The internet grants us access to a world of endless educational resources for people of all ages. These resources are easily accessible and they're perfect everyone: from the younger generation to adults who have a thirst for knowledge.
But since the internet is extremely vast. It is difficult to know where to start and how to decide which educational resource is reliable. So I have compiled a shortlist of the best free online education resources. Most of these online resources are child-friendly yet all of the resources shown below will guarantee to develop a little bit of curiosity.
BrainPOP is perfect for children. It offers access to just about any subject your child might take interest in. The content is explained in a way that fully covers the material without making you feel like you've been talked down to. BrainPOP even has a "free stuff" section too.
I've been a proponent of YouTube for a long time. If you asked the average person what YouTube was they'd probably tell you that it was for wasting time on cat videos. Although you can do that on the site there is also an
abundance of educational content to be found within it's mega-library of videos. So much so that they curated it all and made it it's own website. With channels like Scishow, VSauce, and Crash Course there is no shortage of great educational content.
Taking a page out of Kahn Academies book. MIT has made a number of highly informative videos that teach basic science and engineering concepts. The videos are generally made by MIT students for anyone thinking of doing science and engineering at university.
This Google site is perfect for anyone interested in computer programming. With courses and tutorials covering everything from HTML, CSS to Python, it's a great way for anyone of all ages to learn coding.
Khan Academy is a popular website where learners will find video tutorials. Covering just about every subject, including Mathematics and Science. The Khan Academy's website is easy to navigate and you find the relevant course or module you want to study.
Project Gutenberg is a treasure trove of free e-books. With thousands of titles that can be made available for Kindle or iBooks, there is no reason book lovers and life learners shouldn't be using this service. It has over 53,000 free e-books. It is an offer to good to refuse.
Created by the National Science Foundation, this engaging smartphone/tablet app provides information dense images and videos that can be accessed from anywhere you take your mobile/tablet device. Also included is a news feed of breaking news from institutions funded by the National Science foundation.
This mobile app is like many other e-readers, as it has useful features such as searchable text and adjustable fonts. The thing that makes this one unique however is that it is solely dedicated to the complete works of William Shakespeare – and his works need no introduction.
Made by the creators of TED – the famous speaking events that host some of the world's most influential minds – TED Ed is a curation of high-quality educational videos covering a range of topics. Remember coming into the classroom and seeing that your teacher had wheeled in the TV? It's kind of like that.
If you've ever been to a liberal arts college you may have had the feeling that you could just read the books assigned to you on your own for a lot less money. The trouble, however, is knowing exactly which books to read. With 51 volumes available to you for free, The Harvard Classics is a great place to start.
Stay Curious
Albert Einstein put it best when he said, "I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious."
We all have the capacity to do great things and stretch our existence out to be as meaningful and pertinent as possible. We simply have to allow our curiosity to fascinate itself – and the resources above will help you do that.
With the world's information at our fingertips, there really is no excuse to not improve ourselves intellectually.
What's your favourite way to learn? Tell me in the comments section below!
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