Thursday, June 20, 2019

Khan Academy Math: Not Shaming + INCLUSION = PROMOTION?


If you are a homeschooling parent, chances are you are quite familiar with Khan Academy website. If you're not familiar with it, make sure you check it out; it is an invaluable resource!

Khan Academy is a website started in 2008 by Salman Khan, a former hedge fund analyst, who began tutoring his cousin online. After awhile, other of Khan's relative's children began using his tutoring videos with their own children. Before long, his videos took off! And I mean through the roof! Through a combination of relatable lectures and SmoothDraw, Khan brought clarity to complex math ideas.


Before long, maybe a year!, Salman Khan quit his full time job to focus on creating and building Khan Academy School, a website with thousands of videos of discrete concepts and ideas for teachers, classes, and students. All of his work is completely free to users of the website. 

We used Khan Academy during our homeschooling years for higher math concepts that I was completely unable to understand, much less convey with any clarity to the kids. My kids became self-learners, in part, because of Khan Academy. I send my sincerest and heart-felt appreciation to Salman Khan.

 

KHAN DO!
Anyway, the reason for bringing up The Khan Academy is this. My friend Janeen brought a Christian website to my attention, specifically an article criticizing Khan Academy for promoting the LGBT agenda. The purpose of the article was to discourage Christian parents from using the Khan Academy because of its Leftist agenda, based on those who fund KA. The so-called evidence of this claim is coming through in the material presented as exercise problems. Take this example given in the OP:
The lesson is on "Irregular Plural Nouns: from 'f' to 'ves.'" The unsuspecting student is told to "Choose the correct plural noun to use in this sentence":
'Brittany and Sofia went to lunch with their _____ every Saturday.'"
Khan Academy's "correct" answer reveals the gay agenda behind the English "problem":
The only choices are "wifes" or "wives."

GASP, the gay agenda (as Janeen texted to me)!
Because INCLUDING is PROMOTING.  😠

And my educated and intellectual opinion is this: 
Those bitching about this can fuck right off.


https://www.khanacademy.org/

On the other hand, I strenuously endorse Khan Academy as a source of inclusive, well-executed personal learning opportunities that are absolutely FREE and much of the material is available on YouTube. Subject matter on KA ranges from beginner to extremely advanced math to science to computing to arts and humanities to history or econ to test taking to career exploration to support resources for parents and teachers.

Khan Academy is truly an AMAZING resource that, sometimes, I think we don't deserve!  LOL
Salman Khan, many thanks to your dedication to the spread of accessible resources for all! Khan has also given us some wonderful TEDtalks and other resources on YouTube, please check it out!


No, REALLY, What Do You Think?

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Other Posts You Might Also Enjoy:
Strategies for Your Homeschool
Natural Learning
Teaching Things I Don't Know

1 comment:

  1. I think it's about time! lol How many of us secular homeschooling parents have had to wade through the religious curriculum to find something to teach our children? That they may now have to start being a bit more judicial of of the resources out there because it's not ALL for them anymore, I say, "suck it up, Buttercup!" Of course, they'll just see it as persecution. *sigh*

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