OpenLectures was founded in Singapore in July 2011 to provide free, self-paced, and "open" video lectures delivered by top Singapore-based university graduates. It is partly sponsored by the Singapore Economic Development Board and other prominent Singaporean groups including the NYC-based National Youth Council. Furthering the group’s ties to the US, co-founder Linan Qiu will attend Columbia University in the fall (Linan-- come to EdLab and present a seminar and/or give us an interview!) and his fellow founder, Zhang Yitao, is currently a student at Stanford. "With 60 students and over 200 lectures recorded, OpenLectures eventually aims to deliver a lecture on the moon." Elon Musk, are you listening?

Pros:
Easy to navigate, beautiful, fresh graphics and a simple, intuitive user interface. Lectures are self-paced and video-based, with a clear progress bar (see screenshot below) that displays your progress through the collection of lectures under each topic. Speaking of topics, the range of subjects covered on the site is a refreshing mix of math, science and literature.

Cons:
I had a hard time finding additional materials to support each lesson. Even though this platform is strictly supportive of learning and does not focus on assessment or certification, I still wish there were links, embedded resources, and discussion boards to supplement the knowledge acquisition process.

EdLab Relevance:
As we consider developing online learning environments, courses, and resources, it is important to remember the value of both clean design and supportive additional resources. These resources may take you out of the ecosystem of the course and site, but they are essential to creating a fully fleshed out learning experience.

Our Takeaway:
OpenLectures is a beautifully designed resource to supplement your current asynchronous course resources.