ColleenInWis Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 I'm taking Introduction to Mathematical Thinking, Dr. Keith Devlin, Coursera. It just started this week. Sigh... I'm not doing too well with the 2nd lecture on the language of logic. I usually get all confused about "or" statements, and that's what is tripping me up this time, too. My son is taking an EdX course, Effective Thinking Through Mathematics, with Michael Starbird. I'm hoping to pick up enough of what that course is doing to compare it to the Coursera class, for the sake of our family and others who are interested. What MOOCs are your family members taking? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunshine State Sue Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 An Introduction to the U.S. Food System: Perspectives from Public HealthCoursera Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in Richmond Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Just started two new MOOCs this week on the EdX platform: Cornell's Relativity & Astrophysics 2290x MIT's Intro to Probability 6.041x I'm like a kid in a candy shop :drool5: ...& having SO much fun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Archaeology's Dirty Little Secrets is set to start again in a few weeks. I took it last summer and it was a blast. The staff is active on the forums and makes the class professional yet fun. if you have a child even remotely interested in archaeology, this would be a great addition. It's an 8 week class. I took an Intro to archaeology class at my university last fall and knew a lot of the material already simply because of the Coursera course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Archaeology's Dirty Little Secrets is set to start again in a few weeks. I took it last summer and it was a blast. The staff is active on the forums and makes the class professional yet fun. if you have a child even remotely interested in archaeology, this would be a great addition. It's an 8 week class. I took an Intro to archaeology class at my university last fall and knew a lot of the material already simply because of the Coursera course. I did that one last time around. It was great!!! Ok, my list is going to look fairly psychotic . . . but keep in mind I'm taking these to preview them for possible future use, as well as to learn and/or brush up on topics I'm teaching, so I'm just auditing them. But here is my current Coursera list: Introduction to Genetics & Evolution - good How Things Work - :001_wub: fantastic! Shannon and I are watching this together and doing the quizzes. It's her first online course, though we're doing it buddy style, and she loves it! Introduction to Physics w/ Lab - just started this one. It looks very well put together, but is above Shannon's current level for math. I think I'll watch it to brush up, as I'm teaching physics this year and next year. A high schooler could do this course. It includes virtual labs The Modern World - I actually did this class last year, quizzes and all, but I'm watching it again because I'm teaching Modern. I like this presenter and his take on the material is thought-provoking Astrobiology and the search for extra-terrestrial life - Shannon is interested, so I'm previewing/learning. It's fascinating! Introduction to Chemistry - I really like this class so far, surprisingly! We might use it for lectures alongside a text and labs when we do chemistry History of the Slave South - purely for my own interest. Fascinating. How to change the world - ditto Human Evolution - this is a great class, I think I wll have Shannon do it at some point. It has great material, but I also love how it interviews scientists in the field, asks them how they got started and their advice to students. It makes science feel like such an adventure! Imagining Other Earths - again, previewing based on Shannon's interest. It just started so I don't have a feel for it yet. I'd love to check out some of the edX offerings, but this is all I can manage right now . . . :willy_nilly: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanetC Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Getting my butt kicked in Analyzing the Universe, astrophysics from Rutgers. Lectures are excellent, but homework is hard. Also in The Modern World, good history refresher. Just doing videos for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 My 10th grader just started Fundamentals of Audio and Music Engineering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbmamaz Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 I am currently taking Moralities of Everyday Life, which is a Coursera course. I am enjoying it, but sometimes frustrated finding time for it. My son WAS signed up for How to Change the World, but he says its the most boring MOOC or lecture he's had and I finally let him drop it. He had already taken a genetics one and one about Lord of the Rings as an example of literature translated in to a movie and a video game. He is also taking a self-paced 'college algebra' one. I'm needing to help him a lot, despite the fact that we did cover this with upper level singapore already I plan on taking a self-paced database one some time, and wonder if my 10 yo would like the How Things Work one, or not. He seems to be really liking doing things independently from me, now. Everything but LA i'm ok with that for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Our first foray into MOOC: Introduction to Psychology as a Science (Georgia Tech) Anatomy and Physiology (Duke) Developing iOS7 Apps for iPhone (Stanford-self paced in iTunesU) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vettechmomof2 Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 My daughter is taking the Equine Nutrition Intro course. She is enjoying it and having no troubles so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 My daughter is taking the Equine Nutrition Intro course. She is enjoying it and having no troubles so far. Oh, that's good to know! Mine would love to do that course, but I'm making her wait. This is your 13 year old? How many hours a week would you say she is spending on it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanM Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 My ds is doing "Your Body in the World: Adapting to Your Next Big Adventure" right now. We're counting it as part of his health credit, and he's actually enjoying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vettechmomof2 Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Sorry, have not updated my child info. my daughter is 14 years old now. She is only having to put in ~ 1.5 hours - 2 hours per week right now for it. The video lectures take ~ 1 hour and reading through some of the text is extra helpful but has not really been needed yet. The instructor has a great Scottish accent so some of her pronunciations were a bit tricky but my daughter figured it out without me. Really, I think it is a very good quality course! However, I will be adding into the course when it is done to create a full elective course. I think it is well done and a great intro class. and I teach Equine nutrition. I actually recommended the course to my students who want more info on Equine nutrition. My class is many different species of animals. So some of my college students are using this course now and enjoying it as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 DH and DS13 are doing a JAVA class from Stanford. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorningGlory Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 Coursera: I'm taking Calc I (Ohio State). Technically, this is a "refresher" for me, but it has been so long since I've worked with calculus that it is taking quite a bit of refreshing (lol!) to bring me up-to-date. My older son and I are doing How Things Work (UVA) together. Honestly, we are both finding the How Things Work explanations and quiz questions a little too wordy for our tastes, but we love watching the demos! Last fall I took UC Irvine's Pre-calc (highly recommended) and UC Boulder's Physics 1 (extremely highly recommended...but not for those looking for a quick physics course...I spent a good bit of time on it working some rather difficult problems...the professor is fantastic). My son took the Geospatial Revolution class from Penn State last fall. He really, really enjoyed it...got to play with maps! :-) If only there were more hours in the day... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crafty Mathy Mom Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 My oldest is taking "Nutrition, Health and Lifestyle" on Coursera. We'll be taking "Archeology's Dirty Little Secrets" in a few weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom22ns Posted February 8, 2014 Share Posted February 8, 2014 EdX Early Christianity: the letters of the apostle Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merylvdm Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 I took 2 Coursera classes last semester - one on Python through Univ of Toronto and one on e-Learning through UC Irvine. The Python one I think would be very confusing to anyone who didn't already know how to program. I took it to see how they taught the subject - but unfortunately only learned how not to. The e-Learning one was more useful thought the delivery was boring. On the other hand my 8th grader has been working through Udacity's History of Science and she LOVES it. It also proved useful in Science Bowl last weekend - as a result of what she had learned she even managed to answer a trig question correctly. It is also useful to her in Science Olympiad. She says sometimes she has to rewatch videos if her mind wanders but she really enjoys doing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twigs Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 Coursera - Intro to Chemistry Very good instructor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 Coursera: Bloomfield's How Things Work (with DS and DH) Scandinavian Film and Television (just me) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 Coursera - Intro to Chemistry Very good instructor. Yes, I'm very impressed with this class. one of the better intro science courses I've previewed so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColleenInWis Posted February 17, 2014 Author Share Posted February 17, 2014 On the other hand my 8th grader has been working through Udacity's History of Science and she LOVES it. It also proved useful in Science Bowl last weekend - as a result of what she had learned she even managed to answer a trig question correctly. It is also useful to her in Science Olympiad. She says sometimes she has to rewatch videos if her mind wanders but she really enjoys doing it. History of Science sounds interesting for my 8th grader, but I'm not finding it at Udacity. How to find it? Would you recommend it for an average 8th grader who may not be intensely interested in science? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColleenInWis Posted February 17, 2014 Author Share Posted February 17, 2014 Update on my MOOC: Once I got over the "OR" hurdle, I've been doing fine. The prof explains things very well, and the homework problems seem to be doing the trick of teaching me the language of logic (which I have studied, but never mastered). I knew the course wasn't going to involve a lot of math, but I didn't realize that it was going to be so heavy on logic. The forums are great, and I'm in a study group--asking and answering questions w/other students is very helpful. First course online I've seen that has "in-lecture quizzes." A great teaching tool that other teaching videos should use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merylvdm Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 History of Science sounds interesting for my 8th grader, but I'm not finding it at Udacity. How to find it? Would you recommend it for an average 8th grader who may not be intensely interested in science? Sorry I took so long to respond - been a crazy few days. It's https://www.udacity.com/. And no, I wouldn't recommend it for an 8th grader who isn't interested in science. It is a college level class and does have some trigonometry in it (my daughter thought it was cool - I only realized this was in the course when she got a trig question correct in a science bowl). I would never have suggested this course to my oldest daughter who is much more interested in the humanities. But my youngest was bored with Apologia so I thought maybe something more challenging would be better - and she has really liked this class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColleenInWis Posted February 20, 2014 Author Share Posted February 20, 2014 Sorry I took so long to respond - been a crazy few days. No problem! I appreciate that you DID respond. :) It's https://www.udacity.com/. And no, I wouldn't recommend it for an 8th grader who isn't interested in science. It is a college level class and does have some trigonometry in it (my daughter thought it was cool - I only realized this was in the course when she got a trig question correct in a science bowl). I would never have suggested this course to my oldest daughter who is much more interested in the humanities. But my youngest was bored with Apologia so I thought maybe something more challenging would be better - and she has really liked this class. Still can't find it at udacity--perhaps because it's already in progress and not open to newcomers? I'm still a newbie at finding and using MOOCs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColleenInWis Posted February 20, 2014 Author Share Posted February 20, 2014 EdX Early Christianity: the letters of the apostle Paul Would be interested to know more about this one! What you think of it... My husband is starting a Bible study soon on Paul's letters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms. Riding Hood Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 All I can ask is *where* have I been?? I knew of open courseware, but last time I looked it up it wasn't really accessible to an average student. But zowie! This stuff is amazing! I just signed ds up for The Way Things Work class. He's doing physical science and has been telling me all the cool facts he's learned; this should be a blast for him. Do you guys taking the class have the text or are you just using the online component? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 All I can ask is *where* have I been?? I knew of open courseware, but last time I looked it up it wasn't really accessible to an average student. But zowie! This stuff is amazing! I just signed ds up for The Way Things Work class. He's doing physical science and has been telling me all the cool facts he's learned; this should be a blast for him. Do you guys taking the class have the text or are you just using the online component? We have the text. I have her read the chapter every Friday, then we watch the videos together the following week, and do the quiz. We also have done most of the Stop Faking It: Foce and Motion book, it's really well correlated with the class and gives her a chance to delve into the topics a little more deeply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorningGlory Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 All I can ask is *where* have I been?? I knew of open courseware, but last time I looked it up it wasn't really accessible to an average student. But zowie! This stuff is amazing! I just signed ds up for The Way Things Work class. He's doing physical science and has been telling me all the cool facts he's learned; this should be a blast for him. Do you guys taking the class have the text or are you just using the online component? We have the text...bought it used for a low price. My son read the section that corresponded with the first week's lesson, but then has not picked up the text since then. Neither have I. We have found that the professor explains the concepts so thoroughly on the videos that the text is not necessary. ymmv. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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