Check out our latest and coolest – (yet!) study group on Design.  No longer obsessed with Left Brain stuff, we are going for the Right brain with this group.

You can get there by going to OpenStudy and then clicking on the “Find More Subjects” button on the top.  Type in “Design” and you should be able to click right into the group.

We have several questions already on the group! For example, if you have a design project you are working on, post it here!  Checkout poopsiedoodle’s project designing a new programming language (Here)!

Check out the Owl Design efforts led by some of our Ambassadors, Snuggielad, Dumbsearch, Swag and Arripotta.

Here

Now this has grown virally with many users starting to explore their design sense and creating their own Owl avatars!

Not only are the OpenStudiers good at giving help in Math and Science, clearly they have design sense and energy!  All they needed was a gathering place!

“Ummm, What should I ask?”

Some folks are trying to make sense of which design tool to use.  Some want to know where to get help using these tools? Some are just noodling on the notion of a design career. So if you are a high schooler or a college student, an engineer, a long time designer with advice to give, this is the place to “Give help and Get help“! Join the conversation.

To help jump start these conversations, we are fortunate that Autodesk has offered their support.  Autodesk is  a global leader in Design and has supported teaching Design and Design thinking in high school and college.  They  are  helping us by connecting global learners to Autodesk’s design community of high school and college students.

What do you get when you bring the world’s most vibrant social learning community to talk with folks with some serious design XP?

We start a revolution in design thinking!

- April 1, 2013

Can peers really teach one another? Can you learn from someone who does not have the credentials to learn? What if the answer is wrong?  All of these questions are raised when I start talking about peer learning.  Usually I speak in paragraphs addressing all these questions.  Today, I am delighted to just post these two links to peer learning interactions on the OpenStudy site.

So take a look at peer learning in action, online, and between strangers (Links below).  Marvel how well it can work.

Link to the whole exchange is here.  

I loved this one because of the complexity of the question and the trouble that the the answered, Klimenkov helps Smokey work through the answer. Smokey is not embarrassed to ask for help when he does not understand.  Klimenkov draws elaborate diagrams to illustrate the concept and adds  beautifully formatted (Latex plugins make everything look lovely) mathematical expressions.  These took time.  Best of all, he challenges the learner to demonstrate his learning at the end.  He wants to be reassured that the learner has learned something.  Klimenkov is a college student in a far off country.

Link to this exchange

I loved the second one because the expert here, UnkleRhaukus is demanding participation.  He is not ready to provide an answer until the asker has demonstrated his work.  As they work through the problem, the asker, Smokey concludes “ :D that makes me excited. i cant thank you enough !(: ”

Excited that he has mastered this!  That is the power of peer learning, the power to engage the learner.

And then, another user comes in to encourage the asker and compliment him.  Clearly he knows Smokey.  ”You are great to work with.”  he says.

Encouragement from a peer.  Engagement.  Its a happy warm buzz. And then, it is hardly surprising that learning happens. Klimenkov and UnkleRhaukus were once the askers, looking for help.  It was these sort of experiences thatgently dragged them back – this time to help, to answer and to encourage their fellow learners.  Peer learning at its best!

Do you feel the warm glow?

• ” OS has provided me a lot and i have to return the favor by being a part of the team.
• “I have lots of patience,am kind hearted, I make sure the Code of Conduct is followed, I love to be on Openstudy.”
• “Because I am very sweet to people.”
• “OpenStudy is a really great website for helping and asking, but its focus is only in English-spoken areas. I see the potential of promoting this site to the Chinese community.”
• “I enjoy helping people, no matter what it is. Although I haven’t been with OS for very long, i feel that i can help anyone with whatever they need, and know a good deal about the site.
• “I have been here for almost 2 years( nearly 400 logged in days) and always abided by the terms and conditions.”
• “I’d like to have more friends and help more people in their studies by using this site.”
• ” I just recommended OpenStudy to my students for the starting semester.”

Please join me in welcoming the new Ambassadors!

Hba, ParthKohli, hartnn, uri, tyteen4a03, zaynahf, AravindG, chihiroasleaf, ataly,vmgadu

And don’t worry.  You can still apply.  We will announce another cohort soon!

How to help and support OpenStudy:

1.  Please “like” OpenStudy on Facebook and recommend our site to your friends. You’ll be helping them by letting them know how useful our site is, while helping us by increasing our readership. Since we do not advertise, the best way to spread the word is by word-of-mouth.

2. Become a premium member.  Not only will you help us maintain and grow this site, as a premium member you will also benefit. Members have access to our premium website which is totally free of ads, are recognized by a diamond next to their avatars, and can choose their own “title” next to their name! Be recognized by the community as a supporter of Openstudy!

Sign up today. Here’s how:

• Go to your OpenStudy account
• Click on Settings
• Click on Account Settings and become a premium member by subscribing.

Help us so we can keep helping you,

Preetha

CEO, OpenStudy

They are here! Your favorite ed-tech startup is livening up October with Certs for OCW courses and headless MOOCs. (Didn’t you ask Santa for this last year?). You told us you wanted to demonstrate your learning, your smarts and your skills to the outside world. For some, these are employers. For others, these are colleges. Now, for all of you, we have a way for you to tell the world that you can tackle a course online, you can stay engaged with it, and of course, embody the OpenStudy Code of Conduct,”Be good. Be helpful. Work together nicely.”

The OpenCourseWare Consortium and the 20Million Minds Foundation are offering these new Certificates of Participation.  They love  OpenStudy (TU Delft blog)and want to offer certificates with our assessment because they feel it will help you get to your next goal. You will find open courses from University of Notre Dame, University of California, Irvine, TU Delft OCW and a headless MOOC around a 20MillionMinds Foundation online textbook. How cool is that? So get started learning with people from all around the world. Earn a Cert over winter break!

How does it work?  Just as in a face to face course, you will have to participate in the course.  Ask questions. Work on assignments and help others as you progress through the material.  Be engaged.  Be active. We will be watching your SmartScore. Want to learn more specifics?  Nuts and bolts? Here they are.

Watch this blog for more of our thoughts on all this.  We have blogged about rethinking assessment and the importance of soft skills.  We are delighted to be doing something about it and bringing more value to you through these certs.

As we throw open the doors of OpenStudy to new learners, we are counting on you, our OpenStudiers to help our new friends. Oh, and do sign up for one of these Certificates!

See you on OpenStudy!

Preetha, CEO

P.S Don’t you love it when users get religious about your site?