Free and Low Cost Online Learning Available

Have you been putting off taking a class for yourself or to help you on your job? Well you can stop procrastinating and start learning! If you want to participate in a college course or brush up on skills for your favorite hobby, you can now do it online.

Today it’s common for colleges and universities, and some local public libraries, to offer courses and classes online. The advantage of online courses is it gives you access to so many options – professors from recognized universities or national and local experts in their field – and you can complete them anytime and anywhere.

Start learning online from the comfort of your couch or at the kitchen table. All you need is a computer and access to the Internet.

If you are looking for the opportunity to interact online with students from all over the world, you can sign up for a MOOC. A MOOC is a Massive Open Online Course that is available to anyone, anywhere, via the web.

Several prominent MOOCs were created by the elite Ivy League universities, including Harvard and Stamford, called edX, Udacity and Coursera. They each partner with other well-known universities to offer online courses taught by university professors. These courses include self-study work and synchronous learning events which are online sessions conducted at a scheduled time that students are required to attend. Most MOOC classes are between four and twelve weeks long and are free of charge. Some offer the option to earn a certificate of completion or college credit, for a small fee.

In addition to the university MOOCs, there are other companies that offer online courses at reasonable costs. These are Lynda, Alison and Udemy — each one focusing on different subject areas. To find more information about what is available online, you can log onto Class Central which lists nearly all online courses by provider, subject and start date.

Ruth Kustoff
Principal at Knowledge Advantage
Ruth Kustoff is Principal of Knowledge Advantage, a strategic learning consultancy. Knowledge Advantage specializes in elearning, curriculum design and learning needs assessments. To contact Ruth Kustoff you can email rkustoff@knowledgeadvantage.biz or call 860.256.7879.

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