A School as Vast as the Earth

Distance education is not a new invention. Television, radio, and earlier, correspondence through letters were methods of transmitting knowledge, but the internet has transformed not only distance education but the entire educational system. Previously, higher education was accessible only to a select few, but now the internet has turned the world into a large university. You can be on an island in East Asia and benefit from the lecture of the same professor that students at Oxford University in England listen to. Not only are many of these courses available for free to everyone, but now you can also receive a degree from many of these universities. Almost all European and American universities offer courses entirely online. However, there are also startups that provide separate classes outside the framework of these universities. You can simultaneously choose classes from various universities around the world. One of the most famous platforms is Coursera, a startup near San Jose in Western America. Coursera was founded in 2012 by a Stanford University professor and within three years managed to attract twelve million users (students) from around the world who registered for over 1000 classes from 117 top universities. By selecting and participating in a university's classes, you cannot graduate from that university, but if you complete all the class exercises and pass its exams, you will receive a certificate from Coursera and that university indicating your success in that specific course. However, if you want to receive this certificate, you must pay a fee (which is very small compared to the fee for attending that class at the university itself). Although this money is one of Coursera's sources of funding, its main budget comes from large tech investors and employers who discover special talents in Coursera's classes. Unlike Coursera, which is a private company and aims to gain capital alongside education, EdX is a non-profit organization founded in 2012 by two giants of the education world, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This organization allows students to examine their usage model of this site. In fact, it also uses the site itself as a research subject. Another new task that researchers at this organization are performing is conducting blended classes. Blended means that a university can use classes from other universities with the help of EdX. This new method in education has so far yielded useful results; for example, San Jose University reported that the dropout rate in one of the classes conducted this way decreased by nearly thirty percent. EdX collaborates with internet giants like Microsoft and Google. However, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has not limited itself to this online education project. This university, one of the most famous technical universities in the world, began experimental work in 2002, although the idea was proposed by one of its professors in 1999. This initiative has led to over 250 reputable educational institutions around the world now offering their classes online and for free to everyone. Udacity is another private company that, although initially established to provide university courses, gradually shifted towards offering technical/vocational classes aimed at preparing skilled labor in a short time and is now one of the most successful organizations providing such classes. Classes like coding, web design, data analysis, and mobile application development are among the classes that teach students the necessary skills for some specialized jobs in a short time. While all these sites are working to attract students, Udemy allows professionals from various fields to create courses and offer them for free or for a fee to interested students. However, to create a class on Udemy, you must first prove that you have complete knowledge and capability regarding that class. Although none of Udemy's classes have yet been recognized by reputable universities, this institution hopes to obtain licenses from tech companies to educate students in some related classes. Finally, there is Khan Academy, founded in 2006 by Salman Khan, who has Bangladeshi roots. The goal of this non-profit organization, which receives funding from organizations like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, and Yahoo, is to provide courses at the level of reputable universities worldwide, with appropriate quality and in the form of videos similar to YouTube videos. One of the unique features of this organization is the provision of these courses in various languages. Some of these courses are also available in Persian for interested individuals.