Online courses directory (801)

Motivation is the energy that gives behavior direction and focus, and can be understood in a variety of ways. This free online course will teach you about the different theories on motivation and you will learn how to create a classroom environment that encourages motivation. One perspective on understanding motivation is behaviorism, where underlying motives are equated to outward expressions. Other perspectives are based on cognitive theories, and you will learn how to generate interest in a topic and to encourage achievement goals that increase motivation. Students’ attributions about the success or failure of a task also affect their motivation; you will learn how to create an environment that will encourage positive attributions. This free online course will help you discover how to encourage high self-efficacy beliefs in a student, as high self-efficacy can affect motivation positively. The self-determination theory is based on the idea that everyone has basic needs that must be fulfilled before they can be fully motivated, and you will learn how to ensure that these needs are fulfilled in your classroom. The course will then teach you how to combine elements from the different theories through the TARGET model, and create a positive learning environment that promotes motivation.<br />

Great advances have been made in the field of anatomy and physiology of the human body. ALISON's free online diploma course introduces you to the basic anatomy and physiology of important systems in the body such as the cardiovascular system, respiratory system, reproductive system, skeletal system, nervous system and others. For each system covered in the course, the anatomical features are outlined and the physiological functions are explained. <br /><br />ALISON's anatomy online course will be of great interest to students of anatomy, physiology, biomedical science and medicine, as well as any learner wanting to expand their knowledge and understanding of the human body.<br />

English is the main language of international communication and is essential for people working in the tourism industry. This free online course introduces the key vocabulary and skills needed to speak English with tourists. This course details the English necessary for working in tourist information offices including how to provide directions, understand guidebooks and write press releases. The English needed for conducting guided tours is also defined. These sections detail how to explain a tour itinerary, how to politely book a tour for a customer and how to conduct a tour commentary in English. This free online course will be of great interest to non-English speakers who would like a career in the tourism industry, and who now wish to learn English with a focus on the travel and tourism industry.

This course introduces the body of theory underlying accounting procedures. It puts the core practices and principles, covered in the previous courses, into a framework of theoretical concepts. This free online course will give learners an understanding of the theory behind the accounting process and will help learners make decisions in diverse accounting situations as is provides a logical framework for accounting practice. This free online accounting course will be of great interest to entrepreneurs and business professionals who would like to get an understanding of the theory behind the accounting practices that we use day today, and to any learner who is interested in accounting as a future career.

Business Intelligence is a set of theories and methodologies that handle large amounts of data and information and assists managers with decision-making. Knowledge management is the process of capturing, storing, retrieving and distributing the knowledge of the individuals in a business for use by others in the business to improve the quality and/or efficiency of decision making across the firm. This free online course in Business Intelligence and Knowledge Management Systems enables the learner to study information tools used to assist decision-makers and describe the process known as decision-making including the three steps involved. The course will be of interest to business professionals who would like to gain a basic knowledge and understanding of the benefits of business intelligence and knowledge management systems.<br />

Systems analysis is the methodical investigation of a problem and the identification and ranking of alternative solutions to the problem. Systems analysis is often called structured systems analysis when certain “structured” tools and techniques, such as Data Flow Diagrams, are used in conducting the analysis. This free online course in Understanding Systems Analysis enables the learner to study systems development and analysis and the types of management that are needed when a business is planning on process re-engineering. The course will be of interest to business professionals who would like to gain a basic knowledge and understanding of systems analysis.<br /><br />

Being an effective teacher requires a variety of skills but some of the most important are the ability to communicate effectively with students, motivate students to learn, and implement successful instructional planning within the classroom. <br /><br />ALISON's free online Diploma course will help you further explore and understand the importance of these skills, and how they impact each individual in the classroom. You will learn how to recognize different elements of communication, such as verbal, non-verbal and unintended. You will also learn about the different theories on motivation and how to create a classroom environment that incites determination and enthusiasm. You will learn about instructional planning and how to make the learning experience most beneficial for your students. <br /><br />ALISON's free online course will be of great interest to all educators and trainers who want to learn more about effective teaching skills and how to apply them in an educational setting.<br />

Systems design is a set of procedures performed to convert the logical specification into a design that can be implemented on the organization’s computer system. Systems implementation is a set of procedures performed to complete the design contained in the approved systems design document and to test, install, and begin to use the new or revised Information System. This free online course in Systems Design and Implementation enables the learner to study the fundamental process of systems design and implementation and the intermediate steps involved. The course will be of interest to business professionals who would like to gain a basic knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of systems design and implementation.<br />

Marketing is a crucial function in any business or organisation, and is increasingly important in the modern globalized economy. This free online course will introduce learners to marketing strategies and tools that are used extensively in the marketing industry. You will learn about the ambiguous nature of marketing and its different meanings for different businesses. You will also discover the characterizations of marketing that are common to all businesses, despite their differences. This course will teach you about the different approaches that affect marketing campaigns used in different types of businesses. This course will be of great interest to marketing and business professionals who wish to refresh the basics of marketing and to learners who are interested in business and wish to have a greater knowledge and understanding of the role marketing plays in the modern business world.<br />

Merchandising retailers and wholesalers use inventory costs to calculate the cost of goods sold as these are a major expense affecting net income and the balance sheet. In this free online accounting course learners are brought step-by-step through this process from the physical counting of goods, to the inclusion of costs such as transport or insurance, to the calculation on the value of the goods thereby connecting the cost of goods through to retained earnings and the balance sheet. The different methods of apportioning costs to a stock item, such as FIFO and LIFO, are discussed and topics such as net realization or gross margin are explained and explored. The importance of having accurate inventory figures and the serious consequences of using inaccurate inventory figures is also explained. This free online accounting course will be of great interest to entrepreneurs and business professionals who would like to better understand how to allocate inventory costs flow for the wholesale and retail sectors, and to any learner who is interested in accounting as a future career.<br />

This free online course is designed for anybody interested in project management. Every competent project manager needs to know the various phases and project management software and tools available do the job properly. IT project management is process oriented, and tools such as the Gantt Chart help track project progress. This free project management training course builds on other business and IT courses available online at ALISON.

Behavioural finance is a new and exciting area in economics that combines the psychology of human behaviour with the traditional theories of finance and economics. The result is a new explanation of how modern economics work, such as how markets are affected by the behaviour of investors. In this free online course you will learn how neoclassical economics defines rational and irrational human behaviour and how behavioural finance questions these definitions. You will also learn how behavioural finance is questioning long-held beliefs in economics, such as how individual demand curves can be applied to the market in general. This course will be of great interest to professionals in the areas of economics, finance and psychology who would like to learn more about behavioural finance and how it is developing a new understanding of modern economics and finance.

Successful entrepreneurs need more than business ideas, they need to be good leaders. This free online course from ALISON reviews the essential leadership skills an entrepreneur or business person needs. These skills include the knowledge and understanding of how to organise your company, how to select your business team, how to manage your business team, and how you should behave as a business professional. All great entrepreneurs and business people gain this knowledge and understanding early in their career and by studying this course you can gain the knowledge and understanding to acquire these skills also. <br />

Major advances in technology have seen e-commerce becoming extremely viable for business and also very convenient for consumers. Various topologies and security plans allow producers and consumers to sell and purchase with ease. This free online course introduces the learner to various topologies used within e-commerce, the infrastructure required and security needed to make e-commerce possible. This free online course will be of great interest to business professionals, as well as any learner wanting to expand their knowledge and understanding of e-commerce.<br />

Information has always been with us but with the advent of electrical and digital communication systems, and in particular the Internet, the quantity of information being generated has increased exponentially. This free online course is an introduction to information theory and where our ideas about information first started. It reviews ancient forms of information from cave art up to clay writing tables. It also reviews how the development of electrical communication systems revolutionised the transmission of information. This free online course will be of great interest to all IT and communication professionals who are involved in the area of digital communications, and to all students who would like to increase their knowledge and understanding of how the science of information theory.<br />

Having adequate life insurance and retirement savings are two very important aspects of personal financial planning. This free online personal finance course introduces and explains the basic forms of both life insurance and retirement savings with an emphasis on its application in the U.S. Both term life insurance and whole life insurance are clearly explained with examples, the features of Traditional Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and Roth IRAs are reviewed and the similarities and differences between Traditional IRAs and 401(K)s are described. This course will be of great interest to all learners who are planning their personal finances and would like a clear knowledge and understanding of both life insurance and retirement savings. <br />

In today’s economy financial math skills are indispensable. This maths course is designed to provide learners with some of the essential skills required for managing personal finances. The aim of this course is to convey the basic concepts of financial maths; and it is designed for those individuals seeking to better understand the role that maths can play in their everyday economic life. Upon completion of this course, learners will gain the skills necessary for working with commonplace financial maths and the essential mathematical background required to interpret their personal finances. This course contains a series of 24 videos followed by a short assessment intended to assist the learner in better evaluating their overall comprehension of the material.<br />

The past one hundred years has seen a revolution in how we understand the structure of the earth and the geological processes that shape it. In this free online course you will be introduced to the structure of the earth including features such as the crust, the mantle and the core. You will learn about plate tectonics and how continental and oceanic plates move, and what happens at divergent plate boundaries and convergent plate boundaries. You will go back in time and learn about a supercontinent called Pangaea that existed over 200 million years ago, and how the Hawaiian Islands were formed more recently. This course will be of great interest to all learners would like a greater knowledge and understanding of the structure of the earth and the geological processes that formed today's continents and oceans. <br />

Modern living has introduced many new home appliances to the average home. From electric kettles to juice mixers, our homes are now full of electrical home appliances we say we cannot do without. However, home appliances often breakdown when not cared for or serviced on a regular basis. When this happens we usually call in a professional to service the home appliance which can very often be expensive no matter how small the task at hand. This free online home appliance course discusses some of the major home appliances commonly used today and how they should be used and cared for. With step by step demonstrations on how to service and care for each of the home appliances discussed, this course will be of great interest to budding DIY enthusiasts looking to do the work themselves. This free online home appliance course will also be of interest to professional service staff wishing to refresh their knowledge of home appliance care and maintenance along with the average lay person who wishes to know more about when and how often their home appliance should be serviced.<br />

Immunology is the study of the immune system. This free online course explains how the human immune system fights disease and infection. This course is taught through a series of narrated videos. These videos include illustrations to increase your comprehension of the material. The first section of this course explains the non-specific immune system. Following this, the role of B-cells and T-cells in the specific immune system is explained. The final section of the course explains the symptoms and causes of the inflammatory response. The course is suitable for biology or medicine students that wish to increase their understanding of immunology. It is also suitable for anyone who wants to learn more about the workings of the immune system.<br />