Reading poetry at Yale ... in my sitting room

The Ivy League university is offering online courses to students who log on from all over the world. Angela Balakrishnan reports

You don't have to be in the US to take part - or even be registered with the university. "It makes sense in the era of globalisation and in a time of global information to make the knowledge we create more available and more broad-ranging," says Diana Kleiner, director of the Open Yale courses and a professor of history of art and classics at Yale (open.yale.edu/courses). "It seems to us that a university like ours has a responsibility to continue to democratise knowledge."

Raul Morilo, a high-school teacher from Ecuador, often uses the courses as part of his class. "The lecturers are very clear," he says. "And some of them have a great sense of humour. It really feels like you are there in the classroom. They're so easy to follow because they're constantly giving you examples to work with."

He adds that Open Yale allows many of his students to experience what the subject might be like at university level. "Also, we do not have much money or equipment here to teach more than the basics," he says.

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Tuesday April 29, 2008
The Guardian