Yale to put course videos online

There's nothing more mentally stimulating than hearing the words of a dynamic lecturer, and now Yale University is offering some of its courses for free on digital video, reports Reuters.

Along with the videos that can be downloaded from the Internet, Yale will offer transcripts in several languages, in an effort to make the elite private school more accessible. Other universities, notably the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have offered free course material online, but Yale is the first to offer digital video. The pilot project starts this fall, including videos, syllabi and transcripts for Introduction to the Old Testament, Fundamentals of Physics and Introduction to Political Philosophy. Four more courses will be taped in the spring. The caveat is that these courses cannot be used towards a degree at Yale.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for us to share a vital and central part of the Yale experience with those who, for whatever reason, are not in a position to pursue a Yale education at first hand," Yale President Richard Levin said in a written statement.

According to the press release:

The Open Educational Resources Video Lecture Project has received $755,000 for an 18-month pilot phase.  The project will create multidimensional packages—including full transcripts in several languages, syllabi, and other course materials—for seven courses and design a web interface for these materials, to be launched in the fall of 2007.  If the venture proves successful, Yale hopes to significantly expand its online offerings over the next few years. The new venture joins a growing number of university-based initiatives that use the Internet to make educational materials widely available.