Chad vs. Khan vs. Wikipremed

[kimicurtis]

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Which is better for MCAT prep?

 

[LaughingMan]

No idea why this silly argument is going on.

Anywho--tried WikiPreMed--and didn't feel it at all.

 

[Cynicalbrit]

No idea why this silly argument is going on.

Anywho--tried WikiPreMed--and didn't feel it at all.

I poked the bear.

Anyway, I'm using Chad's videos at the moment, and I think they're quite useful. He manages to be brief and easy to watch while covering all of the important information. I just wish he'd make a Biology series already.

 

[manchika]

Not sure of WikiPremed... but between Chad and Khanacademy... Chad is way better... ONLY Because it CHAD is more catered to MCAT ... Khanacademy is more overall(you have to pick and choose the lessons you want).. However, Khanacademy is free and Chad cost money

 

[Cynicalbrit]

Not sure of WikiPremed... but between Chad and Khanacademy... Chad is way better... ONLY Because it CHAD is more catered to MCAT ... Khanacademy is more overall(you have to pick and choose the lessons you want).. However, Khanacademy is free and Chad cost money

Yeah, but to be fair, $100 is less than most review book sets, and it's far less than you would pay for online access to a Kaplan/PR online class.

Money well spent.

 

[LaughingMan]

I poked the bear.

Anyway, I'm using Chad's videos at the moment, and I think they're quite useful. He manages to be brief and easy to watch while covering all of the important information. I just wish he'd make a Biology series already.

Yeah, but to be fair, $100 is less than most review book sets, and it's far less than you would pay for online access to a Kaplan/PR online class.

Money well spent.

+1 and +1.

I realllyy wish he had Bio Videos.

in any case--in days like this, where I don't feel like opening a book at all---I am able to watch Chads Videos and still have my day be of value.

Money VERY well spent.

 

[Tamoores]

Chad does have Biology videos too, but Ive heard theyre not as good as his gen chem and orgo

 

[LaughingMan]

Chad does have Biology videos too, but Ive heard theyre not as good as his gen chem and orgo

His Bio vids are incomplete. They are also free.

 

[Pre-Med Village]

I am grateful for this thread, both for the folks who have had good things to say about WikiPremed and for the criticisms. Although I definitely will defend WikiPremed in its present form, I also want to acknowledge the criticisms and give a sense of what I plan to do in the future to improve WikiPremed. I also want to say that I appreciate Chad's work, as well as Khan's. I don't see why a person needs to choose so much, one over the other. One thing about WikiPremed, though, is that the videos build on each other, so it's better to watch them in the order of the curriculum and not skip around too much.

To answer the question as to why the WikiPremed videos tend to be on the longer side, there are both good reasons and not so good. WikiPremed has a unique structure among MCAT courses. It follows a spiraling curriculum. This is something I learned teaching small groups of students through many cycles. A spiraling curriculum is a curriculum design in which key concepts are presented repeatedly throughout the curriculum, but with deepening layers of complexity, or in different applications. This treatment allows the earlier introduction of concepts traditionally reserved for later parts of the course. Because of this, the early videos in mechanics at WikiPremed, for example, tend to be longer than typical of conceptual overviews elsewhere. There are not only traditional learning goals but deeper ones in play that only become fully clear in the form of epiphanies much later on. The early mechanics videos are preparing the way for difficult ideas in electricity & magnetism, thermodynamics, and chemistry while teaching the basics in kinematics, Newton's laws, and work & energy, so we don't only look at projectile motion but also at the motion of a charged particle between charged plates. We don't only focus on the proportionality of the kinetic energy with the square of the speed, but also on the inverse proportionality of speed to the square root of the mass of different particles in effusion. It can seem long but I've taught so many students in small group teaching, from less to more advanced, that I have no illusions about what most folks actually begin with and what it takes to build mastery of the difficult ideas. The MCAT is a difficult exam. There are a lot of smart people competing. While the customer is always right, the student is not always right about what it takes.

So that's the good part. If you can get yourself far enough into the course, that you become accustomed to how it works, WikiPremed can help you build a knowledge base in the sciences that operates at the 12+ level. It's a deeper learning program. I believe in this aspect of instilling sophisticated conceptual understanding, WikiPremed is superior to any MCAT review course, video or otherwise. However, there are a lot of folks who could benefit with WikiPremed, but who don't, giving up at the beginning because the videos are too long, and I am fooling myself if I don't admit that they are long not only for good reasons, but also for reasons which are unnecessary. Due to the small group course nature of the production, many times in the program I am following the comprehension cues of the four or five students with me, and frankly, for a video viewer, it can get slow for no good reason. There is a disconnect between the expectations of a small group audience and a video viewer. A person watching videos expects them to be produced in a way that follows norms regarding their viewing experience. There is a subtle disconnect. I can respect how this adds a layer of difficulty, and I've decided to fix it. I believe that I can re-produce the videos with a more concise approach to teaching directly to the home viewer and I can make them better all around. I think I can reduce the time for each subject and make them more compelling to watch.

To summarize, I absolutely do not yield to any other course in overall teaching quality, but I recognize the need to make the WikiPremed videos more concise, so I am starting the project of making a 2nd edition of the physical sciences videos (as well as producing new biology videos for which I've been working on the slide shows). I'm older now, and a little fatter, but hopefully folks will find I am still as good looking. The new ones should start appearing relatively soon. I'm really grateful for feedback as they start rolling out.

 

[Temperature101]

I am grateful for this thread, both for the folks who have had good things to say about WikiPremed and for the criticisms. Although I definitely will defend WikiPremed in its present form, I also want to acknowledge the criticisms and give a sense of what I plan to do in the future to improve WikiPremed. I also want to say that I appreciate Chad's work, as well as Khan's. I don't see why a person needs to choose so much, one over the other. One thing about WikiPremed, though, is that the videos build on each other, so it's better to watch them in the order of the curriculum and not skip around too much.

To answer the question as to why the WikiPremed videos tend to be on the longer side, there are both good reasons and not so good. WikiPremed has a unique structure among MCAT courses. It follows a spiraling curriculum. This is something I learned teaching small groups of students through many cycles. A spiraling curriculum is a curriculum design in which key concepts are presented repeatedly throughout the curriculum, but with deepening layers of complexity, or in different applications. This treatment allows the earlier introduction of concepts traditionally reserved for later parts of the course. Because of this, the early videos in mechanics at WikiPremed, for example, tend to be longer than typical of conceptual overviews elsewhere. There are not only traditional learning goals but deeper ones in play that only become fully clear in the form of epiphanies much later on. The early mechanics videos are preparing the way for difficult ideas in electricity & magnetism, thermodynamics, and chemistry while teaching the basics in kinematics, Newton's laws, and work & energy, so we don't only look at projectile motion but also at the motion of a charged particle between charged plates. We don't only focus on the proportionality of the kinetic energy with the square of the speed, but also on the inverse proportionality of speed to the square root of the mass of different particles in effusion. It can seem long but I've taught so many students in small group teaching, from less to more advanced, that I have no illusions about what most folks actually begin with and what it takes to build mastery of the difficult ideas. The MCAT is a difficult exam. There are a lot of smart people competing. While the customer is always right, the student is not always right about what it takes.

So that's the good part. If you can get yourself far enough into the course, that you become accustomed to how it works, WikiPremed can help you build a knowledge base in the sciences that operates at the 12+ level. It's a deeper learning program. I believe in this aspect of instilling sophisticated conceptual understanding, WikiPremed is superior to any MCAT review course, video or otherwise. However, there are a lot of folks who could benefit with WikiPremed, but who don't, giving up at the beginning because the videos are too long, and I am fooling myself if I don't admit that they are long not only for good reasons, but also for reasons which are unnecessary. Due to the small group course nature of the production, many times in the program I am following the comprehension cues of the four or five students with me, and frankly, for a video viewer, it can get slow for no good reason. There is a disconnect between the expectations of a small group audience and a video viewer. A person watching videos expects them to be produced in a way that follows norms regarding their viewing experience. There is a subtle disconnect. I can respect how this adds a layer of difficulty, and I've decided to fix it. I believe that I can re-produce the videos with a more concise approach to teaching directly to the home viewer and I can make them better all around. I think I can reduce the time for each subject and make them more compelling to watch.

To summarize, I absolutely do not yield to any other course in overall teaching quality, but I recognize the need to make the WikiPremed videos more concise, so I am starting the project of making a 2nd edition of the physical sciences videos (as well as producing new biology videos for which I've been working on the slide shows). I'm older now, and a little fatter, but hopefully folks will find I am still as good looking. The new ones should start appearing relatively soon. I'm really grateful for feedback as they start rolling out.

How soon? I definitely need some help in bio.,.

 

[nysegop]

Chad is expensive...

 

[Cynicalbrit]

Chad is expensive...

Compared to pretty much any other MCAT prep resource, $100 is very reasonable. I mean, the AAMC practice exams cost nearly three times that much if you buy all of them (which you probably should). Any set of prep books will cost you at least $200, of not $300. For me, Chad is probably the best $100 I've ever spent. YMMV.

 

[Pre-Med Village]

How soon? I definitely need some help in bio.,.

I really need to get through this next phase of development in the next six months, so I am planning to finish this by the Fall. It's a heck of a lot of work. As for the biology videos remaining, I've gotten the metabolism and about half of the genetics/molecular bio slideshows done, and there are notes and structure for the physiology. It'll take some time. I plan to produce a new biology video every time I have re-cut 3 or 4 physical science videos. Hopefully I can get through this phase by the Fall and move onto the next tasks.

One thing I want to mention. WikiPremed does send out a disc with the current stage of project videos when folks order the bundle of printed publications or the board game. As I go through this phase if the online videos have gotten out ahead of your disc, just email me and I'll send you another disc. I don't want folks to who rely on their disc to worry about that.

Responding to some other points, I just want to say that to me, as well, Chad's videos are not expensive. $100 for 90 days is a really good deal! I think my own stuff is better overall, especially in physics. Even though I would say that, it's still true. But Chad is a heck of a chemistry teacher. We have different approaches. With a reasonable amount of prep time, there's no reason to put WikiPremed and Chad's videos in competition. The cost is low either way, and the additional time isn't so much compared to the benefits. Good content review uses cycles and repetition. In combination, you would have something definitely superior to the national courses and much, much less expensive. That's just my opinion. There's no need for this Chad versus WikiPremed versus Khan thing because they all have different strengths and there isn't any reason for one to exclude the other.

 

[Back 5]

I bought the wikipremed package last year in preparation for my studying. The Organic rxn cards actually helped a lot in my o-chem course.

The only thing I'd like to see, as far as the videos are concerned, is the ability to play them at 1.5 speed. They have great content in them, but I would like to get through them faster.

That is the biggest reason why I am watching Chad's videos right now (3 weeks before test) versus wikipremed. I can digest more information in a shorter time with Chad because I can watch it 1.5x speed.

 

[Gauss44]

Compare for yourself. Free Chad Videos at the bottom of the Course Era page. The others are self explanatory.

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/free-stuff/1247592/

 

[Incontrol]

I really need to get through this next phase of development in the next six months, so I am planning to finish this by the Fall. It's a heck of a lot of work. As for the biology videos remaining, I've gotten the metabolism and about half of the genetics/molecular bio slideshows done, and there are notes and structure for the physiology. It'll take some time. I plan to produce a new biology video every time I have re-cut 3 or 4 physical science videos. Hopefully I can get through this phase by the Fall and move onto the next tasks.

One thing I want to mention. WikiPremed does send out a disc with the current stage of project videos when folks order the bundle of printed publications or the board game. As I go through this phase if the online videos have gotten out ahead of your disc, just email me and I'll send you another disc. I don't want folks to who rely on their disc to worry about that.

Responding to some other points, I just want to say that to me, as well, Chad's videos are not expensive. $100 for 90 days is a really good deal! I think my own stuff is better overall, especially in physics. Even though I would say that, it's still true. But Chad is a heck of a chemistry teacher. We have different approaches. With a reasonable amount of prep time, there's no reason to put WikiPremed and Chad's videos in competition. The cost is low either way, and the additional time isn't so much compared to the benefits. Good content review uses cycles and repetition. In combination, you would have something definitely superior to the national courses and much, much less expensive. That's just my opinion. There's no need for this Chad versus WikiPremed versus Khan thing because they all have different strengths and there isn't any reason for one to exclude the other.

First off all, I would like to THANK YOU for your videos, I have watched a big portion of the physics and they help A TON. Since they offer something that nowhere else is offered as far as I know. Which is trying to build intuition.

ON A SIDE NOTE:
Have you ever considered putting an option to play the videos at x1.5 or x2.0? or a download option for the videos so we can download and play them at a faster speed?. AS a business model, you can offer these options for a fee 😎

~Incontrol

 

[Pre-Med Village]

First off all, I would like to THANK YOU for your videos, I have watched a big portion of the physics and they help A TON. Since they offer something that nowhere else is offered as far as I know. Which is trying to build intuition.

ON A SIDE NOTE:
Have you ever considered putting an option to play the videos at x1.5 or x2.0? or a download option for the videos so we can download and play them at a faster speed?. AS a business model, you can offer these options for a fee 😎

~Incontrol

Thank you for your kind comments. About the speed thing. Some people do find I'm more fun as a teacher at 1.5X. I've been trying higher speeds around the house and the family likes me better at higher speed too. Though for the cats the current pace works best.

People experience the teaching videos in different ways. Some people really enjoy them as they are, but some prefer to speed them up. While too fast a treatment can inspire a delusion of competence, a big part of successful MCAT review is for people to become responsible in making comfort and competence the same thing, so if people would like a faster speed option, I should make that available.

Unfortunately, our current video host uses an FLV player which doesn't have that option. But they've recently annoyed the heck of me by doing everything they can to force pre-roll ads onto the videos, WHICH I WILL NEVER HAVE. Please, if you see an ad on one of the videos, write to me immediately. This is stressing me out.

I am currently looking to other video hosts. Back in the day, YouTube didn't allow longer format videos, but I think I may be able to put longer videos on YouTube now with no ads. With YouTube, there is an HTML5 player available that allows speeding up, so this may be a solution. I'm looking at Vimeo too, and investigating self-hosting, but with the proliferation of different kinds of devices I don't know about self-hosting.

Alternatively, folks can speed up the videos now using the disc that I send along with our bundle of printed publications, because most offline players do allow for speeding up. Regarding direct downloads, I am going back and forth on creating a page to serve the video files. Mostly I am concerned that this will encourage too much watching out of the order of the syllabus. This would make achieving some of the more ambitious learning goals more difficult. However, I'm likely to try it out as long as it doesn't cause performance issues with the bandwidth of the site. I definitely won't make downloads a 'premium service' because subscriptions and restricted areas are completely at odds with the philosophy of WikiPremed. I think I can keep this thing going by providing a great value proposition with our printed products (we're getting there). The quality of WikiPremed over the long-term absolutely depends on building the site with educational values determining all choices.

Anyway, I'm glad the course is working for you as it is, and I hope folks will give it a try long enough to get the rhythm of it. This big ugly MCAT course my students and I developed over years of small group teaching, and which I've put up at WikiPremed, does have a record of helping people get up into the superior ranges, but it takes time. It's not an easy road. I think that's just being honest as a teacher. But that doesn't mean it cannot be improved. Please write to me with any suggestions of making WikiPremed better. All the best.

 

[MedOldAge]

. .........................The quality of WikiPremed over the long-term absolutely depends on building the site with educational values determining all choices.

We all at SDN deeply appreciate your kindness and the way you look at education for this new generation of young folks. They are the future of our country. You do all the right things to help it out.

 

[mcloaf]

We all at SDN deeply appreciate your kindness and the way you look at education for this new generation of young folks. They are the future of our country. You do all the right things to help it out.

+1. You're the man, John. I attribute much of my PS score to you.