Khan Academy Changing the World of Academics
Until few of years ago, Salman Khan was a hedge fund manager making significant amounts of money - lots of money. His niece's visit changed all that. Nadia, a six-grader asked him for help with math. That tutoring lesson led to the creation of easy to learn, easy to follow math online lessons distributed via YouTube. And, then, the incredible thing happened: Khan started getting thank you notes and testimonials from students from all over the globe. They all said they scored much higher in tests and they had learned a lot more from his videos than from years of education in traditional schools.
Khan might be a brainiac (he holds a BS in math, and MBA from Harvard, and an MS in Engineering), but he is also a visionary who saw a new way to change the learning process. So, he quit his cushy job and now dedicates his all his time on the Khan Academy. There are over 1,000 videos made (for more than just math).
His vision is to change the system by turning it on its head. His argument is that instead of evaluating people based on their degrees, future and current employees should be tested on knowledge. And, that knowledge can be acquired in any form: traditional school, online training and tutoring videos such as Khan Academy's, or any other form of learning (reading, internship, etc). He also advocates for turning the classroom teaching into tutoring and homework time.
Famous "students": Bill Gates and the Google Foundation, both of which decided to invest significant amounts of money in the Khan Academy and help Khan achieve his lofty goal. (Gates used the videos to teach his own children math. Now, that is serious endorsement).
Prompted by How Bill Gates' Favorite Teacher Wants to Disrupt Education
Thank you! Took himself too-handy.
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Iwish you never will stop and be creative - forever!
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