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Khan Academy

Khan Academy is an American non-profit educational organisation created in 2006 by Sal Khan with a goal to create a set of online tools that help educate students.
Khan Academy
Influencers
Dean
Locations
Mountain View, United States
Established
2006
Address
Mountain View, 1937 Landings Dr, United States
Social Media
Overview
Location
Summary

Khan Academy is an American non-profit educational organisation created in 2006 by Sal Khan. Its goal is creating a set of online tools that help educate students. The organisation produces short lessons in the form of videos. Its website also includes supplementary practice exercises and materials for educators. It has produced over 8,000 video lessons teaching a wide spectrum of academic subjects, originally focusing on mathematics and sciences. All resources are available for free to users of the website and application.

As of 2018, over 70 million people use Khan Academy, out of which 2.3 million students use it to prepare for the SAT. As of February 2023, the Khan Academy channel on YouTube has 7.74 million subscribers and Khan Academy videos have been viewed over 2 billion times.

History

Starting in 2004, Salman "Sal" Khan began tutoring one of his cousins in mathematics on the Internet using a service called Yahoo! Doodle Images. After a while, Khan's other cousins began to use his tutoring service. Due to the demand, Khan decided to make his videos watchable on the Internet, so he published his content on YouTube. Later, he used a drawing application called SmoothDraw, and now uses a Wacom tablet to draw using ArtRage. The video tutorials were recorded on his computer.

Reading positive responses in USA Today prompted Khan to incorporate Khan Academy in 2008 and quit his job the same year to focus full-time on creating educational tutorials (then released under the name Khan Academy) Khan Lab School, a school founded by Sal Khan and associated with Khan Academy, opened on September 15, 2014, in Mountain View, California.

Courses

Khan Academy is a comprehensive online educational platform that is committed to providing accessible and high-quality education for free to anyone with an internet connection. At the core of Khan Academy's approach are educational videos hosted on YouTube, serving as a foundation for learning. These videos cover a wide range of subjects and topics, catering to students from kindergarten to high school. The platform is designed to supplement these videos with various features, such as progress tracking, practice exercises, and teaching tools, enhancing the learning experience beyond just video content.

The learning philosophy behind Khan Academy is rooted in mastery learning, allowing students to learn at their own pace and ensuring a solid understanding of concepts before progressing to more advanced topics. This approach has led to the use of Khan Academy's videos in the "Flipped Classroom" teaching model, where students engage with the instructional content at home, and class time is utilised for interactive discussions and problem-solving.

The instructional videos are presented in a unique format, featuring recordings of drawings on a virtual blackboard, with a narration that guides learners through the material. This style resembles a teacher-led lecture, making complex concepts more digestible and engaging. Additionally, the platform incorporates gamification elements, such as earning badges and energy points, to motivate and track user progress.

Khan Academy's impact extends beyond digital platforms. Non-profit organisations have distributed offline versions of the videos to underserved areas in regions like Asia, Latin America, and Africa, enabling access to quality education even in areas with limited internet connectivity.

Apart from core subjects, Khan Academy also collaborates with educational entities like Crash Course and the Museum of Modern Art to offer a diverse range of content. The platform provides resources for standardized test preparation, including the SAT, AP Chemistry, Praxis Core, and MCAT. It also supports initiatives like Code.org's Hour of Code by providing coding lessons.

Notably, Khan Academy's partnership with the College Board in 2017 solidified its role as the official practice partner for Advanced Placement (AP) courses, further emphasising its credibility and importance in the education landscape. Through its innovative approach, Khan Academy continues to democratise education, making quality learning accessible to individuals around the world, regardless of their background or geographical location.

General information

 

Khan Academy
Influencers
Dean
Locations
Mountain View, United States
Established
2006
Address
Mountain View, 1937 Landings Dr, United States
Social Media