The free website Khan Academy provides lessons on math, chemistry, history, and even GMAT prep. The lessons are in the form of videos and then there are exercises to put what you learned into practice. It's basically an online school for free. You sign in with a google or facebook account.
I told my sixth grade math students about Khan Academy this year. Some of them signed up and loved playing around on it. I like that I can see what skills they are working on and how well they are doing. All the data comes back to me, their coach on the website. If I can wrangle up some computers for my classroom, I would like to include it in my math class as a part of my instruction; that's what some schools in Los Altos, California are doing in this NPR story.
These schools are actually implementing the website as part of their math curriculum. Students are on the computer for a half-hour each day working on the math skills on their level. Some of the fifth graders are multiplying decimals and others are doing high school calculus. If they get stuck, there are videos they can watch to walk them through the math. It's differentiation.
The school from the story seems to have implemented the program well. Students are all working at their level with the teacher monitoring their progress and available for support. Students are also working cooperatively and helping each other. Everyone seems thrilled about the program.
An internet-based curriculum could be education-altering. Why would you need an expert teacher in the room when students have high quality informational videos at their disposal? The data from their time on the computer is all logged and graphed; does there necessarily have to be a highly qualified teacher in the room? It would certainly be cheaper. Mr. Khan even says that his vision is for the teacher to be a mentor or coach while all the students work at their own pace through the material.
Mr. Khan has a big supporter. Bill Gates is loving Khan Academy as evidenced by his video on the website. Khan academy math will be expanding to more schools next year.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
I love Khan Academy. I think part of the reason why I love it is because it is all about standards-based education, instead of time-based education. It doesn't matter how long someone takes studying, they progress once they know the material. It's not perfect, but it's a far better model.
It's also ideal because it is the perfect differentiator. It allows the bright kids to succeed and the slower kids to catch up. I particularly love how it will record how well the kids do, and how long they spend on each topic.
I also am hopeful that it will expand to the point that it can be used as a curriculum resource.
Post a Comment