Saylor.org

One of the first places I go on a website is the team page, if there is one. There’s something about seeing the faces, names, and quirks behind the site that kind of takes the strange off and kickstarts community.

There’s nothing really surprising in that, of course.

It’s why we invite you to share a bit  of your story with us and others in the wider Saylor.org community. Some of that happens spontaneously — a look at the introductions page in our forums shows a lot of stories, some of them quite inspiring.

Just in that little corner of the web, we’ve heard from people in the U.S., India, Canada, Nigeria, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Jordan, and plenty more. Some people are looking to boost their resume or modernize their skills. Others are trying to supplement — or find alternatives to — formal schooling. Some people are reaching out for education that might otherwise be beyond them due to cost, location, politics, family responsibilities, etc.

I dare you to read that thread and not have a better day.

We’re sending an invitation again, and will continue to do so: tell us your story, and let us share it with the world!

If you’re shy about pictures and names, that’s no problem — nobody has to know who you are. If you’re hesitant to be a Saylor.org booster (and hey, I’m not a natural-born cheerleader myself), no worries — we want to hear about you, not so much about us (I mean, a little bit about us, but we’ll take what we can get).

By sharing a bit about yourself through our blog, you’re helping to inspire us, your fellow students, and maybe even yourself. Honestly, some of the stories I’ve heard from you definitely deserve a broader audience.

We’re out in front of a massive, world-wide change in education. The two-decade-old educational promise of the Web is picking up steam…and it isn’t just Saylor.org, or Coursera, or Udacity, or Udemy, or Khan Academy, or any of those. It’s all of the above, and you, and the whole crazy Internet community.

So…care to help us put a face and name (or an avatar and a pseudonym) to these stories? Get the word out…and take a chance on getting to know fellow learners from everywhere in the world.

Meet your fellow learners.

Want to let us know how you came upon Saylor? About what keeps you motivated to spread the way of free education? About your tricks of the trade, that help you study and learn? We’d like to feature you and your story!

If you need some ideas on where to start, take a look at how others have tackled this…three styles from serious to fun to just a little bit ridiculous:

• Students: Want to write a simple bio or narrative about yourself? Check out Michael Ross’ Student Snapshot or Abdul Jabbar Bozdar’s!
• Consultants: How about a more formal Q&A style? Check out Prof. Kelly Gordon’s Snapshot or Dr. Ittay Weiss’!
• Staff: Last but not least, we can also do more of a fun Q&A. Curious? Check out Snapshot: Scott Movens, Bread Artisan/Tech Extraordinaire, or Snapshot: Jenna Dawkins, Writer and Explorer!

Interested?  Inspired to give it a whirl? Want some of your own moments of fame? Great! Then please feel free to comment below or email me! We look forward to hearing from you!

This is the first in our new series of Saylor.org student snapshots. Here, Michael Ross tells us his story.

My name is Michael Ross. At the time of writing this profile I am at the age of 30. I have a strong interest in 3 majors at the Saylor Foundation, but have decided to stick with business as my primary field of study — although I often devote a significant amount of time to studying communication. To date, I’ve completed 3 courses and am near the completion of 5 others.

Over the past several years, I’ve studied online through numerous colleges, educational organizations, and government agencies. It’s fair to say I’m no stranger when it comes to utilizing the Internet as a tool for learning…I’ve taken classes in a variety of fields such as Constitutional Law, Emergency Management, Programming and many others.  In my opinion, an education is a precious gift that can benefit any individual over a lifetime. For this reason and due to there being far too much that I seek to know, I can never stop learning.

On the other hand, I’m a current student at a college in Boston. I utilize Saylor courses for a greater understanding of what is being taught within my classroom. I’m also planning to use several Saylor courses within a portfolio for the prior learning assessment program within my school. I could be awarded college credits based on an evaluation of what I’ve learned through Saylor. Therefore, what I learn at Saylor not only satisfies my goal of lifelong learning but also has the potential of adding credits towards my degree.

Another benefit of taking Saylor courses is that they can be completed at my own pace. This has given me the opportunity to study at a time which is convenient without having to worry about due dates. I devote a significant amount of time to these courses for the sole purpose of mastering the content. I want to be able to remember what I’ve learned 10 years from now and I believe this is a great way to see it happen.

In conclusion, it brings me great joy to see Saylor’s courses benefit so many people in so many ways. If you’re just beginning a Saylor course, the best way to approach it  is to get involved with it. Having a clear purpose and setting goals throughout your course can make a huge impact on your learning experience. It also wouldn’t hurt to participate in the discussion boards and collaborate with others from all over the world. But most importantly, all that really matters is that you have fun learning.

Watch this space next Thursday, February 14th*, for the very first installation in our new series of profiles. Each week, we’ll post a profile of one of our students, consultants, or staff, so that we can all get to know each other that much better.

Student Profile – Students, site users, friends, community members…call them what you will, these people are the reason we do what we do.
Educator Profile - Academic consultants, professor consultants, teachers…they go by different names from one moment to the next, but Saylor.org doesn’t exist without them.
Staff Profiles – Researchers, coordinators, writers, techies, and general web savants…we’re all these things, but mostly we’re just your standard, friendly non-profiteers.

All these folks bring diversity of talent and personality to the table, and we’re often reminded of how enormously fascinating actual people can be. We hope that these profiles will evoke, in however small and quiet a way, the same sense of wonder in every-day people that we’ve found.

*Valentine’s Day. Coincidence? Yes, actually. But we do love our students, academic consultants, and staff.

It’s a new year (by at least one calendar, anyway), and we’ve got some resolutions. One of them: putting our students front and center. We’d like to begin featuring student profiles on our blog once more, and that means we need some willing collaborators.

What we get: the ability to show off some of our awesome students and community members. What you get: modest fame, probably no fortune, and hopeful a warm feeling of having made a nice contribution.

If you’d be interested in talking with us about yourself and your studies, please get in touch with Sean by email.

And for everyone, feel free to take a look through some of our previous profiles, which you can see by visiting the blog homepage and selecting the ‘Saylor.org Students’ category in the left-hand menu, or by clicking on the photo below:

We hope to talk with some (all?) of you soon!