Classroom Redefined
Good teaching must “de-emphasise lecture and emphasise active
problem-solving,” says Carl Wieman, a winner of the Nobel prize in physics and
an adviser to Barack Obama. Khan Academy, a not-for-profit educational
organization attempts to innovate conventional teaching methods by means of its
website www.khanacademy.org which is an educational video repository. It
supplies a free online collection of more than 3,200 micro lectures via video
tutorials stored on YouTube covering a wide
spectrum of subjects in Mathematics, Science, Finance, Economics and
Humanities. While students can make use of this extensive video library to
expand their knowledge base; coaches, parents, and teachers can keep an eye on what
their students are learning and doing on the Khan Academy.
The Visionary
Khan Academy was started by Salman Khan in 2008
with a mission to provide a free, world-class education to anyone, anywhere. In
April 2012, Salman Khan was listed among the Time 100 Most Influential People for 2012. “Salman
Khan is a true education pioneer. He started by posting a math lesson, but his
impact on education might truly be incalculable”, writes Bill Gates in TIME
magazine.
Salman’s scholarly abilities coupled with his business acumen helped him make a transition from a hedge fund manager to an education entrepreneur. Khan Academy is an excellent example of philanthropic business model which works to improve the methods of learning and makes a successful business out of it. Khan's long-term goal is to provide "tens of thousands of videos in pretty much every subject" and to create "the world's first free, world-class virtual school where anyone can learn anything”. He says, “This could be the DNA for a physical school where students spend 20 percent of their day watching videos and doing self-paced exercises and the rest of the day building robots or painting pictures or composing music or whatever”.
Salman’s scholarly abilities coupled with his business acumen helped him make a transition from a hedge fund manager to an education entrepreneur. Khan Academy is an excellent example of philanthropic business model which works to improve the methods of learning and makes a successful business out of it. Khan's long-term goal is to provide "tens of thousands of videos in pretty much every subject" and to create "the world's first free, world-class virtual school where anyone can learn anything”. He says, “This could be the DNA for a physical school where students spend 20 percent of their day watching videos and doing self-paced exercises and the rest of the day building robots or painting pictures or composing music or whatever”.
The Success Story
The Cash Flow
As stated earlier, Khan
Academy is a nonprofit organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals rather
than distributing them as profit or dividends. It is funded by donations from individuals
and various philanthropic institutions. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,
Google and
O’Sullivan Foundation are the biggest donors.
There are basically three revenue models in online education - Ad-supported, Freemium and Premium. Ad-supported education are in most cases smaller projects of individual educators who upload videos to YouTube and display Google ads against them. Freemium is a very popular model amongst education startups. Users have access to a big chunk of the product for free, though this part is usually also supported by display ads. If learners then want to have access to extra content, usually grammar charts, worksheets or videos, they will have to pay. Premium, as the name suggests, is content that is only available to paying customers.
Khan Academy has no revenue model as such. In 2010, Khan Academy ceased to accept advertising and this is what sets it apart from its competitors. Its revenue comes only from website visitors which is around 3.5 million a month at present.
There are basically three revenue models in online education - Ad-supported, Freemium and Premium. Ad-supported education are in most cases smaller projects of individual educators who upload videos to YouTube and display Google ads against them. Freemium is a very popular model amongst education startups. Users have access to a big chunk of the product for free, though this part is usually also supported by display ads. If learners then want to have access to extra content, usually grammar charts, worksheets or videos, they will have to pay. Premium, as the name suggests, is content that is only available to paying customers.
Khan Academy has no revenue model as such. In 2010, Khan Academy ceased to accept advertising and this is what sets it apart from its competitors. Its revenue comes only from website visitors which is around 3.5 million a month at present.
Brains At Work
Khan Academy believes in the
ethos that a few great people can make a big difference. Their team consists of
a diverse group of professionals who are passionate, thoughtful and creative. Khan
Academy also receives the expertise of many volunteers and part-time contributors.
Salman Khan, Founder and Executive Director of Khan Academy himself is a Douglas McGregor’s Theory Y Manager who believes that his men possess the ability for creative problem solving and given the right atmosphere, they accept responsibility and exercise self-control and self-direction in accomplishing objectives to which they are committed.
A Few Last Words
Khan Academy is the new global classroom where students from all over the world learn at their own pace every single day. Key to success of Khan Academy has been innovation, teamwork and a value-driven organisational structure. Its relentless focus on student values, effective decision making and creative problem solving approach has propelled it on the path of becoming the future of education across the world. It inspires the budding entrepreneurs not only in online education business but also in other social sectors who aim to serve a noble cause by way of venturing into new fields of business. Salman Khan reminds us of a popular quote which goes like this:
"Some people dream of success, others make it happen".
Salman Khan, Founder and Executive Director of Khan Academy himself is a Douglas McGregor’s Theory Y Manager who believes that his men possess the ability for creative problem solving and given the right atmosphere, they accept responsibility and exercise self-control and self-direction in accomplishing objectives to which they are committed.
A Few Last Words
Khan Academy is the new global classroom where students from all over the world learn at their own pace every single day. Key to success of Khan Academy has been innovation, teamwork and a value-driven organisational structure. Its relentless focus on student values, effective decision making and creative problem solving approach has propelled it on the path of becoming the future of education across the world. It inspires the budding entrepreneurs not only in online education business but also in other social sectors who aim to serve a noble cause by way of venturing into new fields of business. Salman Khan reminds us of a popular quote which goes like this:
"Some people dream of success, others make it happen".
Kiran
PGDIM-19
Sec B, Roll No. 76
Awaiting your blog post on valley crossing and goal setting parameters i asked..
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