Free MIT Education Just A Click Away

[deadparrot]

By the end of this year, the contents of all 1,800 courses taught at one of the world's most prestigious universities will be available online to anyone in the world, anywhere in the world. Learners won't have to register for the classes, and everyone is accepted.

The cost? It's all free of charge.

The OpenCourseWare movement, begun at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2002 and now spread to some 120 other universities worldwide, aims to disperse knowledge far beyond the ivy-clad walls of elite campuses to anyone who has an Internet connection and a desire to learn.

Intended as an act of "intellectual philanthropy," OpenCourseWare (OCW) provides free access to course materials such as syllabi, video or audio lectures, notes, homework assignments, illustrations, and so on. So far, by giving away their content, the universities aren't discouraging students from enrolling as students. Instead, the online materials appear to be only whetting appetites for more.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/04/business/main2330160.shtml

[Kiouni]

1. really cool!

[Redstone]

2. Whoa, yes. Do you hear me up there in Heaven, Mom? I remember how sad you were

when I told you I didn't want to go to MIT, 36 years ago, but now I can, and I will. I'll do it for you.

Redstone

[lildreamer316]

5. RedSTONE.

:hug: :hug: :hug:

[Redstone]

11. You rang?

Redstone

[lildreamer316]

13. Just stopped in to say..

you are the shit.
Love ya.

[AndyTiedye]

6. You Would Have Been a Year Behind Me

Ride the Music

AndyTiedye '74

[Redstone]

10. Dammit, I forgot it's 2007. I should have said 37 years ago.

Redstone

[papau]

57. I'm getting much too old - I looked up the 74 list to see which course you were in and found

no Andy Tiedye '74 - Tiede being closest to the spelling in that decade - and then realized the name "tie dye" was the 60's T-shirt art work I had my kids doing on weekends back then to keep them quite , and not your real name.

Which course were you in?

If you prefer you can PM or email me - but I do not check my account at Tech more than twice a year, so please use the DU system if you care to respond - and if not, that is OK too - I was just curious :-)

[Bozita]

3. Yes! ... The internets have finally won.

[SidDithers]

4. That is excellent...

thanks very much for posting.

Direct link to MIT is: http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/index.htm

Sid

[blogslut]

15. Thanks for the link

Major thanks to MIT and the OpenCourseWare project!

[hamerfan]

17. Thanks for the link!

This really looks interesting. Thanks so much for posting this and making us aware of this great resource.
dumpbush

[ckramer]

21. thanks for the link!

This is excellent!

[lildreamer316]

7. This is the SH_________!!!!

Oh. It's SO on.

[Mind_your_head]

8. Beautiful!!! It's stunningly beautiful!

K & R'd & "Bookmarked" :-)

[progressoid]

9. Holy crap, this is too cool!!

I am so emailing this out tonight!

[SoCalDem]

12. That's good news..I have seen more lectures on the university channels on Dish

than when I was at college.. (I was a very baaaad girl, and slept through most of them)

[redacted]

14. You mean UCTV? Any others?

[SoCalDem]

16. I have about 8 PBS and I never counted the university channels

but I watch lectures from Virginia, Washington State, Maryland.. all over the place.,. (of course I am a stay-up-all-nighter, so you may not have seen the ones I watch)

[hamerfan]

18. K & R, n/t

[sutz12]

19. There go them damn lib'ruls again....

just giving shit away, making knowledge available to all. It's all a plot to undermine legitimate Creation Science, I tell you. Now, all of our museums showing cave children playing with dinosaurs will be facing unfair competition.

Next thing you know they'll be expecting us to treat po' folk, coloreds, and im'grunts like real people. Disgusting.

:sarcasm: Just in case someone didn't get it. :)

[ckramer]

22. This MIT move is so futuristic, revolutionary and pioneer

I say this is the beginning of the academic 'open source' movement, as vs. that of the software industry that brought us Linux and all other related great products and services for free.

It implicitly sets the higher education standards and is so anti-establishment and anti-status quo.

This will certainly benefit the whole world and make it much better.

Many poor kids can self-study any subjects of their choice by following the guidance and materials on the web.

As Newman in Seinfeld said "when you control the information, you control the world"; and this MIT move really makes "zipcodes are meaningless!"

Thank you MIT!

[Occulus]

20. A Universal University.

Imagine that. And about time, too.

Everyone deserves to be able to learn everything related to a particular field of study. Income ought not be an obstacle to knowledge.

[Delphinus]

44. Amen!

This is exciting!

[lostnfound]

23. MIT Reject here.

Applied but rejected. Woulda been too dang cold for a Florida girl anyway.

This is way cool.

[AngryAmish]

29. I didn't even apply

They not only would have rejected me, they would have flown someone to Chicago to kick me in the nuts for having the impudence to apply.

[Vinca]

24. It's great, but it doesn't appear to be intended as a path to a degree.

While learning for learning's sake is wonderful and necessary, to truly do a service for those who cannot afford higher education, credits need to be given. Most employers won't be impressed when an applicant describes the courses he's taken on his own on the Internets. Maybe I missed something.

[hang a left]

25. Yes, I read that also.

I thought that was a little disappointing.

[JudyM]

33. Maybe eventually, but that would require real faculty members' review

of essay papers or tests. There are schools that offer online course credit, though not for free (that I know of) and maybe not through this program.

[OnionPatch]

41. Learning is great all all but

the knowledge isn't going to get me a job without the sheepskin. :shrug:

[depakid]

26. This is the sort of thing that SHOULD have been done with TV

and especially Cable. Instead, the monopolies that run these "networks" have whole ranges of channels devoted to what can only be called spam- non-stop infomertials or "shopping" stations- some of which are clearly designed to prey on the elderly.

How hard would it be to REQUIRE that basic cable come instead with several channels designed say, to teach foreign languages- or for our Freeper friends, basic English. How about basic science material, etc?

It wouldn't be difficult or expensive to come by interesting content, in a form that people would enjoy- and it sure as hell would serve the public interest, which once upon a time was the standard that these corporations had to abide by in return for their lucrative licenses.

[cosmicdot]

48. absolutely n/t

[angstlessk]

61. This is exactly what I used to say!

Before cable and before the internets, I used to say "if TeeVee had offered education instead of entertainment, based on the amount of TeeVee I watch, I would be on my 5th Degree by now". :hi: We are in TOTAL agreement and I find this bit of information extremely exciting.

[hyphenate]

27. The MIT free courses

have been already around for a few years, but it looks like they've added some stuff since I took a serious look at it awhile back.

There are some negatives to the whole setup:

1) while they give lists of books for each course, they don't have the contents of these books, so you would still have to buy them. This isn't going to work for a lot of people.

2) there is no feedback. without feedback, you don't know if you're on the beam or so off course you'll hit a reef and disintegrate. this doesn't help those who seek to find jobs based on what they've learned.

3) without credits or units given, as someone already said, you're not getting a degree, you're just accumulating knowledge, which may or may not be helpful.

4) you only get select materials, so the experience of the day to day course is not available to you. It means you're getting a fraction (albeit a good portion) of the whole educational course, and some people just won't have enough patience to seek out more.


The whole course, however, could work for those in places where there is a small community college or a learning annex, or some kind of voluntary educational program. Teachers at such places could adopt the course, get the materials, and use the basic course structure in their own classes, helping some who are able to attend such a class. This way, feedback is promised, a formal course is defined, and credits can be issued for the class.

It is good, however, for those who already have a degree in a specific course, and can use the materials to further their own degrees.

[SayWhatYo]

34. Yeah... It;s too bad they don't provide the books..

heh, then it would really be cool.. Although, I wouldn't doubt it that they would if they could do it legally. Unless of course it's the professors book :P

[JudyM]

35. IMHO knowledge is worthwhile for its own sake...

Whatever people can get out of it is great. I looked around a bit and found a bunch of courses that have slides walking the user through interesting concepts. A great way to learn about whatever you're interested in!

[NashVegas]

42. Regarding Feedback

There's nothing to stop people who are taking the courses from finding each other online, and setting up a bulletin board.

And as far as the credit hours issue goes, education for its own sake is never a bad thing.

[FreeStateDemocrat]

28. Why isn't there a national university of learning set up on line with low cost textbooks and

degree/certificate programs so that everyone would be afforded an opportunity to gain a college education? We have an under-educated workforce with an educational system that imposes many difficult hurdles for these people to access the training they need to succeed in our society. Why should it cost so much and be so inconvenient for millions that have been deprived of higher educational training to get it now with the success of on-line teaching methods. Use the current technology to provide universal college education in our country. End the war today and the money saved could be used to make it free for everyone who wants it.

[Blue_Tires]

30. ttt

[hunter]

31. This is a tremendous resource for teachers all over the world.

That may be the greater benefit to students -- teachers and institutions that are paying attention to these materials when they design their own courses.

Now what we really need badly is Open Source textbooks that fit on a laptop computer. A laptop now costs about the same as a semester's worth of books, and is a lot easier to lug about.

[JudyM]

32. This is terrific. I just checked out Johns Hopkins' public health courses and they're super.

I'd thought about going to grad school in public health and Hopkins is just about tops in the country. Now I can learn online - that is so awesome.

Interestingly, the article notes that these online courses could hurt public TV. Hopefully that won't happen!

Thanks so much for posting. I'm going to pass this on to a lot of other people who'll be interested. You made my day, DeadParrot!

:toast: :pals:

[sofa king]

36. AWESOME!

I'm so excited I think I have to go fap one off.

[DotGone]

37. Another good resource

The Annenberg Foundation's website at www.learner.org allows you to stream the educational videos they put out. Some of you have probably seen these videos on your local PBS station. There's some great stuff like the French In Action series from the 80's.

[Straight Shooter]

50. This thread is just another reason why I've got to visit DU every day.

Welcome to DU, DotGone. And thanks for the link.

:hi:

[Mister K]

38. I think that it is a great idea

Aside from the points mentioned about not getting credit nor feedback from a professor, I think that it will help people who just want to learn.

I am a software consultant for a Wall Street firm but am light on my math skills. I saw a whole slew of courses that I can use just to get a better understanding of some of the math my co-workers use.

Obviously I cannot write that I went to MIT or did coursework there, but I can use the knowledge there to advance my career.

Peace.

[neverforget]

39. This is so cool! I can't wait to start some of these courses!

[slj0101]

40. It may not count toward anything on paper,

but hey, this is a great resource for fans of continuing education. Thanks!

[underpants]

43. Score one for the internet! Actually NOT making money on something

and giving it out for the betterment of mankind, what a concept.

[matcom]

47. thank you Al Gore!!

:bounce:

[Pacifist Patriot]

45. Sweet!

[mike_c]

46. OMG-- I've just been having discussions with some of my colleagues...

...about the future of our courseware management at HSU and about how to disseminate open courseware materials. This is an absolute gem!

Another idea we've been tossing around are Wiki texts, particularly for large lower division science courses. The two texts I'm teaching from this semester cost students $160 and $110 respectively. It's time to have some open license alternatives.

[Beetwasher]

49. MAJOR KICK!!!

Wow! Too cool!

[Sgent]

51. The OCW

does contain a fair number of texts -- especially those written by MIT professors.

For instance SIPC, one of the undergrad computer science textbooks, is available for free.

[Scooter24]

52. Wow..

incredible resourse.

Kicked and saved for reference :)

[uberllama42]

53. I'm going to dl everything by Chomsky n/t

[pitohui]

54. makes it pretty stark you're paying for networking and a piece of paper, don't it?

obviously as it has never been about educating people or selling information, it's about selling an ability to achieve a class and a lifestyle

knowledge is just a side thing that can be handed out for nothing because even with the same information without the piece of paper...you're fucked and they know it

[Porcupine]

60. A degree has always been about class status.

There are always some percentage of people who are forced to sweat their brains for years to get the degrees they need for professional status at name brand universities. But that's not why they are there.

The Ivy League universities are there to anoint the upper classes with a badge of merit (without requiring actual work) to the already wealthy. The most notable and famous example of this effect is George W. Bush a history major who demonstrates no knowledge of either american or global history. Other prominent examples would be the CEO's of many of the Dow Jones 500.

The simple fact that all three major US automakers face bankruptcy over issues that were noted and described over 20 years ago is ample proof. In 20 years US automakers have not learned to make the small cars needed for an oil scarce world. In the same 20 years these same automakers have been reticent to support national health-care schemes despite the fact that health care costs for their employees is a major competitive disadvantage for them.

The CEO's and upper executive ranks of these companies nonetheless reward themselves with massive noncompetitive pay packages while their companies self destruct. Why? Could it be they are staffed by Ivy League degree holders?

[Earth_First]

55. Additional participating universities in the OpenCourseWare program:

http://www.ocwconsortium.org/about/members.shtml

[jwirr]

56. That is the best news they can give us. Now if we can just make

it affordable for all who want to use it.

[AikidoSoul]

58. Wow! This is incredibly inspiring! Moving towards the future in

this way -- making education available to everyone.

Kick and recommend.

Good post! Very exciting!

[Ilsa]

59. Oh man, no more wasting my time with music on my mp3 player.

I've already downloaded some guest lecturers on some esoteric subjects, but now I can get the really good stuff!

[NashVegas]

62. May I Recommend Economics?

It's not sexy, but it should be a necessity.

[entanglement]

63. OCW is a nice idea, but many of the courses lack lecture notes.

It is especially useful for those enrolled in similar courses elsewhere.

[kineneb]

64. wonderful for those of us out in the boonies

who are low-income. I don't think I could hack classwork right now, being a full-time caregiver. But this means I can still stretch my mind. Huzzah!

[MilesColtrane]

65. Has unlimited potential....

Unfortunately, the language course I downloaded doesn't have the textbook available online. It costs $120 on Amazon.

Oh well, I guess I'll just listen to a few "Intro to ..." lectures to brush up on my Jeopardy trivia.

[SayWhatYo]

66. Something of interest...

http://ebooksclub.org :D May you'll find something you need.