The last few years have seen a tremendous growth in learning opportunities on the web. Many of these have been of the one to many variety, typified by the likes of Khan Academy and the numerous MOOCs that have hit the web in recent years.
Such models have built on the traditional teaching approach of one teacher educating a group of students. The one to one tutoring model of education has also seen substantial growth in the Internet age however.
I wrote recently about the Talk to Chef app that allows people to get live help from talented cooks as they attempt to prepare their dish.
The app works very much on the sharing economy model, with the cooks not required to be trained teachers, and the ‘fee’ for the consultation being up to each party to determine (if any fee at all).
Peer to peer learning
A site built along similar lines is the Dutch start-up Konnektid. The site aims to connect up people with knowledge to share, with people who require help and support in that field.
The site was born out of the belief that we all of a great many valuable skills that are not shared with the world. These insights could be hugely beneficial to those who lack those skills, and so Konnektid was created to try and match the two up.
Being a Dutch site, most of the current ‘tutors’ are Netherlands based, but there are a small number operating in the UK, providing everything from PHP tuition to assistance with Greek.
The aim of the site is to become a lifelong companion that can help you learn at the various stages of your life. The founders believe that with a portfolio career increasingly common, this lifelong capacity for learning will be crucial to our success.
At the moment the site operates on a free basis, although they also plan to offer a corporate version to encourage knowledge sharing within organizations and at conferences.
Find out more either via their website or the video below.
Interesting concept and one to check out for sure.
Yes, they seem a good bunch, so it will be a project worth following.
Hi Paul, please check it and let us know your thoughts!
It seems very similar to the Google Helpouts that were tried. Sadly they didn't work. Hopefully these guys will have more luck.
That's right Ernesto. Of course, Google have failed with a number of their projects so it shouldn't be seen as the death knell of the concept I don't think.
For all the hoopla over the 'sharing economy' it gives me the willies. It erodes basic things such as knowing where your next pay cheque will be coming from. Sod the freedom, I fail to see how anyone can go through life dealing with such uncertainty.
Great, so rich kids are getting their homework done for them. Awesome
Hi Clint, no worries there cause we are not a homework service : ) We make the knowledge and skills around you explicit so you can find someone to teach you whatever you want to learn. Please, do check it out on http://www.konnektid.com and let us know what you think!
You've mentioned a couple of nice sites here. There is also http://www.Hackhands.com for people looking to improve their coding.
This seems like it would only be practical for high school or very low-level courses. Most sharing economy sites thrive because the barriers to entry are low. That’s not quite the case with Differential Equations or Particle Physics tutors.
Hi Donald, our members are sharing knowledge and skills on everything from cooking Indian food to writing a marketing plan or using Photoshop. We do not offer courses (yet) but facilitate people to learn new skills from the experts living around them aka their neighbors. Please do check it out on http://www.konnektid.com and let us know what you think!
I am all for making this industry more efficient using good IT. But I don’t think that would be a fundamental change. When I was a private tutor in my tweens I did not work “on an ongoing basis”, I did one hour tutorials if and when the student’s parents saw fit. I didn’t cost much either.
15 minutes is about enough time to say hello. If you want to do things on that time scale you can do it electronically. But MOOC, not a private tutor.