Startup of the Week – Coursera

Since it’s September and the school doors have once more re-opened after the summer break, we thought it quite timely to look at startups in the education and learning sector. Even though for many of us, our schooldays are long gone, it doesn’t have to mean that we stop learning and in turn reap the benefits it brings. After all, as Leonardo Da Vinci once said “Learning never exhausts the mind…”
If you would like to continue your own learning journey, all from the comfort of your own home, then this week’s Startup of the Week will let you do just that.

Coursera is an online platform which has partnered with some of the world’s top universities to offer free courses for anyone to take, no matter where they are in the world.

The site offers courses in a range of subjects – everything from Business and Computer Science through to Medicine and Humanities.
The Coursera classes allow you to watch lectures taught by leading world class professors, learn completely at your own pace, test your knowledge and also participate interactively.
The use of interactive exercises in particular help users learn much more effectively. As a user you will also receive continual feedback and be therefore able to monitor and record your own progress.
Although you may not be in a traditional classroom environment, you will still get the feeling that you are part of a learning community. For some subjects, Coursera enables students to provide feedback on each others’ work. These ‘Peer Assessments’ serve to enhance an even greater sense of involvement and engagement amongst those studying.

Although only in public beta for a matter of months, Coursera has already had over 1 million students from over 190 countries enrol in at least one course. So then…what are you waiting for? Check it out for yourself….

And one more thing…Happy Learning!

If you liked this, why not check out some of our previous Startups of the Week.