Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this intended to work 100% as "distance learning" that would require computer access?

> Yes, and computer access with broadband video is needed.

Does the plan include access to human tutors to assist students with problems?

> Yes for courses for credit, - in interactive real time cyberspaces such as Google + group video Hangouts and virtual worlds. (And you or anyone could volunteer in a Google + group video Hangouts, for example).

Does "school" include elementary & secondary education?

> At this point, MIT OCW-centric World University and School is planning only to offer International Baccalaureate high school diplomas (possibly beginning in 2015?), and eventually in many languages, in addition to offering, first in English, the following university degrees - bachelors, Ph.D., law and M.D. - see: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Admissions_at_World_University_and_School#World_University_and_School_Links - although anyone can add open, free, elementary school resources.

On WUaS's open, wiki (editable web pages) side, World University and School facilitates open teaching and learning, for example, by teaching to your web camera (e.g. as Sal Khan does in Khan Academy), or by adding a new 'Subjects' page, and adding resources to it or teaching there (e.g. in interactive group video spaces) - http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Subjects.

What is World University & School's Mission?

World University & School's (http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/ - like Wikipedia with MIT Open Course Ware) - mission, in reaching out to the entire world, is to provide a free, wiki-based education platform and, through facilitating the development of broadband worldwide, to make our service accessible to under served parts of the world. The WUaS mission is thus to facilitate all levels of teaching and learning opportunities (and future degrees) through an open, editable wiki in all languages, nation-states and subjects with great universities, and for One Laptop per Child countries and everyone.

How do I become a matriculated student at World University & School?

Apply this autumn 2013 for the first, MIT OCW-centric, undergraduate class which will matriculate online in the autumn of 2014 -

http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Admissions_at_World_University_and_School.

WUaS has begun the accreditation process to offer, Creative Commons' licensed, bachelor, Ph.D., law and M.D. degrees, as well as I.B. diplomas, online and first in English, beginning with the bachelor's degree in autumn 2014.

See the links here for information about the developing, WUaS, degree programs -

http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Admissions_at_World_University_and_School#World_University_and_School_Links.

WUaS seeks f/Friendly, overachieving, high school and college students to enjoy learning, e.g. via the conference method online in Google + group video Hangouts. WUaS is starting to accredit on Creative Commons’ licensed MIT OCW’s, Open Educational Resources for free, online, interactive, bachelor (32 MIT OCW courses), Ph.D., I.B. Law and M.D. degrees, in many languages and countries, with the first, matriculating, bachelor's degree class beginning in 2014 in English.

Students will purchase their own books and computers, and probably be living at home, in the neighborhoods where they went to high school.

'''If I'm a parent, what confidence can you give me that you're going to become fully accredited at the end of my student's undergraduate education? In what timeline will you accredit? If you don't become fully accredited, will my student be able to transfer their credits from your university to a fully accredited one?'''

Bureau of Private Postsecondary Eduction (BPPE) gave the 'green light' of approval to WUaS recently. WUaS is now proceeding with accreditation with the state of California's BPPE.

With BBPE approval, WUaS will then accredit with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC senior), which is a three stage process, and WUaS will become only fully accredited after we graduate our first undergraduate class, probably in 2018.

WUaS will address questions of transferring as we accredit with WASC senior.

What else is WUaS?

WUaS is also a Free, Open, Education Wiki, where YOU, or anyone, can Teach & Learn, planned for 7,105+ languages and 205+ countries.

WUaS also has a beginning, collaborative, real time Music School.

How do I teach at, or add resources to, World University & School?

World University and School is for free, open teaching and learning resources ... (and not advertising). If you've taught to a web camera, or in other ways online, click 'edit this page,' and copy the format a nearby reference, into the appropriate section. Or hop into a virtual world, or onto Skype, and teach live there ... WUaS can add any live teaching to the bud of its scheduling calendar. Please join these groups to stay in touch - https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/108179352492243955816/108179352492243955816/posts - or - http://groups.google.com/group/World-University-and-School - with an invitation to add teaching and learning resources :) Khan Academy (http://www.khanacademy.org/) is one good example of an individual teaching to his web camera, but there are many ways you can teach.

And please look through the WUaS Wiki (editable web pages) to learn from it - http://worlduniversity.wikia.com. There's a lot! of teaching and learning content here already, including around 100, undergraduate courses at MIT OCW in video - http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/audio-video-courses/ -(out of about 2,150 Creative Commons' licensed, MIT OCW courses). WUAS is an open, free world university and school, so anyone can teach here, - to their web camera, or interactively in a virtual world, like Second Life or Open Simulator, and you'll find an enormous amount of material here, as teaching examples.

To schedule to teach interactively, simply join this Google Group - http://groups.google.com/group/World-University-and-School - and then you can schedule when you'd like to teach on the Google wiki-like calendar there, and how you'd like to teach. Or simply post a course online to http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Courses#Individual_courses, or to the subject page, etc.

If credit- and degree- granting emerge at WUaS after some years, WUaS will let people know about that teaching process here. Right now, WUaS is an 'edit this page,' open, free university and school, potentially in all languages, nation states, subjects, and at all levels.

For the present, simply 'edit this page' at WUaS, and join the Google (http://groups.google.com/group/World-University-and-School) and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=48753608141) groups to stay in touch.

How I can create an online course?

a. Build it gradually. For example, simply start teaching to your web camera for 3 minutes, mention a book, then build a syllabus and a series of lectures, and invite potentially learners to meet in a Google + Hangout, for example.

b. Use some of this course making software using, for example, Google's course-builder - https://code.google.com/p/course-builder/ - which is available here at WUaS's Course Management Systems - http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Educational_Software#Course_Management_Systems - with other course-making software, or start one on a free wiki, which software is also accessible on this page.

c. For a MIT-centric course, that might eventually be taught for credit on the degree side of WUaS, use a MIT OCW course as a model, and then construct the course on a web page, or using the above software.

Once I teach to my webcam, how do I make that part of World University?

Answer: Post it to youtube.com, for example, and link that to a subject at World University, or create at new subject. Check out the Bassoon lesson here at the World University Music School: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/World_University_Music_School by New York Philharmonic player Frank Morelli.

Or schedule when you'd like to teach in a virtual world at this wiki-like schedule (Google calendar), by adding your name to World University and School's Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/World-University-and-School

(CALENDAR: Schedule classes you'd like to teach or see class schedules, after joining the World University and School's Google Group, in Google Calendar).

What is a link for a good introduction to the wiki?

Here's a Press Release for now ... http://worlduniversityandschool.blogspot.com/2012/10/press-release-for-world-university-and.html ... Who might be asking for this? Parents interested in free MIT-centric degrees in 2014 for their kids, or teachers and editors at wiki-World University and School ... http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/World_University ?

World University and School Licensing
World University and School - like Wikipedia with Greatest Universities' OpenCourseWare (not endorsed by MIT OCW) - incorporated as a nonprofit effective April 2010 and has been a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, educational organization charity through November 12, 2012, and is re-instating its 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, as of September 2013, effective 2010.

World University & School is a community of learners and teachers who value — and are themselves strengthened by — the rich diversity of its participants. In order to cultivate a flourishing teaching, learning and creating conversation in a diverse and complex world, WUaS welcomes all languages, students, families, faculty, board members, and staff with differences based on (but not limited to) race, color, ethnicity, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, family structure, and economic background.

All content on this site is freely available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/.

The World University and School program is not endorsed by MIT or MIT OpenCourseWare.

WUaS: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/World_University

Courses: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Courses

Subjects: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Subjects

Languages: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Languages

Library Resources: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Library_Resources

Nation States: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Nation_States

You at World University: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/You_at_World_University

Educational Software: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Educational_Software

Museums: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Museums

Research: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Research

Hardware Resource Possibilities: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Hardware_Resource_Possibilities

Frequently Asked Questions at World University & School: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Frequently_Asked_Questions

World University Foundation: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/World_University_Foundation

SUBJECT TEMPLATE: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/SUBJECT_TEMPLATE

Volunteers at World University and School: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/Volunteers

Home: http://worlduniversity.wikia.com/wiki/World_University

For questions, or help editing a page, email: worlduniversityandschool@gmail.com

Please donate through PayPal to tax-exempt - 501 (c) (3) - World University and School at

http://scottmacleod.com/worlduniversityandschool.htm

Thank you!