Learning online

Jul 6 2010 By Mary Barabe

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Education, education, education. Learning is good no matter what your age and your status. It can help us enjoy higher salaries, meet new friends or simply satisfy our intellectual curiosity.

And while the traditional means of learning - libraries, evening classes and so on - remain available, the online world now has plenty of ways to help. So whatever type of education you are after, the internet will have something to offer. And a fast and reliable broadband connection will make learning online straightforward and fun.

A helping hand for homework

If you want to help your kids with their homework, for example, there are a number of great sites. Wikipedia is generally pretty reliable, though it's worth getting a secondary source if you're not sure. It has information on almost everything you need, but it's reliant on contributors. This means that in some areas - American history or technology, for example - it has millions of pages, while in others - such as local history in the UK - there's less to pick from.

The BBC is a great resource for schoolchildren, covering many aspects of British life. If you want to find information on nature, science and the like, then National Geographic could be your first point of contact, with NASA running a close second if you're interested in the world outside Earth. And a search for “museums online” on Google will give you a listing of the hundreds of UK museums that now have really useful websites available for everyone to use for free.

Developing your own skills and getting qualified

If you're looking for a course to take in the real world, then Hot Courses may be the place to start. It lists courses by subject, qualification level, location and study type, and says it lists over a million courses across the country. Many of these will be internet-based, which means you don't need to visit a training centre to boost your knowledge. The courses listed will cover virtually everything - from basic sewing to advanced neurology. Many of them also have reviews from previous students, so you can get an idea of what to expect before you sign up.

For those who are looking for online training, there's plenty of choice. Whether it's training for a new career, or just to get better at your hobby, simply Google your interest and a range of options will come up. With many of these courses, you will need a fast and reliable broadband connection, and if you are expected to download large files or watch video tutorials online, make sure you have generous usage limits. If things go slow take a broadband speed test and check everything is downloading at the speed it should.

If you're keen to improve your higher academic qualifications, the Open University is one of the country's largest higher education providers, with almost 200,000 students from all walks of life. Most of them are part time, and all learn remotely - mostly via the internet. The number and types of courses available is breathtaking, and many of them don't require the same sorts of formal qualifications as traditional universities.

It's not just the actual courses that you can do online - you can get help too. Whether it's an informal community of fellow students on Facebook, or the more detailed groups that come with an Open University course, it's easier than ever to make sure you have help when you're struggling, or even just someone to moan to when work isn't going as well as you'd hoped.