1. From Microlearning
to MOOCs

2. Who enjoys learning something new?
Who enjoys paying thousands of dollars to learn something new?
Good news! You don’t have to pay an arm and a leg to learn something that will help you develop professionally.
We’re going to talk about some awesome online resources where you can get your learning fix without emptying your wallet.

3. MOOCs massive open online courses Who has heard of MOOCs?
MOOC stands for massive open online course. It’s an online course aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the web. First introduced in 2008 and gained popularity in 2012.
MOOC platforms partner with Universities, non-profits, government agencies, and leading cultural organizations to provide high quality courses for anyone who want to take them.
In addition to traditional, one-way academic course materials many MOOCs provide interactive user forums to support community interactions among students, professors, and researchers. So they are often much more that just reading or watching videos these days.
Many of the MOOC platforms I looked at offer free courses, but give you the option to pay for a completion certificate. So if you are looking to add MOOC material to your resume, it’s easy enough for $50-$100 in some cases.
I haven’t taken any of these courses but after looking at these, you can bet I’ll be trying some of these out, for sure!

4. Coursera Website: coursera.org Course count: 1800
Example course titles:
Animal Behaviour and Welfare, The University of Edinburgh
Dog Emotion and Cognition, Duke University
Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology, University of Alberta
Virology I: How Viruses Work, Columbia University
Who has heard of Coursera? Anyone taken any courses?
Coursera provides universal access to the world’s best education. Coursera is an education platform that partners with top universities and organizations worldwide, to offer courses online for anyone to take.
Example course titles:
Animal Behaviour and Welfare, The University of Edinburgh
Dog Emotion and Cognition, Duke University
Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology, University of Alberta
Virology I: How Viruses Work, Columbia University

5. edX Website: edx.org Course count: 900 Example course titles:
Introduction to Biomedical Imaging, University of Queensland
Inclusive Leadership Training: Becoming a Successful Leader, Catalyst
Useful Genetics Part 1 & 2, University of British Columbia
How to Save a Life: CPR, AED and First Aid, Save A LifeX
Who has heard of edX? Anyone taken any courses?
edX’s mission is to increase access to high-quality education for everyone, everywhere. It was founded by Harvard University and MIT in They now have more than 90 global partners, including universities, nonprofits, and other institutions worldwide.
Example course titles:
Introduction to Biomedical Imaging, University of Queensland
Inclusive Leadership Training: Becoming a Successful Leader, Catalyst
Useful Genetics Part 1 & 2, University of British Columbia
How to Save a Life: CPR, AED and First Aid, Save A LifeX

6. FutureLearn Website: futurelearn.com Course count: 300
Example course titles:
Introduction to Translational Research, Taipei Medical University
Develop Your Management Skills (a collection of 8 courses)
Managing People: Engaging Your Workforce, University of Reading
Cancer in the 21st Century: The Genomic Revolution, University of Glasgow
Who has heard of FutureLearn? Anyone taken any courses?
FutureLearn believes learning should be an enjoyable, social experience, so their courses offer the opportunity to discuss what you’re learning with others as you go, helping you make fresh discoveries and form new ideas. They have 82 partners from around the world. These include many international universities, as well as institutions with a huge archive of cultural and educational material.
Example course titles:
Introduction to Translational Research, Taipei Medical University
Develop Your Management Skills (a collection of 8 courses)
Managing People: Engaging Your Workforce, University of Reading
Cancer in the 21st Century: The Genomic Revolution, University of Glasgow

7. Khan Academy Website: khanacademy.org Course count: 9000+ videos
Example course titles:
Crash Course: Biology (40 short videos on, like, everything biology)
Crash Course: Chemistry
Crash Course: Ecology
Who has heard of Khan Academy? Anyone taken any courses?
Khan Academy offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. They've also partnered with institutions like NASA, The Museum of Modern Art, The California Academy of Sciences, and MIT to offer specialized content.
Example course titles:
Crash Course: Biology (40 short videos on, like, everything biology)
Crash Course: Chemistry
Crash Course: Ecology

8. Microlearning learning nuggets
Who has ever gone to the YouTube for a quick tutorial on something? Great! You already know all about microlearning.
Microlearning is learning through small, well planned, bite-sized chunks of units or activities that are short-term, digestible, and easily manageable. This approach aligns with research that proves we learn better when engaged in short, focused sessions.
All of the MOOCs we talked about utilize microleanring – they string them all together into curriculums, or groups of content.
Lets look at some microleanring resources…

9. Coursmos Website: coursmos.com Course count: no info
Example course topics:
Employability skills
Problem solving
Communication
Productivity
Coursmos says they are the world’s first learning platform that supports micro learning. It hosts several hundreds of micro-courses - online courses that are broken down into smaller, more manageable chunks. These courses are characterized by minutes-long lessons that can be taken while on the move. Some are free and some cost a little money, but surfing this site will likely find you something learn during a quick bus ride or walk.
Example course topics:
Employability skills
Problem solving
Communication
Productivity
Lots of self help and personal growth topics on this site

10. Cognibloom Website: cognibloom.com Quiz count: no info
Example quiz topics:
Animals
Chemistry
Vocabulary
Biology
Nature
Technology
I thought this was interesting.
Cognibloom is a social microlearning tool that empowers people to share their expertise by helping them create social quizzes. Their mission is to create the world's biggest marketplace for professional quizzes made by experts, so that anybody can learn something rapidly for their career advancement.
Example quiz topics:
Animals
Chemistry
Vocabulary
Biology
Nature
Technology

11. TED Talk Website: ted.com Course count: 2100+ talks
Duration: 18 mins or less
Example titles:
Temple Grandin: The world needs all kinds of minds
Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action
Who has watched a TED Talk recently?
TED.com says they are building a clearinghouse of free knowledge from the world's most inspired thinkers — and a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other. TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks. TED began in 1984 as a conference where a few industries converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. 
Example titles:
Temple Grandin: The world needs all kinds of minds
Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action

12. Ultra Relevant
LabRoots

13. LabRoots Website: labroots.com
LabRoots' two-day international Laboratory Animal Science (LAS) virtual conference, that took place on February 3rd and 4th, , is now On Demand.
Go. Do.
Who has heard of LabRoots? Who attended the virtual conference in February? Would you recommend it?
LabRoots is a scientific networking site that enables industry professionals to stay connected and stay on top of science news, webinars and virtual events. They have tons of free content!
LabRoots annual holds a two-day international Laboratory Animal Science (LAS) virtual conference. This year it took place on February 3rd and 4th, but it’s now On Demand. Free free free!
A sampling of topics include:
Stressed out! The consequences of environmentally induced stress on mouse models
Small Refinements = Large Enhancements to Science and Animal Welfare
Problems when breeding laboratory mice: why are pups dying?
In-house development and implementation of surgical animal models
Panel: How small things can have a big impact on research and breeding in your rodent colony
What’s totally awesome is that many speakers have been approved for continuing education credits that can be redeemed after you complete the on-demand session.

14. Your turn! What free learning have you discovered?
What other free learning opportunities have you all discovered? Anyone want to share? Y'all just want to get to lunch?