Top 10 Free Online Sites To Help Students Study

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Homework. Midterms. Finals. If you’re a student, I know those words trigger this sinking, throbbing pain in your heart that we’re all unfortunately familiar with. Now, studying isn’t fun, and neither is failing. Back then, we were stuck with no choice but to hit the books the old fashion way. But nowadays, life doesn’t need to be that much of a struggle. Instead of taking the dreadful treks to the abhorred library a million blocks away, or timelessly glaring at your notes in hopes of a eureka moment, we finally have something we can call our friend. The internet.

With it, you can do so much more than just killing time on social platforms or gaming. Wielding its limitless potential, you can use it to guide yourself closer to your diploma(s). There are actually myriad of sites that offer help on a variety of topics ranging from algebra to convoluted subjects like quantum physics (yikes). Many require you to pay a fee, but there are a few that don’t. Without further adieu, here are 10 free sites all students need to visit.

1. Khan Academy

Created in 2005 by American entrepreneur and educator, Sal Khan, this supplement to in-class learning site aims to help students prosper with the plethora of online tools they have. Offering free lessons on math, art, computer programming, economics, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, finance, history, and more, there is really no reason why you shouldn’t check this site out. The style of teaching here is elementary, yet simple to understand. Khan’s videos display drawings on an electronic blackboard, which is similar to a conventional lecture. The narrator then describes each drawing and how they relate to the material being taught. They also offer free SHSAT, SAT, and LSAT lessons.

2. CodeAcademy

This is arguably the best time to be alive. With everything so advanced and convenient through the invention of computers and AI, this world is heading towards digitizing almost everything in the future. That’s why learning coding and about AI technology is imperative today. Lucky for you, people like Zach Sims and Ryan Bubinski has blessed us with help. As founders of CodeAcademy, Sims, and Bubinski created this online interactive platform that offers free coding classes in 12 different programming languages including Python, Java, JavaScript jQuery, AngularJS, React.js, Ruby, SQL, Sass, HTML, CSS, and more. This site guides you step by step by breaking down and explaining the basics of coding. You have a half of the screen like how you would imagine coding to be like, with the other half being instructions to help you. This is definitely one site you shouldn’t take for granted.

3. Duolingo

How many languages do you speak? One? Two? According to Linkedin, mastering one or more foreign languages is one of the most sought-after skills in the market today. So why lag behind and settle for less when you have Duolingo here to help you? This site has an online website as well as an app to help its users learn at anytime, anywhere. Created in 2009, Carnegie Mellon University professor Luis von Ahn and his students created this after seeing how expensive it is to learn a new language. After launching it, the company flourished and captured the eyes of many investors that led to its success today. Duolingo offers over 30+ languages, with conventional ways of learning as well as games to make the learning experience more engaging. But personally, one thing I like about it the most is that it is FREE. Don’t sleep on this folks.

4. Grammarly

Now, this isn’t really a site, but this is something so important and helpful that I feel every student with a computer should have. Have you ever received your graded essay from your teacher with red ink splattered on top of the paper writing “check your spelling” or “You need to work on your grammar!”? Well I know I have and it’s not what I wanted to see after the grade. That’s why Grammarly is so important here. Grammarly automatically detects grammar, spelling, punctuation, word choice, and style mistakes in your writing. It is an extension that can be installed in many web browsers such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge. It also works on your phone too. So while you formulate and write down your thoughts, you won’t ever to worry about spelling and grammar mistakes again.

5. The Most Dangerous Writing App

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This is perfect for procrastinators. If you have a big issue with completing your essays on time because you procrastinate, then this site is made just for people like you. The logistics of it is in its name, and the “danger” of it is you losing everything you’ve typed out. Here’s how it works. The Most Dangerous Writing App is an online tool that lets you set a timer and then start typing on a clean, uncluttered page. The timer is located on top of the page, and you get to see how much time you have left till your next type. Basically, once you hit the first key, the timer starts and resets everytime you hit another key. It’s grace time between each key is around 6 seconds, and if you miss that, the app will erase all your work, for good. In a way, it forces you to not procrastinate and finish what you need to do. Now, do you see why it’s the most dangerous writing app?

6. Koofers

I bet you haven’t heard of this one before, but don’t let its name fool you. Koofer is a site where everyone shares academic information. Some of Koofers’ services span to planning and learning past study materials, flashcards, and more. Those study materials are uploading by previous students who had them, or anyone else who is studying that same topic as you. What’s helpful is that all you need to do is sign up for an account with your email and then validate your information and then you’re all set to go. It also offers functions for people who are seeking for job openings.

7. TED Talks

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Now self-help may not be a topic that is often taught in school, but it is still something that you need to learn right? For one, it can offer you inspirations so you can write more interesting essays in school. Its slogan is the perfect representation of what the organization is about. Spreading ideas that are worth spreading. TED Talk’s early topics focused on technology and design, but it has since broadened its horizons to include talks on many scientific, cultural, and academic issues. The organization gets experts to talk on their show, and have them teach the audience what they learned, or what they want the audience to know about. This is all purely educational.

8. RealCalc

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So in college, I know many Professors tell their students to buy a specific type of calculator to cater to the subject. I also know that some calculators go up to $200. But this Google app is a game changer. RealCalc is a scientific calculator you can download to your phone or computer and use it to complete most of the math assignments you may have. You can get it by googling “RealCalc” and just download it. Absolutely free of charge!

9. HowCast

This website offers so many instructional how-tos’ for topics ranging from academics, constructing, cooking, skating, and many more. It has a program called the Emerging Filmmakers Program that allows filmmakers to apply to make videos for them. They are then paid by receiving $50 for every video and 50% of the advertising revenue generated from videos that generate over 40,000 views. You can benefit from this site by watching its instructional videos as well as creating your own. No one could say no to easy money, right?

10. edX.org

This is definitely one of my favorite sites ever. This site offers online courses from some of the best universities in the world. To name some, they got Harvard, MIT, the University of British Colombia, etc. This site is a massive open online course that is a mix of free and paid courses. There are more than 70 schools, nonprofit organizations, and corporations that offer courses on the edX website. [5] As of 2017, edX has around 14 million students taking more than 1,800 courses online. With some of the best professors in the world teaching you for free, this has got to be one of the best opportunities in the world. Some academic topics edX offer are business, computer science, humanities, management, language, engineering, data science, and many more.

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