In 2001, MIT launched MIT OpenCourseWare (OCW), an innovative platform that allowed users free, unlimited access to all of the institute’s undergraduate and graduate course materials.
Though MIT’s OCW system may not have been the first of its kind (the movement started two years earlier, at Germany’s University of Tübingen), it was the most prominent, and remains so, with over 2300 courses available online, 80 of which include complete video lectures from such notable scholars as Erik Demaine, Hari Balakrishnan, and Irving Singer.
Included on the website are course syllabus, lecture notes, assignments and exams (some with solutions, some not), and resource references.
As you’d expect, there is a downside to MIT’s OCW, and it’s two-sided.
The first issue is that the courses, being direct copies of those taught within the classrooms, are not designed for self-learners. That means online students using the system must solely rely on the encompassing nature of the notes to provide significant explanation of the topics.
If you were to buy some of the recommended textbooks and a mind like Ahaan Rungta, the 15 year-old who used OCW as the basis for his primary and secondary-level education, this might not be an issue. For everyone else, there are alternatives.
Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) providers like edX, Academic Earth, and Coursera have opened up in the wake of MIT’s developments in the field, with a refined focus on those studying from home. They might not carry the prestige of MIT (though MIT and Harvard were co-founders of edX), the platforms are nonetheless required to provide a high level of quality, as well as to cover the costs of their digital infrastructure and upkeep, the toll of which is not to be underestimated.
The other, and more blatant issue is that OCW’s lack of price comes with a price. That is, no matter how much you study and learn from the materials provided, you won’t receive a degree as a result. For many, that negates any value the system might otherwise have.
But so what? There is greater purpose to education than it’s so-called ending, and a piece of paper that proves your knowledge and expertise. It is about striving for understanding, and the quest to forever be improving. To experiment. To grow.
For that reason, I implore you to start exploring the options OCWs provide.