Wilfrid Laurier University has announced that within the coming month, students, faculty and staff will have free, unlimited access to Lynda, an enhanced online learning and education platform purchased by LinkedIn.
Lynda offers a vast array of over 5,000 interactive video tutorials and curated content to help learners acquire new skills and advance their careers.
“Lynda is very important to employees at the university,” Nela Petkovic, chief information officer at Laurier, said. “I know various departments at the university are currently paying for Lynda for their own advancements, but they won’t have to do that anymore; it is going to be free for everybody.”
Topics range from web development and business to software development and design.
All students across Ontario who are enrolled in a postsecondary institution will have free access to Lynda.
The Government of Ontario is behind this initiative as a part of their Career Kick-Start Strategy. It aims to create beneficial opportunities for postsecondary students to build their resumes and develop job-relevant skills through career-oriented learning experiences.
Lynda contributes to better preparing students for the workforce. It promotes career readiness with business specific skills courses.
By watching a half hour video, students can discover the latest techniques for finding the right job position for their interests, skills and experience.
Another tutorial illustrates the nuts and bolts of resume formatting, layout and word choice, highlighting approaches to make resumes stand out and encourage hiring managers to take notice.
eCampusOntario, a not-for-profit organization funded by the Government of Ontario, was able to ensure the same level of access for faculty, staff and students at publicly funded colleges and universities throughout Ontario.
This allows professors to incorporate Lynda’s effective teaching tools in combination with their current teaching strategies, creating a more interactive culture of learning.
“Lynda is very important to employees at the university,” Nela Petkovic, chief information officer at Laurier, said. “I know various departments at the university are currently paying for Lynda for their own advancements, but they won’t have to do that anymore; it is going to be free for everybody.”
Teachers will be able to assign video tutorials and training tools as homework, while reserving class time for concept mastery.
Additionally, Lynda supports the concept of blended classroom learning. Blended learning combines digital media content with traditional face-to-face teaching methodology.
“Professors are eager to look into the blended classroom approach,” said Kathryn Carter, Laurier’s associate vice-president: teaching and learning.
“Students can learn a technical skill before they get to class, such as Excel formatting and analysis, and can then apply it within the classroom. It advances their learning more quickly”.
Passionate industry leaders work together at Lynda to share their expertise and knowledge with others through inspiring content.
With an abundance of courses and tutorials being uploaded on a regular basis that utilize the knowledge of subject matter experts, Lynda is a unique platform that will help revolutionize professional and personal learning goals both in and out of the classroom.
Single sign-on capabilities provide simple, easy access to the platform. Students will be able to login to Lynda through their mobile and smartphone devices, or through their computers.
“The whole idea behind this is that users will be able to access Lynda using their current Laurier network account”, Petkovic said.
The expected launch date for Lynda is undetermined, however, the development is projected to be completed by the end of January 2018.