An Online Education

Winter comes to the North Country and many of us are looking for solutions to the "winter doldrums". There are, of course, activities for the hardy such as snowboarding and ice skating. The question becomes how can winter days (and nights) be used to their best advantage. Trips to the library and the bookstore have been the solution for many who use the winter to catch up on reading that can be neglected during the active days of summer. For those with an internet connection, another option is available. Why not take an online course through MIT or the Open Learning Initiative at Carnegie Mellon. Most of us don't have the time or money to enroll in institutions of higher learning. Many of them, however, are providing a large sampling of their offerings online and free. I never had the opportunity to take a course in basic economics when I was in college so that's where I plan on starting. Economics forms the basis for understanding the world of finance and so I thought this might be a good beginning for a credit union board member. I can choose from courses offered through many of the most prestigious institutions. I may select The Open Learning Initiative through Carnegie Mellon which provides a systematic course (complete with exams) called Experiments with Economics. Another option is a course entitled Macroeconomics Analysis from the University of California at Berkely. This course includes both audio lectures and lecture notes in pdf format. Economics is just one of hundreds of courses some including video lectures for an almost complete classroom experience. Here are some sources to get you started on your search:

• MIT OpenCourseWare offers about 1,800 courses, some with audio and video.
• Carnegie Mellon University offers about 10 courses designed specifically to provide not only materials but also computerized instruction.
• The University of California at Berkeley has posted videos of lectures of eight courses and plans to add others to YouTube.
• For iTunes fans - iTunes U offers audio and video lectures from more than two dozen institutions at its iTunes store.

In addition, the Open Culture Blog has a link to 75 courses from a variety of prestigious colleges and universities.

Comments

[Morriss Partee]

Great resources! Thanks for doing this research and sharing the links.

[Ginny Brady]

The resources out there are amazing, aren't they.

[Stephen]

Yeah great resources. I have been looking for something like this for long time. Thanks for the post.

Stephen
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