Skillshare Explained

Skillshare
Type:Private
Industry:E-Learning
Hq Location City:New York City, New York, U.S.
Area Served:Worldwide
Key People:Matt Cooper, CEO

Skillshare is an online learning community based in the United States that provides educational videos.[1] [2] [3] The courses are non accredited and are only available through a paid subscription.[4] [5] The courses primarily cover creative work, with a smaller amount of courses on business and entrepreneurship.

Most of the courses focus on interaction, with the primary goal of learning by completing a project.

History

Michael Karnjanaprakorn and Malcolm Ong started Skillshare in New York City, New York in November 2010; the site was live in April 2011.[6] [7] Previously, Karnjanaprakorn led the product team at Hot Potato, a social media product bought by Facebook. Ong was the product manager at OMGPop.[8] [9] In August 2011, Skillshare raised $3.1 million in Series A funding led by Union Square Ventures and Spark Capital.[8] [10] In late 2013, Skillshare had raised $4.65 million in funding,[11] and $6 million by February 2014, with financing co-led by Union Square Ventures and Spark Capital. Total funding reached $10 million.[12]

Skillshare held the Penny Conference in April 2012, a one-day discussion on the current educational system and how to reform it,[7] [13] with Michael Karnjanaprakorn, Codecademy’s co-founder Zach Sims, and Pencils of Promise founder Adam Braun as speakers.[7]

Skillshare launched 15 online courses in August 2012,[1] [4] [14] [15] [16] with students collaborating to complete a project.[5] By November 2013, it hosted over 250 courses,[11] [14] and launched its School of Design.[17]

Skillshare collaborated with Levi's to launch the School of MakeOurMark in October 2013, focusing on individual creativity with courses in photography, tattooing, and various forms of illustration.[18] [19]

In March 2014, Skillshare moved to a membership model for $9.95 a month.[20] Later that year, the company announced a new open platform, where anyone could be a course instructor, and a free membership option to watch a limited amount of class content each month.[21]

In May 2016, Skillshare raised $12 million in Series B funding.[22] The company raised a further $28 million in Series C funding in July 2018 ($20 million in equity and $8 million in venture debt).[23]

In March 2017, the platform introduced the "Groups" feature that allows members to connect with other creators.[24]

In September 2021, Skillshare discontinued the option of offering classes for free and required users to have either a paid membership or a free trial to access all courses, including those that were previously available for free.[25]

Courses

Skillshare organizes courses in advertising, business, design, fashion and style, film and video, food and drink, music, photography, gaming, technology, and writing and publishing.[26] [27] All online courses are self-paced.[1] [28]

In June 2018, the company launched Skillshare Originals, a collection of courses produced by Skillshare's in-house team.[29]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Collaborative Learning Startup Skillshare Launches Hybrid Classes, Letting Anyone Join Online Or Offline. Ryan Lawler. TechCrunch. August 7, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  2. Web site: Toasting Success With Skillshare's Co-Founder. Dani Fankhauser. Mashable. March 1, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  3. Web site: This Company Wants You To Get Paid For Teaching In Your Spare Time. Daniel Goodman. Business Insider. May 12, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  4. Web site: Skillshare Goes Global, Launching Hybrid Online-Offline Classes. Zoe Fox. Mashable. August 7, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  5. Web site: Learning By Doing: Skillshare Unveils 'Hybrid' Classes. J.J. Colao. Forbes. August 7, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  6. Web site: Skillshare Raises $3.1 Million to Turn Everyone Into Teachers. Jenna Wortham. The New York Times Bits. August 16, 2011. February 4, 2014.
  7. Web site: How Skillshare Is Transforming Education as We Know It. Brian Anthony Hernandez. April 23, 2012. Mashable. February 4, 2014.
  8. Web site: Skillshare: A New Way to Learn. Donna Fenn. OPEN forum. May 29, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  9. Web site: Tech Insurgents 2012: Mike Karnjanaprakorn. Myles Tanzer. Beat Beat. November 14, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  10. Web site: Skillshare and Changing the Way We Learn. Diana Ransom. Entrepreneur. May 15, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  11. Web site: Skillshare has spent the last year quietly transforming itself. It's working. Erin Griffith. Pando Daily. November 5, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  12. Web site: A Year From Launch, Skillshare Lands $6M From USV, Spark To Double Down On Project-Based, Online Classes. Rip Empson. TechCrunch. February 28, 2014. March 6, 2014.
  13. Web site: A penny for your thoughts: What we learned at the Skillshare Conference. Allie Mahler. The Next Web. April 24, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  14. Web site: Skillshare Takes On the Education Gap. April Joyner. Inc.. April 2, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  15. Web site: With Skillshare's online classes, instructors get shot at bigger bucks. Ki Mae Heussner. Gigaom. November 28, 2012. February 4, 2014.
  16. Web site: 5 Lessons K-12 Could Learn From Skillshare. Getting Smart. August 30, 2012. Tom Vander Ark. February 4, 2014.
  17. Web site: Can't Afford Art School? Jump Online for a World-Class Education in Design. Joseph Flaherty. Wired. March 28, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  18. Web site: Levi's Hires Creative Experts To Teach Online Classes. Leah Gonzalez. PSFK. October 1, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  19. Web site: Make Your Mark: Skillshare and Levi Team Up To Teach Creativity. DailyTekk. October 2, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  20. Web site: Farr. Christina. Skillshare Debuts New Spotify-like Membership Model for Online Education. March 19, 2014. VentureBeat. April 29, 2014.
  21. Web site: Karnjanaprakorn. Michael. Introducing Open Skillshare. Skillshare.com. Skillshare. November 11, 2014.
  22. Web site: Skillshare books $12 million to take its education platform international. Kolodny. Lora. May 26, 2016. TechCrunch. https://web.archive.org/web/20181205230152/https://techcrunch.com/2016/05/26/skillshare-books-12-million-to-take-its-education-platform-international/. December 5, 2018. live. March 15, 2019.
  23. Web site: Skillshare finds its groove by helping freelancers learn. Harris. Ainsley. July 24, 2018. Fast Company. https://web.archive.org/web/20180724184631/https://www.fastcompany.com/90206789/skillshare-finds-its-groove-by-helping-freelancers-learn. July 24, 2018. live. March 15, 2019.
  24. Web site: 15 May 2017 . Introducing: Skillshare Groups . Skillshare.
  25. Web site: Starting September 15th, 2021, Skillshare will transition away from offering a free class experience. November 18, 2021.
  26. Web site: Skillshare – Make Money Teaching What You Know. Work at Home Adventures. April 15, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  27. Web site: Learn Online with Career Step, Lynda, Skillshare and Treehouse. Work From Home. January 9, 2014. February 4, 2014.
  28. Web site: 5 Skillshare Classes We Love. 2930 Creative. October 30, 2013. February 4, 2014.
  29. Web site: Introducing Staff Picks & Skillshare Originals. Burt. Megan. June 12, 2018. Skillshare. https://web.archive.org/web/20190315030132/https://blog.skillshare.com/company/introducing-staff-picks-skillshare-originals. March 15, 2019. live. March 15, 2019.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Skillshare".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.