Introduction
To assist our students inside the college as well as other learners outside the college, Columbia College conducted a world wide web search for websites that offered “free” learning supports for learners (children and adults).
The following sites consist of three separate groups of sites. The first are classed as “Open Education Resources” and consist of sites in a number of countries. The second is “Online Tutoring” and consists of sites where learners go to get help from others. The third set of sites are “Business Mentoring/Consulting” sites.
Caution
Although our researcher spent considerable time locating and assessing these sites however due to time constraints he did not complete a comprehensive review. Columbia College therefore cautions individuals who go to these sites, to be very careful when asked to provide personal information.
Feedback/Advice
We need feedback from users who go to these sites and find they are not very satisfied. We also need advice from users who find other sites that are exceptional and ‘free’. Please feel welcome to submit your own educational links for us to add to this list, click the add link at the bottom of this page!
Free Educational Resources
-
Open Education/Learning Resources
View
Site Name Description Khan Academy The Khan Academy is a not-for-profit organization with the mission of providing a world-class education to anyone, anywhere. iTunes University A ever growing large collection of lectures, demonstrations and other educational content provided by a wide range of notable sources. Much of this content is free to access. European Schoolnet European Schoolnet (EUN) is a network of 31 Ministries of Education and beyond. EUN was created more than 10 years ago with the aim to bring about innovation in teaching and learning to its key stakeholders: Ministries of Education, schools, teachers and researchers. European Schoolnet’s activities are divided among three areas of work: Policy, research and innovation; schools services and learning resources exchange and interoperability. European Schoolnet is at the forefront of global initiatives related to the exchange and interoperability of digital learning resources. With the commitment of participating Ministries of Education and support from European Commission research programmes, European Schoolnet is building a Learning Resource Exchange (LRE) service for schools that will enable teachers and learners to find educational content from man different countries and providers. The LRE helps Ministries and other content partners to become part of a federation of repositories. A measure of the success of the strategy is that, in the MELT project, 16 Ministries of Education in Learning Resource Exchange for Schools Learning Resource Exchange Portal developed by European Schoolnet. Significant content with multi-language resources. BBC Schools BBC beta project set up to provide learning resources for students (youth and adult), resources for parents to help their kids and resources for teachers to use in their classrooms. Learn Alberta Portal designed for students in Alberta. There are links to free resources but many of the resources available at the site are behind a login. All students in Alberta receive a user id and password to login. ReadWriteThink Part of the Thinkfinity initiative. Key partners are National Council of Teachers of English and International Reading Association. Provides resources for teachers, parents and students. Mission is to provide educators, parents, and after school professionals with access to the highest quality practices in reading and language arts instruction by offering the very best in free materials. Illuminations Part of the Thinkfinity initiative. Key partner is the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Designed to provide Standards-based resources that improve the teaching and learning of mathematics for all students. Provide materials that illuminate the vision for school mathematics set forth in Principles and Standards for School Mathematics. Science Netlinks Science NetLinks is part of Thinkfinity, a partnership between the Verizon Foundation and 11 premier educational organizations. The Thinkfinity partners include the AAAS, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Council on Economic Education, the National Geographic Society, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and the Literacy Network. The Thinkfinity partnership provides free, internet-based content across academic disciplines. Science NetLinks’ role is to provide a wealth of standards-aligned resources for K-12 science educators, including lesson plans, interactives and reviewed internet resources. Science NetLinks is a dynamic site with new content being added on a regular basis, so check back often.
Wikiversity Wikversity is a Wikimedia Foundation project devoted to learning resources, learning projects, and research for use in all levels, types, and styles of education from pre-school to university, including professional training and informal learning. We invite teachers, students, and researchers to join us in creating open educational resources and collaborative learning communities. Wikiversity is a community effort to learn and facilitate others’ learning. You can use Wikiversity to find information or ask questions about a subject you need to find out more about. You can also use it to share your knowledge about a subject, and to build learning materials around that knowledge. Open University: Open Learn Top online school that offers courses/content for free with the most sophisticated online learning spaces. OER Commons (Open Educational Resources) Open Education Resources non-profit movement which has aggregated Free-to-Use Teaching and Learning Content from around the World. Educators can organize K-12 Lessons, College Courses, and more. OER content is made free to use or share, and in some cases, to change and share again, made possible through licensing, so that both teachers and learners can share what they know. See the OER Commons Wiki for more about our ongoing programs and research. OER has created a community based approach to gathering content for courses so support their philosophy: “We believe a culture of sharing resources and practices will help facilitate change and innovation in education. OER Commons gathers relevant materials about teaching, technology, research, and more, and encourages you to add links to materials, projects, or news related to the emerging field of Open Education. MIT This is the site for MIT Open Course Ware for high school students. MIT sites are amazing with great information, video lectures, notes, exams. Not all content from courses is online. Intute Intute is a free online service that helps you to find the best web resources for your studies and research. With millions of resources available on the internet, it can be difficult to find useful material. Our subject specialists review and evaluate thousands of resources to help you choose the key websites in your subject. We can also help you develop your internet research skills through our Virtual Training Suite tutorials, written by lecturers and librarians from universities across the UK. Intute is created by a consortium of seven universities, working together with a whole host of partners including top UK universities such as Oxford. Intute is a top site. It even has tutorials on how to effectively use the internet for searching to support your studies based on the courses you’re taking. These tutorials link you off to top resources by subject/discipline. -
Online Tutoring
View
Site Name Description Tutoring in Newfoundland & Labrador Government program that offers free online tutoring assistance for approved students in primary through high school. Free tutoring for students in Newfoundland and Labrador is provided through two programs: Tutoring for Tuition Program (TFT) and Tutoring/Work Experience Program (TWEP). These programs are funded by the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment (HRLE), in partnership with the Department of Education, School Districts, the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers Association (NLTA) and the Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation (CDLI). SOS Devoirs SOS DEVOIRS is a French language tutoring service to help students in French language schools from grades 1 to 12 with their homework. This service is available to all francophone students from the Yukon, Saskatchewan, Alberta, the North-West Territories, Nunavut, Ontario, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. SOS DEVOIRS is possible thanks to to support of CSDCSO and TFO, the collaborations of French Language School Boards, and financial support from the Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Program Agreement. SOS DEVOIRS is staffed with qualified and certified teachers who are specialists in their fields. SOS DEVOIRS is not available to students in Immersion and Core-French Programs, Private or non-francophone school boards. Those students are encouraged to use the ILC program called “Ask a Teacher”. -
Business Mentorship / Consulting
View
Site Name Description SCORE National association dedicated to helping small business owners form and grow their businesses. Made up of 12,000+ volunteers. Funded via corporate sponsorships and likely some government funding. Appear to receive some revenue by offering workshops and seminars. -
E-Mentoring / Consulting
View
Site Name Description IBM Mentorplace MentorPlace is a volunteer program that brings adult professionals and students together in online relationships focused on academics. Employee-volunteers are charged with providing students with academic assistance and career counseling, while letting them know that adults do care about their issues and concerns. The program was designed and piloted by the IBM Corporation as part of its global community relations program, ePals, Inc., a company committed to promoting and expanding quality online mentoring programs around the world, has developed the unique software that is being used by MentorPlace programs around the world. This work is part of their greater work as the leading provider of school-safe email and collaborative technology. Telementor The International Telementor Program (ITP) facilitates electronic mentoring relationships between professional adults and students worldwide, and is recognized as the leader in the field of academic-based mentoring. Thousands of students have received support, encouragement, and professional guidance. ITP serves students in K-12 and home school environments as well as college and university settings. Net Mentors Nonprofit organization that helps students develop career aspirations by enlisting the support of experienced industry professionals as online mentors. The product of NetMentors.org is a career development tool that introduces young people to arts, business, legal, science, and technology careers. The program connects teens with experienced professionals who provide advice, field questions, and assist the students. Students may log on to the website from any internet capable computer and communicate with mentors experienced in the student’s careers of interests. Through the program, mentors provide a realistic, comprehensive view of multiple careers, and assist the young person in investigating and understanding those careers. Science Buddies Non-profit organization empowering students from all walks of life to help themselves and each other develop a love of science and an understanding of the scientific method. With the help of Mentors and Advisors, Science Buddies helps students improve their science skills and literacy, and inspires them to consider additional study or careers in science. -
Canadian Mentoring
View
Site Name Description Cybermentor Cybermentor is an online mentoring program aimed at girls 11-18 to influence them in a formative stage in their development. The program matches girls with women students at Alberta universities who are studying science and engineering, or with professional women scientists and engineers. Cybermentor is a collaborative program between the Universities of Calgary and Edmonton, and the Alberta Women’s Science Network. Currently 2000 mentors in program in 60 communities across Alberta. Have started a pilot project in Germany. The primary goal of the Cybermentor program is to expand girls’ knowledge of careers, opportunities and benefits that exist for women in science and engineering fields. Second, is to provide a motivation for girls to continue in their math and science studies through interaction with women role models who are studying and practicing in these fields. Third, girls will have the opportunity to communicate with mentors from diverse fields, thereby expanding the options for potential career paths. Mentors provide their matches with the resources needed to make.
Language Sites
View
Site Name Description Live Mocha Courses offered free basic lessons, upgrades for more advanced courses, 2 year old company, key feature is having access to community (4 million members) of native speakers who can help you learn a language. Pay to submit voice recordings to native speakers for feedback and upgrade to take more complicated lessons in Spanish. BBC Languages Site is produced by the BBC and has a series of learning portals to help users learn 8 different languages. These are free online resources and incorporate audio and video; as well as TV programming. Keys to Learning You can download the complete Keys to Learning pack in a single file or you can download each set in pdf format.
To submit your own educational links, please click here!
Please fill out this form to submit an educational resource you think should be added to this list of online learning resources.