Khan Academy

Khan Academy

Khan Academy's logo
Motto A free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere.[1]
Founded September 2006
Founder Salman Khan
Type Non-profit
Location
Services E-learning, Education
Official languages
 English, website translated to 23 languages and videos to 65[2][3]
Owner Salman Khan, founder and Executive Director
Revenue
 15.795 million USD (2012)
Expenses 7.289 million USD (2012)
Website www.khanacademy.org

Khan Academy is a non-profit[4] educational organization created in 2006 by educator Salman Khan to provide "a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere".[5] The organization produces micro lectures in the form of YouTube videos.[6] In addition to micro lectures, the organization's website features practice exercises and tools for educators. All resources are available for free to anyone around the world.

History

The founder of the organization, Salman Khan, was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States to a father from Barisal, Bangladesh, and mother from Calcutta, India.[7] After earning three degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (a BS in mathematics, a M.Sc. in electrical engineering and computer science, and an MEng in electrical engineering and computer science) he pursued an MBA from Harvard Business School.

In late 2004, Khan began tutoring his cousin Nadia in mathematics using Yahoo!'s Doodle notepad. When other relatives and friends sought similar help, he decided it would be more practical to distribute the tutorials on YouTube.[8][9] Their popularity there and the testimonials of appreciative students prompted Khan to quit his job in finance as a hedge fund analyst at Connective Capital Management in 2009, and focus on the tutorials (then released under the moniker "Khan Academy") full-time.[9]

The project is funded by donations. Khan Academy is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization,[4] now with significant backing from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ann and John Doerr, the Brazil-based Lemann Foundation, and Google. In 2010, Google announced it would give the Khan Academy $2 million for creating more courses and for translating the core library into the world’s most widely spoken languages, as part of their Project 10100.[10] In 2012, Google's first employee, Craig Silverstein, left there and joined the Khan Academy.[11] In 2013, the Mexico-based Carlos Slim Foundation made a donation to Khan Academy to expand its Spanish library of videos.[12]

In the beginning, Khan Academy offered videos mostly about mathematics. Thanks to donations, Khan Academy has been able to expand its faculty and offer courses about history, healthcare, medicine, finance, physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, cosmology, American civics, art history, economics, music, computer programming and computer science.[6][13][14] In addition to faculty, the organization has a network of content specialists.[15]

Khan Academy also has thousands of resources translated into other languages. It launched the Spanish version of the website in September 2013.[16] It is supported by partners and volunteers in languages including Indonesian, German, Spanish, Czech, French, Italian, Swahili, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Turkish, Xhosa, Greek, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Urdu, Arabic, Persian, Bengali, Hindi, Malayalam, and Chinese. Khan Academy also has a Brazilian Portuguese version of its website.[17] As of June 2014, Khan Academy's website has been translated to 23 languages and its videos to 65.[2][3]

Technical format

The Khan Academy started with Khan remotely tutoring one of his cousins interactively using Yahoo Doodle images. Based on feedback from his cousin, additional cousins began to take advantage of the interactive, remote tutoring. In order to make better use of his and their time, Khan transitioned to making YouTube video tutorials.[18] Drawings are now made with a Wacom tablet and the free natural drawing application SmoothDraw, and recorded with screen capture software from Camtasia Studio.[19]

All videos (hosted via YouTube) are available through Khan Academy's own website, which also contains many other features such as progress tracking, practice exercises, and a variety of tools for teachers in public schools. Logging into the site can be done via a Google or a Facebook account for those who do not want to create a separate Khan Academy account. The material can also be accessed through Khan Academy's own mobile applications, which can be found free of charge in App Store and Windows Store.

The videos show step-by-step doodles and diagrams on an electronic blackboard.[20][21] Not-for-profit groups have distributed offline versions of the videos to rural areas in Asia, Latin America, and Africa.[8][22]

Khan Academy also provides a web-based exercise system that generates problems for students based on skill level and performance.[23] Khan believes his academy presents an opportunity to overhaul the traditional classroom by using software to create tests, grade assignments, highlight the challenges of certain students, and encourage those doing well to help struggling classmates.[9] The tutorials are touted as helpful because, among other factors, they can be paused by students, while a classroom lecture cannot be.[24]

Methodology

Khan Academy has been criticized because Salman Khan does not have a background in pedagogy.[25] Statements made in some videos have also been questioned.[26] In response to these criticisms, the organization has fixed errors in its videos, expanded its faculty and built a network of content specialists.[26]

In 2010, Khan Academy introduced badges as part of a program to promote gamification of learning.[27] There are currently 6 types.[28]

Services and vision

The major components of Khan Academy include:[29][17]

Recognition

Khan Academy has gained recognition both nationally and internationally:

See also

References

  1. ↑ "About". Khan Academy. Retrieved 2013-08-15.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Translations". Khan Academy.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Is Khan Academy available in other languages?". Khan Academy.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Contribute". Khan Academy.
  5. ↑ "About Khan Academy". 2014-04-14. Retrieved 2014-04-14.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Khan Academy's video library". Khan Academy. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  7. ↑ "What is Sal's background?". Khan Academy. 2010. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "A free world-class education for anyone anywhere". About (FAQ). Khan academy.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Temple, James (2009-12-14). "Salman Khan, math master of the Internet". SF gate. Retrieved 2009-12-23.
  10. ↑ "$10 million for Project 10^100 winners". The Official Google Blog. 2010-09-24. Retrieved 2010-09-24.
  11. ↑ Swisher, Kara. "Google's Very First Employee, Craig Silverstein Departs". AllThings D. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Mexico’s Carlos Slim funds Khan academy in Spanish". Marketplace.
  13. ↑ "About the team". Khan Academy. Retrieved 2014-09-14.
  14. ↑ "The Wikipedia of Education: 'Khan Academy' Launches Computer Science Education". Career mitra. 2012-08-20. Retrieved 2014-06-10.
  15. ↑ "Our content specialists". Khan Academy. Retrieved 2014-06-10.
  16. ↑ "Khan academy" (in Spanish).
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 "Khan Academy Fact pack" (PDF) (PDF). Khan Academy. June 1, 2014. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
  18. ↑ Khan, Salman. "How Did You Get Started?". FAQ. Khan Academy.
  19. ↑ Khan Academy: The future of education?. 60 Minutes. CBS News. March 11, 2012.
  20. ↑ Kaplan, David A. (2010-08-24). "Innovation in Education: Bill Gates' favorite teacher". CNN Money. Retrieved 2011-01-05.
  21. ↑ "Need a tutor? YouTube videos await". USA Today. AP. 2008-12-12. Retrieved 2011-01-05.
  22. ↑ "Laureate: Salman Khan". Education Award. The Tech Awards. 2009. Retrieved 2014-06-11.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "Exercises read me". GitHub.
  24. ↑ Rasicot, Julie (2011-08-04). "Education Review: Web site offering free math lessons catches on 'like wildfire'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-06-10.
  25. ↑ Christopher Danielson and Michael Paul Goldenberg (2012-07-27). "How well does Khan Academy teach?". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-11-15.}
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Strauss, Valerie (2013-10-22). "Khan Academy using contractors to check Web site’s videos". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  27. ↑ Ben Kamens (2010-12-22). "Khan Academy Now Has Badges". bjk5.com. Retrieved 2015-01-11.
  28. ↑ "Badges". Khan Academy. Retrieved 2015-01-11.
  29. ↑ "Khan Academy Vision and Social Return". YouTube. Google. 2010-04-13. Retrieved 2011-01-05.
  30. ↑ Reimagining Education with Sal Khan. Askwith Forums. Harvard Education. May 8, 2013.
  31. ↑ "Khan Academy". YouTube. Google. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  32. ↑ "Khan Academy FAQ". Khan Academy. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
  33. ↑ Thompson, Clive (15 July 2011). "How Khan Academy Is Changing the Rules of Education". Wired. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
  34. ↑ "Project 10100 Winners". Project 10100. Google. 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-05.
  35. ↑ "The O’Sullivan Foundation Grants $5M To Online Learning Platform Khan Academy". Tech crunch. November 4, 2011.
  36. ↑ Special, Time.
  37. ↑ "The Heinz Awards: Salman Khan". The Heinz Awards.
  38. ↑ "Khan Academy To Be Subject of Ed. Department Evaluation". Education Week. July 14, 2014.
  39. ↑ Kao,Yvonne – Schneider, Steve. "Khan Academy Resources for Maximizing Mathematics Achievement: A Postsecondary Mathematics Efficacy Study". Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 2014-11-17.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Khan Academy.