Here are seven online resources to help older adults dig into a variety of science topics.
This nonprofit's goal is to provide quality education to anyone who wants it, and that includes older adults. Seniors can create a learner account for free and sign up for all kinds of online courses, including science classes. You can jump in at any level of science, from middle school to beyond high school. Start with the basics of physical or earth science or delve deep into topics such as viruses, principles of physiology or chemical bonds.
Khan Academy makes it fun to learn new things by creating habits and "streaks" — learning a little bit every day.
Another option for free online learning, Coursera provides access to a wide range of classes on topics such as business, personal development, data science, math and logic and health. You can also browse options for earning a degree through Coursera, but this may involve fees and other costs.
Seniors who love science but don't like it packaged in the trappings of school and classroom — even an online, work-at-your-own-pace classroom — may prefer learning via options such as PBS Nova online. You can explore a wide variety of topics via documentary videos and some interactive games and articles. Topics include earth, ancient worlds, space and flight, body and brain, technology, military, evolution, nature, and physics and math.
Older adults who want to be involved in science beyond just learning about it might consider joining the crowd at Zooniverse. Anyone can be a researcher with Zooniverse, which is a platform that allows people from all over the globe to work together on research projects. You can sign up as a participant or as a researcher with a project. Participants review the ongoing projects to find one they're interested in and sign up.
You have to learn the process of working on that project, and then you can help with projects in categories such as the arts, biology, climate, history, literature, medicine and language. For example, in the biology category, projects include an Everglades wildlife observation project, AI training, tree labeling and audio clip identification.
If you want to keep up with the latest in scientific studies, innovation and research, you might splurge on a subscription to Scientific American online. You can read a number of articles for free and pay $1 for a digital subscription for 60 days of full access to see if this expense would be worth it for you. Make sure to double-check that deal, as it's current as of late 2024 and may change in the future.
Browse a variety of science topics in NASA's learning space. While these resources are designed for K-12 students, anyone can access them to learn more about science, engineering, math, technology and even the arts. NASA provides education via video, images, articles and interactive online elements.
This resource is ideal for seniors who like bite-sized chunks of science. For example, you can watch a 1-minute video about why Mars has mountains or what a dwarf planet is.
This is another online resource where you can take courses for free on topics including money and business, history and the arts, the environment, politics and languages. Free courses also include science topics such as biofuels, cell signaling, astronomy, ethics in science, life in the Paleozoic era and metals in medicine.
Most free online learning resources are either articles and videos you can enjoy right away and as one-off learning and entertainment experiences or courses you work through at your own pace. While free courses may be taught by a single professor or other expert, they typically don't involve synchronous learning or back-and-forth communication. Instead, you may work through webinars, watching videos and reading articles before answering questions or completing other interactive activities to help you learn the material.
When using these resources, don't stress out about how much you do or don't remember or how you do on any quizzes or other interactive elements. Instead, enjoy the experience and the fact that you have the leisure to learn for the simple fun of acquiring new information that day.
