This week we would like to highlight an article that was published in the Globe and Mail by Caroline Alphonsso. Our gappers, and all gappers, are explorers of the world. They are keenly interested in learning more about themselves, others and the world around them. Often this means becoming aware of their place in the world and exploring ideas and beliefs around belonging.
Katimavik, a Canadian volunteer program, recently cancelled by the Federal Government, offered the participants credits for their involvement in the program. Why is this important, you ask? Well, I invite you to read this article and think about the intersection of gapping as informal and experiential education. Maybe while you are taking a gap year you want to learn more about your deepest passions - this could be a good place to start.
What if anyone around the world could learn from the best instructors, for free?
Daphne Koller is dramatically transforming the face of higher education, and she’s doing it through technology. Dr. Koller, a professor at Stanford University, is also the co-founder of Coursera, a major U.S. initiative that offers open online courses for free to anyone in the world, from some of the best instructors in top institutions. The program has about 1.25-million enrolments, proof that students want more out of their university education than simply attending lectures.
"With the technologies that are now available, there is an
opportunity to remarkably enhance the traditional lecture experience,"
Dr. Koller said.
Coursera holds plenty of appeal for older learners and those in remote locations around the world. And traditional undergraduates can build on what they are currently learning with courses that their university does not offer.
Students log in to Coursera, and have lecture modules every week and homework assignments that are graded for free either by their peers or through Coursera’s online program. For those who argue that there’s no substitute for face-to-face interaction, it turns out that students who take these courses self-organize into small online groups to work together. At the end of the course, students receive a certificate if they have mastered the material.
Coursera's success is evidence of the exploding interest in open online courses. More than two dozen universities, including the University of Toronto, offer courses through the online program. For Dr. Koller, it is about not denying anyone the opportunity to learn in a global economy.
"I would like to make it so that education was a right, and not a privilege. [So that] anyone around the world who felt the wish to learn ... that opportunity would be there for anyone, at any time, regardless of their geographic, financial or social circumstances."
Coursera holds plenty of appeal for older learners and those in remote locations around the world. And traditional undergraduates can build on what they are currently learning with courses that their university does not offer.
Students log in to Coursera, and have lecture modules every week and homework assignments that are graded for free either by their peers or through Coursera’s online program. For those who argue that there’s no substitute for face-to-face interaction, it turns out that students who take these courses self-organize into small online groups to work together. At the end of the course, students receive a certificate if they have mastered the material.
Coursera's success is evidence of the exploding interest in open online courses. More than two dozen universities, including the University of Toronto, offer courses through the online program. For Dr. Koller, it is about not denying anyone the opportunity to learn in a global economy.
"I would like to make it so that education was a right, and not a privilege. [So that] anyone around the world who felt the wish to learn ... that opportunity would be there for anyone, at any time, regardless of their geographic, financial or social circumstances."
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