Category: Web/Tech

This week the events in Paris have shocked and horrified, citizens have gathered together to pay homage and stand in solidarity against an attack on freedom of speech and democracy. 

I have a strong belief that education is one of the most important pillars supporting a successful democracy, that learning provides equality and understanding. The freedom to speak freely is a right that we have to use or else we will lose it. The blunt tool used to silence only served to make louder. 

Four new MOOCs from Futurelearn are launching in the next few weeks and I've been guided to them by  Class Central which is fast becoming the central aggregation point for free online learning, bringing together courses from Edx, Coursera, Futurelearn and other providers. This is an excellent site that offers up a huge range of courses and also provides reflection on the success and strategy of online learning. 

Cory Doctorow (yes, that one)  is your guide for An Introduction to Cyber Security, and along with Arosha Bandara presents what might be a dry subject in an open and useful way. The humour associated with Doctorow's work helps to move things along as this course promises to introduce you to the ethical issues and concerns that the sector deals in, as well as some practical advice to make life safer online. 

I have to say that I signed up to Explore Filmmaking almost right away, this course from the National Film and Television School isn't just for budding Spielbergs and Scorsese's, it establishes principles which everyone involved in the production of moving image will find useful. The NFTS is able to lean on its incredible stable of BAFTA winning talent, including Mike Figgis, director of Leaving Las Vegas, Timecode and Internal Affairs. Figgis wrote Digital Filmmaking which still stands as one of the most useful and insightful pieces of writing about low budget cinema anyone has written. This is a treat and I can't wait for it to start. 

Finally there are two MOOCs which might shed light on corporate responsibility and developing new technologies that reduce the impact on this poor old planet of our. Sustainability for Professionals from the University of Bath will provide important theories and understanding for businesses looking at the impact of their work. Sustainable means safeguarding our future, so it's important that the controversies of energy politics are explored in Shale Gas and Fracking: The Politics and Science from The University of Nottingham. Sarah O'Hara and Mathew Humprey are your guides through this four week course, where the comments and discussions are sure to be lively and challenging.

Again, it's good to see MOOCs at the forefront of debate and discussion, helping to challenge our understanding of the world and as a forum for free speech and thinking. 

I'm starting what I hope will be a fortnightly review of courses that have caught my eye and which I'd like to draw your attention to. I know that many people are taking part in a what could be seen as a relatively new movement in online learning, with courses on a plethora of sites including Coursera, Futurelearn, edX as well as established hands such as the Open University and BBC. 

I would like to offer some critique of courses and talk informally about the content and intentions behind the courses. Just as you would read a book review or television review, I would like to establish some informality, especially as I learn how to do this properly. 

In truth I've been really enjoying the reviews published in the newspaper, especially Miranda Sawyer's this week in radio. I keep thinking that there's a space for something similar that offers some guidance and thought about new courses and learning. Recently I wondered if taking part in a FutureLearn MOOC might be akin to the immersive experience of consuming the episodes of a box set. 

A common resolution, as we contemplate the year ahead is to take a course in a subject that might offer shed some light on current issues and our approach to tackling them. Ebola in Context: Understanding Transmission, Response and Control at FutureLearn from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine will be unflinching and necessary if we're to gain a better understanding about the crisis that is continuing to unfold across the world. 

Although the course is billed for medical professionals, exploring the context around the recent outbreak will offer insight and a rational overview. Included in the steps are interviews with those on the front line and Professor Peter Piot: Director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, co-discoverer of the Ebola virus and Chair of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) scientific committee on Ebola. 

An interesting accompaniment might be Edinbugh University's Critical Thinking in Global Challenges via Coursera offers the opportunity to learn important skills using real world scenarios. Dr. Celine Caquineau is a Biomedical Scientist so it's a given that disease control will come up and you'll be invited to tackle the complex ethical and philosophical issues that will arise from discussion. 

Both these courses offer a great deal in terms of engagement, as learning takes place as much across the comments and online social interactions. The Science of Happiness from UC BerkeleyX on edX might offer some respite but be warned it looks like it too aims to unwrap your defenses and get you asking difficult questions, albeit ones that might offer clues to greater happiness.