Learning is an absolutely delightful activity.
But most schools and universities seem to have done such a bad job at it that we don’t really have fond memories of learning. How awful.
I can only remember grumpy teachers, uninspiring pedagogies and exams where I vomited what I studied last night. There are few teachers and courses I really liked. Alas, only few.
But this is thankfully changing!
It’s not that there are no great teachers. There are. There have always been. These great teachers have to embrace a new medium called video, on the internet.
You don’t have to only teach your college, your school or classroom. You can teach the world. You have to teach the world. We’re stuck if you don’t.
And guess what. On the internet, only merit matters. Because around here, your dean’s politics have no place. Around here, bad teachers won’t survive.
Let me share some amazing work already happening here.
3Blue1Brown is proof how fun and satisfying it is to learn math. Most of the subscribers aren’t really math fanatics. Most of us are just there because it so wonderful to learn when Grant Sanderson teaches.
Borsuk Ulam theorem
RealEngineering is another channel that discusses things as basic as Newton’s laws and goes all the way to electric cars. And they do calculations in the video. Which you can actually understand.
Why are plane windows round?
My newest find has been Primer. Videos that explain natural selection, genetics and economics. Just one word to describe it: awesome.
Are markets good?
So this post is actually a call to great teachers.
I urge you, I implore you to teach online. There literally are thousands of people who want to learn.
Luckily the economics of teaching online are also changing. This needn’t be an act of altruism anymore.
Patreon is a great way to for creators to earn revenue from their subscribers. I personally am a patron of 3Blue1Brown and will hopefully pitch in for Primer soon. Add to that the many sponsors you can get once you have a user-base.
Let me end this on a simultaneously serious and fun note.
