YouTube Is Investing $20 Million In Educational Content, Creators (theverge.com)

YouTube is creating a new Learning Fund program where it will invest $20 million toward education content. The announcement was made today by Malik Ducard, global head of learning. The Verge reports: Channels like TED-Ed, dedicated to educational Ted Talks, and Hank and John Green's Crash Course have already secured additional funding, according to YouTube's blog post. The company plans to invest in content from independent creators, like the Green brothers, as well as traditional news sources and educational organizations to broaden its content offering.

YouTube's Learning Fund has a nice ring to it, but it isn't a philanthropic charity. An FAQ about the program states that "successful applicants must enter into a written agreement with YouTube. This agreement will contain more details about required deliverables, payment timelines, and other terms and conditions." Creators must maintain a minimum of 25,000 subscribers. Those applying to the program also don't need to have a degree or proper certification in their field, "but successful applicants will be required to demonstrate that they have expertise and/or that the content they produce is verified by an expert in the field."

Comments

Re:Already done

[VeryFluffyBunny]

The irony is that what The Onion publishes is more valid & evidence informed than TED Talks. The amount of feel-good but meaningless edu-babble, outdated & wrong theories, i.e. They contradict current knowledge in neurosci, cogsci, & Ed research, & just plain edu-quackery that TED Talks put out should have them banned from any education system.

For example, Sir Ken Robinson has given 3 TED Talks. He talks about creativity as if it's a generic skill (It isn't), claims that schools kill creativity (They don't), & offers no concrete, falsifiable alternatives to current educational practices. In fact, he isn't an expert in education at all; he did his PhD in drama studies & knows little about the science of learning & teaching. If he did, he wouldn't spout the feel-good nonsense that he does.