It's a project with unlikely roots. The Khan Academy is a free video based online tutoring program for students focused on math and science, an effort some say has revolutionized learning.
It had a simple start. A man was trying to help a family member struggling in school.
"My original background was in tech. I found myself after business school working at a hedge fund in Boston," said Salman Khan, the founder of the Khan Academy. "My family was visiting me from New Orleans, where I was raised, and my cousin Nadia was struggling in math. So, I offered to tutor her when she went back to New Orleans, tutor her remotely. She agreed, it was working out for her. Word spreads in my family that free tutoring is going on. Before I know it, I am tutoring 10-15 cousins. I saw a common pattern... they had gaps in their learning... so I started writing software for them."
Khan said a friend had an idea. Why not turn the lessons into videos, so they could be shared?
"I thought that was a silly idea, but I tried it anyway. That takes on a life of its own," said Khan. "By 2008-2009 there were about 50-100,000 folks who were using these resources, clearly more than my cousins. It started to take over my life. I was getting letters from people all over the world saying it was allowing them to go back to college, or keep up with their class, and that's when I set it up as a non-profit."
Khan will speak in Santa Barbara this weekend at the Arlington Theater. The project is celebrating its 20th anniversary. It’s grown around the world, with more than 160 million registered users.
But now, the Academy has a new tool. It uses artificial intelligence to help teachers. It's an AI tool called Khanmigo which can help educators personalize courses for students, come up with ideas to make subjects more interesting, and even help develop lesson plans.
It can serve as a tutor for students, and help parents struggling to help their kids with homework, and other projects.
He’s written a new book about what he sees as the role of AI in education, called Brave New Words. Khan feels it can be an important new tool in education. Through a grant from Microsoft, it's being offered to every teacher in America for free.
Khan admits running the non-profit is a huge project, especially because he’s constantly fundraising to insure access can be offered for free. But, he still takes time to do new videos to add to the library.
Khan will speak at Santa Barbara’s Arlington Theater on Saturday afternoon. The UC Santa Barbara Arts and Lectures event is open to the public with tickets available through Arts and Lectures, and the Arlington Theater.
