Free Tools to Create Online Courses

While one of the many effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has been a global socio-economic shift, it’s also resulted in a focus on e-learning, and a focus away from the typical classroom setting. Educators today are having to adapt from traditional methods of teaching to creating online courses and teaching through virtual platforms.  But even before the pandemic, global education had seen a rise with plenty of investments placed in Ed-tech companies. The figure was estimated to be around 18.66 billion dollars in 2019; a number that is only surging given the current environment and the need to socially distance.

Whether you’re teaching in a classroom or teaching online from home, the content used is the key. While in a physical setting this can be visual aids such as posters or charts, in a virtual setting you’ll need to use dynamic content such as images and videos. In this post, we are going to look into the different free tools that can help you create such dynamic content without spending a dime. 

If you are planning on creating a series of courses, it may be better to invest in some tools to create great content. However, if you’re just starting, or want to try out some free resources, then these are some great tools you can use depending on the kind of content you wish to create.

Tools for Image Creation

Images are the core of any course. They can be diagrams, flowcharts, processes, hierarchy, etc. Here are some of the free tools that can aid in creating such types of images- 

1. Draw.io:  Helps you to create professional-looking diagrams with a pre-set of images and shapes that can be added to your screen in one go.  
2. Unsplash and Pexels: Both these sites allow you to download stock images for free. 
3. Canva and Easl.ly: Represent data with collages, charts, marketing promotion, and infographics online. Canva also offers thousands of easy-to-use templates and allows you to create PDF Workbooks
4. GIMP: If you’d rather not use a template and prefer more freedom to your designs and content, GIMP can help you edit images as you wish. It’s quite similar to Photoshop, even if it doesn’t have all the features that Photoshop has. 
5. Wordle: Use word clouds to depict different themes or ideas.
6. Recite: If you like to use a lot of quotes in your material, or if your courses are related to English or literature you may find Recite a great tool to use. Simply choose your quote and template to create visual quotes that create an impact. 

Tools for audio mixing and editing

If you want to add a voice-over to your course or any other audio, you may want to check out the below tools:

1. Audacity: Audacity is one of the best open-source tools to do a cross-platform recording and audio editing
2. Ardour: Similar to Audacity, Ardour allows you to record, edit, and mix audio on most devices. 
3. VozMe: VozMe is a great tool if most of your content is in text and you wish to convert them into an mp3 format. 
4. Voki: Add a bit more color to your course using Voki. This tool helps you to create avatars as speakers for your presentations

Tools for video creation

Video content can be a favorite among those taking online courses, but depending on your target audience you’ll need to decide whether it’s the right approach. Unfortunately, most video creation and editing can be expensive, so free software can be quite helpful:

1. Camtasia: Camtasia is an open-source software that lets you drag and drop clips to create videos. You can even add animations, motion graphics, music, and special effects. 
2. ScreenCast O Matic: ScreenCast O Matic lets you record on-screen activities for presentations and tutorials. The software also allows you to upload videos directly on YouTube.
3. Jing: Jing is another tool that helps you record on-screen activities, creating video content, as well as showing students specific techniques while you screen-share.
4. Snagit: Snagit allows you to edit and create videos, motion graphics, and even animated GIFs.

While it’s true that your course can be as good as the tools you use, it doesn’t necessarily have to be expensive. The above free tools can help you launch your courses at a very low cost, and even give you the opportunity to play around to figure what works best for your audience. Take occasional surveys using Google Forms, Zonka Feedback, WordPress Survey Plugin, Jotform competitors like Survey Monkey Jotform Survey Maker or Survey Monkey to understand what really clicks with your audience and what doesn’t. If you have any developers or designers on your team you can take their help in creating content and uploading it onto your own course platform. 

Benefits of using Learnyst to create your online course

Use the money saved on such tools to opt for an advanced LMS like Learnyst that not only has features like an online assessment builder, but it will also help you to market your courses so that you can attract a larger audience and eventually, increase your revenue. In the post-COVID-19 era, there is a change in education pattern highlighted by the growing need to disseminate knowledge online. This can be fulfilled by Learnyst.

Learnyst is an LMS platform like none other. We move with the tide of change and are quick to adopt any content, tech, and anything else that will make teaching easy and profitable for online educators. The following are some additional benefits that Learnyst has to offer: 

• First things first, you can create a custom website for your courses that will look good both on mobile and desktop. You can also create your own mobile app. 
• There are several templates to choose from to create content; be it slides or interactive content like quizzes. 
• Learnyst integrates with all authoring tools, allowing you to effortlessly import content.

To learn more about how Learnyst can help you create your own online course and have it up and running in no time, get in touch with us today.

You can create your own branded online academy, upload, and sell.

So, go ahead. Create and Sell Courses online.