since 1300. Thanks for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsbaby Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 This is awesome! Thank you for sharing. Is it weird that I am a little intimidated about signing up? It's been years since I was in college. I haven't written a paper in years! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
didadeewiththree Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Is it possible for a student still in high school to take one of these courses? I am seeing this as a possibility for my kids to take in a few years. It's like free curriculum plans in a way, although the reading assigned might have to be altered to their level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in Richmond Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I'm taking the Game Theory class right now! honestly, it's one of the best things that I've done for myself all year. And free! The presentation is enjoyable to me - a mixture of video lectures by two different professors, an active discussion forum, an electronic textbook (optional for $5), and weekly online chats with the profs where they address any issues that have come up & field questions that students have submitted in advance. To test understanding, the game theory course has quizzes built into the lessons, weekly review quizzes (ungraded), and weekly problem sets and a final exam, both of which do count toward the final grade. The quizzes are fairly straightforward, but the problem sets require the ability to apply what we've learned to new situations. A class average of 70% earns a certificate and 90% or better earns an honors certificate. Since it's all compressed into 7 weeks, it moves quite fast and takes some serious work to keep up, but it's very doable with study. Although it's advertised as 'learn at your own pace,' we do have hard deadlines for submitting the weekly problem sets and the final exam. After that deadline, you can still turn in your work, but your grade is out of 50% instead of 100%. I've tried opencourseware in the past, but this works better for me. I love the community of learners as opposed to just doing it all alone, and I seem to need the incentives of those deadlines.:) Udacity, another recent startup, also offers free courses on a schedule. Udacity's offerings aren't as extensive as Coursera's (yet), and they're all techy subjects. I've heard from friends who've tried both that their stuff is also high quality, but a bit easier than Coursera; maybe more appropriate for high schoolers who want to get their feet wet. I've been registered for the Comp Sci 101 class for awhile. The start date has gotten pushed back to Monday, the 23rd. Still not sure if it will actually start on that date, but I'm excited regardless! The Game Theory class was a few weeks delayed in starting this spring, but it eventually got off the ground & we're cruising along w/o any significant problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieF Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 You have to be over 13yrs and I think they should sign in under your name. My 15 yr old wants to do some and so does my 12 yr old-he has to wait until June when he is 13yrs. I didn't realise that other students would review your answers though, that puts me off but I still think we'll try it Stephanie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
APRH Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Signed up for Logic, mythology, statistics,CS 101 and cryptography. Hope I will be able to keep up the pace....:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amsunshine Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 The Game Theory class was a few weeks delayed in starting this spring, but it eventually got off the ground & we're cruising along w/o any significant problems. Thanks for the info -- I'm really looking forward to the class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meggie Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Did anyone notice that the link for the history course takes you to the wrong text? I really would love to have the text but am afraid to buy it. He says Vol 2 but links to volume 1-thoughts? I emailed the professor. I'll let you know when/if he replies. Also a friend pointed out that if you buy the second edition instead of the third, it's a whole heckuva lot cheaper. He says to pay special attention to the homework questions, they usually change those up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Signed up for three! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto2Cs Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thank you for sharing! I am definitely going to take advantage of this... now to decide WHICH courses! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
didadeewiththree Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 You have to be over 13yrs and I think they should sign in under your name. My 15 yr old wants to do some and so does my 12 yr old-he has to wait until June when he is 13yrs.I didn't realise that other students would review your answers though, that puts me off but I still think we'll try it Stephanie I guess we could always grade it for them. We would have to wait until December to did it then, as my son doesnt turn 13 till then, but it might be fun to try an online class like this for free. I would take one, but I already have a full load with taking two college courses that do count for credit. I'm afraid it would be too much, but it's tempting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillametteMom Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Thanks so much! I just signed up for Basic Behavioral Neurology. I'm so excited! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 (edited) I signed up for 3 classes. Now I just need to finish my CW Tutorials first. I'm not interested in a certificate, or what grade a fellow student would give on an essay, but on my own personal development so I can go in with my eyes open and hopefully learn something. Thanks for the background information Janice. Edited April 20, 2012 by melmichigan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amirah Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 just signed up for computer science 101 !! so excited thanks a bunch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Author Share Posted April 20, 2012 I'm not interested in a certificate, or what grade a fellow student would give on an essay, but on my own personal development so I can go in with my eyes open and hopefully learn something. . :iagree::iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperDad Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 Signed up for Computer Science 101 (is anyone else taking this?)! My oldest two dc are hungrily eyeing some of the fall classes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 I heard the NPR report and thought the poetry class would be interesting. Who's organizing the study group? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted April 20, 2012 Author Share Posted April 20, 2012 I heard the NPR report and thought the poetry class would be interesting. Who's organizing the study group? I don't know whose organizing that...I have tried to organize study groups in the past here but, um...my follow-through su**s. :tongue_smilie: I'd rather join one that someone else was organizing...you offering? I'm taking the poetry class also! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leeannpal Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 MIT has offered free courses for while. I've checked out a couple but haven't signed up yet. Maybe I'll get time this summer. http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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