Online courses directory (19947)

This course is an introduction to the cross-cultural study of biomedical ethics, examining moral foundations of the science and practice of Western biomedicine through case studies of abortion, contraception, cloning, organ transplantation and other issues. It evaluates challenges that new medical technologies pose to the practice and availability of medical services around the globe, and to cross-cultural ideas of kinship and personhood. Also discussed are critiques of the biomedical tradition from anthropological, feminist, legal, religious, and cross-cultural theorists.

Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology is a 12-lesson course teaching a comprehensive overview of non-avian dinosaurs. Topics covered: anatomy, eating, locomotion, growth, environmental and behavioral adaptations, origins and extinction. Lessons are delivered from museums, fossil-preparation labs and dig sites. Estimated workload: 3-5 hrs/week.

Ever wondered what it would be like to live in the world of dinosaurs? Yes? Well here’s your chance!

Using the Late Cretaceous fossil site of Erlian, China as an example, we bring you to the Gobi desert, as well as leading international museums and institutions to find out how we reconstruct dinosaur ecosystems.

This biology and life science course will focus on the knowledge we can gain from studying animals and plants. You will learn about a dinosaur’s biology including their appearance, classification and diet. We will take a close look at the mostly meat eating theropod dinosaurs, as well as the main plant eating dinosaurs, the sauropodomorphs and ornithischians. At the end of the course, you will learn how palaeontologists use fossil and modern evidence to reconstruct dinosaurs and their ecosystems.

The course is brought to life with the help of award-winning palaeoartist Julius T. Csotonyi and is led by HKU’s vertebrate palaeontologist Dr Michael Pittman in collaboration with his esteemed colleague Professor Xu Xing of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing. A range of guests from around the World will also share their expertise during the course.

想体验一下活在恐龙世界里是怎样吗? 

参加我们的免费网上学习课程，感受与恐龙同行的震撼! 以中国二连浩特白垩纪晚期的化石地层作为一个例子,我们将带您来到戈壁沙漠、著名国际博物馆及研究所去探究我们如何重建恐龙的生态系统。 此生物及生命科学课程着重于研究动物和植物。您将会认到识恐龙生物学，包括恐龙的外观、分类和食物。我们将关注近乎全肉食性的兽脚类恐龙，以及主要的草食性恐龙、蜥脚形亚目和鸟臀目恐龙。在本课程的末段,您将会了解到古生物学家如何运用化石和现代的证据来重建恐龙和它们的生态系统。 本课程有赖屡获殊荣的古生物复原画家Julius T. Csotonyi的帮助才得以面世,并由香港大学古脊椎动物学家文嘉棋博士及北京古脊椎动物与古人类研究所徐星教授共同领导。世界各地不同领域的专家也将在本课程中分享他们的专业知识。

想體驗一下活在恐龍世界裡是怎樣嗎? 

參加我們的免費網上學習課程，感受與恐龍同行的震撼! 以中國二連浩特白堊紀晚期的化石地層作為一個例子, 我們將帶您來到戈壁沙漠、著名國際博物館及研究所去探究我們如何重建恐龍的生態系統。此生物及生命科學課程著重於研究動物和植物。您將會認到識恐龍生物學，包括恐龍的外觀、分類和食物。我們將關注近乎全肉食性的獸腳類恐龍，以及主要的草食性恐龍、蜥腳形亞目和鳥臀目恐龍。在本課程的末段, 您將會了解到古生物學家如何運用化石和現代的證據來重建恐龍和牠們的生態系統。本課程有賴屢獲殊榮的古生物復原畫家Julius T. Csotonyi的幫助才得以面世,並由香港大學古脊椎動物學家文嘉棋博士及北京古脊椎動物與古人類研究所徐星教授共同領導。世界各地不同領域的專家也將在本課程中分享他們的專業知識。

This free certificate in accounting course looks in-depth at the transactions, processes and controls used to record typical transactions in a business. <br /><br />In sales, you will learn how to handle returns, discount and freight charges as well as working out the cost of goods sold. In inventory, you will see the two different methods of counting inventory, periodic and perpetual, as well as the different methods of calculating value of the inventory and the associated journal transactions to record the necessary adjustments. <br /><br />To help manage the cash assets within a company, the different controls and best practices are outlined with examples of documents and processes given for both checking accounts and petty cash. Samples of adjusting journals are given and the importance and use of the quick ratio are explained. This is followed with details on how to manage the accounts receivables, from calculating the provision for uncollectable accounts to the use of aged analysis. Similarly in accounts payable you will see how to make provision for both the known and unknown liabilities as well as how to use payable notes as for of short term finance. <br /><br />This free diploma of accounting course will be of great interest to entrepreneurs and business professionals who would like to better understand the transactions and controls used in business, and to any learner who is interested in accounting as a future career.<br />

Good accounting practices and procedures are needed in every business and organization. Details of trading transactions need to be accurately recorded so that you know what your financial situation is at any time.<br /><br />In ALISON's free online accounting diploma course, you will learn about the core practices involved in recording various details, from understanding debits and credits and using simple T-accounts to closing out the accounts at the end of an accounting period, producing the statement of retained earnings and balance sheet. Detailed examples are worked through on a transaction-by-transaction basis, helping you understand how and why each step is necessary. <br /><br />After reviewing day-to-day accounting procedures, you are introduced to the more formal theory of accounting, the assumptions, principles and modifying conventions, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) conceptual framework and the main objectives of financial reporting. <br /><br />ALISON's free online accounting course will be of great interest to entrepreneurs and business professionals who would like to get a thorough introduction to accounting practices and theory, and to any learner who is interested in accounting as a future career.<br />

This free online course Diploma in Alternative Dispute Resolution offers you a comprehensive review of dispute resolution, and covers topics such as common causes of conflict and how to overcome them, negotiation skills, and a guide to alternative dispute resolution practices and procedures.<br /><br />Conflict is not always negative and it is important to acknowledge that some conflict can lead to productivity. You will learn about conflict-handling styles that can help you to overcome disputes that arise in your work and personal life and about the optimum level of conflict necessary for high performance. You will also learn tips for negotiation success, the five stages of negotiation, and how you can effectively negotiate with people from different cultures without insulting cultural traditions. <br /><br />There are many ways to overcome disputes and you will learn about alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as a method of conflict resolution. You will learn about ADR practitioners, the most common methods of ADR, and background conditions that are necessary for a successful ADR program. You will also examine case studies to get a full understanding of how ADR programs can be catered to different situations. <br /><br />This free course will be of great interest to all professionals who are working in both the public and private sectors, and who are involved in conflict analysis, and management and resolution processes. It will also be of interest to learners who want to study mediation and other non-adversarial dispute and conflict resolution processes. <br />

The free online course Diploma in Applied Operations Management introduces learners to the practical applications of the theories and concepts that underpin operations management. The course begins by showing learners why virtually all operations management decisions are based on a forecast of the future. Forecasts drive strategic operations decisions, such as choice of competitive priorities, changes in processes, and large technology purchases. Forecast decisions also serve as the basis for tactical planning and developing worker schedules. The course describes why forecasting is critical to the management of all functional areas within an organization and you will learn about forecasting methods such as time series forecasting. These forecasting methods are explained in detail with worked examples throughout. Aggregate planning allows management to quantify materials and other resources that are to be procured so that the total cost of operations are kept to the minimum over a set period of time. You will be introduced to aggregate planning methodologies such as the tabular method and linear programming. The course also introduces the linear programming technique and a special type of linear programming known as the Transportation Model, which can be used to obtain aggregate plans that would allow balanced capacity and demand and the minimization of costs. Line balancing is used to minimize idle time and remove potential bottlenecks within a process. The course introduces the concept of line balancing and explains terminology associated with it, such as tasks, task precedence, task times and cycle time. You will learn about heuristics for working out line balancing problems in lean production, such as the shortest processing time and the longest path in the network. You will also learn about quantitative methods, such as the p-median model, which is used to model many real world situations, such as the location of public or industrial facilities, warehouses and other facilities. Inventory models help firms determine the order quantity that minimizes the total inventory holding costs and ordering costs, as well as the frequency of ordering, to keep goods or services flowing to the customer without interruption or delay. Several models are available to help determine how much inventory should be brought in to restock the products or parts, and you will be introduced to inventory models such as the single period inventory model, the multi-period inventory model and the economic order quantity (EOQ) model. These models are explained in detail using worked examples. This free online course will be of great interest to all learners who have certified in ALISON's Diploma in Operations Management as it introduces practical applications of operations management. It will also be of great interest to all professionals working in the areas operations management or general management who would like to learn more about the practical applications of operations management. The course will also be of interest to all learners who are interested in operations management as a future career.

The free online course Diploma in Applied Psychology - Consumer Behavior introduces the psychological processes behind the behavior of consumers and how they make their decisions. This course begins by reviewing the nature and scope of consumer behavior, and how it evolved from other disciplines such as psychology and sociology into its own distinct field of study. You will learn about the application of consumer behavior and how studying it helps marketers formulate appropriate marketing strategies for consumers and their environment. The course then describes in detail both General Models and Specific Models of consumer behavior which attempt to explain how and why consumers behave as they do, and what factors may impact the buying decision process. The course then introduces you to the nature and functions of attitudes in general and how researchers have described four structural models of attitudes. You will also learn how attitudes are formed and what factors influence attitudes enough to change them. You will learn about the two main theories that have been developed to explain how and why attitudes change, and you will learn how marketers can use this information to design marketing strategies that positively influence consumers' attitudes. Finally, the course introduces you to the nature of personality in general and you will learn about the differences between personality types and personality traits. You will also review aspects of self-concept and self-image and see how these help shape each consumer's personality. The course introduces theories of personality developed by psychologists and you'll learn how marketers can adapt these theories during the design, development and implementation of marketing strategies. This free online Diploma course will be of great interest to marketers and business professionals working in the area of consumer marketing who would like to learn more about the psychology of consumer behavior.<br />

In this free online Diploma in Basic Chinese Language Studies course you will learn the basics of written and spoken Mandarin Chinese. Modern China is playing an increasingly influential role in the world's political, financial and economic spheres, and with Mandarin Chinese being spoken by over one billion people within China and the Chinese diaspora it makes learning Chinese, even the basics, increasingly important. The course starts with a brief overview of the language, its dialects and a brief look at pronunciation through the use of Pinyin. You will also learn about the formation of the written Chinese characters and the formation of words. For learners whose native languages use the Roman or Latin alphabets it is critical that you become familiar with Pinyin which is used to transcribe Chinese sounds into the Roman or Latin alphabets you are accustomed to. You will learn how to greet people and introduce yourself, say what you do and where you are from. You will also learn how to talk about your family and friends as well as you hobbies and interests. Practicalities such as using public transport and asking directions are covered along with ordering food in a café or restaurant, asking for information when shopping and checking into and out of a hotel. Words and phrases are presented via audio, Chinese script, Pinyin and English to facilitate learning. The content is also broken down into key terms and vocabulary. The video clips are accompanied by a transcript and translation with key cultural and grammatical points being highlighted and explained. This free online Diploma in Basic Chinese Language Studies course will be of great interest to anybody wanting to travel to China, either as a tourist or in a professional capacity, business people who have regular contact with Chinese colleagues and for any learner who has an interest in speaking or reading Chinese.<br />

This free online Diploma in Basic English for Business and Tourism course is ideal for business, tourism and hospitality students who wish to advance to an intermediate level of English with a focus on the travel and hospitality industries. Business English language skills are in great demand around the world as more and more businesses and organisations conduct their international business operations through the medium of the English language. English is also essential for people working in the tourism industry. In this free online Diploma in Basic English for Business and Tourism course you will be introduced to conversational vocabulary and dialogues that will help you learn English language skills in the areas of business and travel. You will listen to dialogues about job interviews and how to ask and answer interview questions in English. You will also learn important and useful vocabulary when making business telephone calls. You will learn about the importance of small talk when initiating and forming business relationships and how to differentiate between colloquial and formal English. You will also learn how to reserve a hotel room, book a table in a restaurant and use different modes of transport when travelling. This course introduces the English vocabulary necessary for working at a hotel reception or front desk. It explains how to communicate with potential customers during enquiries as well as how to reserve rooms for hotel guests. This course details the English necessary for working in restaurants in tourist areas or hotels. It explains how to take customer orders and provides key English expressions for every stage of restaurant service. 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. This free online course will be of great interest to all learners who would like to develop a career path in the tourism and hospitality industries.<br />

Proper grammar is essential to communicating well in English. ALISON's free online English diploma course introduces the fundamental aspects of English grammar and explains how they should be applied in written and spoken English.<br /><br />The first section of this course explains the role of grammar in English. Following this, the importance of punctuation is described. The online English grammar course also explains the different parts of speech and the role they play in English sentences. Finally, the course introduces all of the tenses used in the English language through well-produced videos.<br /><br />This free online English grammar course is ideal for English language students who wish to complement their vocabulary and phrases with a greater understanding of grammar. It is also suitable for native English speakers who want to revise their grammar or learn to communicate more effectively.<br />

In this free online Diploma in Basic German Language Studies course you will learn the basics of conversational German so that you will have the confidence to talk to and listen to native German speakers in a wide variety of situations. With 120 million German speakers in over 20 countries this course lays down the foundations of the spoken language by introducing learners to the pronunciation of words and the use of phrases and sentences through text and audio. The course begins by introducing you to the alphabet, numbers and words and the basics of conversation covering hello, goodbye and introductions. Audio segments will let you hear the sound of each letter in German, as well as how the various letters are pronounced in words. You will then learn the German words and phrases for telling the time and dates. You will also be introduced to nationalities, how to tell someone where you are from and ask where they are from. You will then learn German words and phrases that will help you order drinks and snacks at a cafe, how to reserve a table at a restaurant, how to order food and ask for and pay the bill. Next, the course introduces you to key words and phrases that allow you describe your family and talk about members of your family. The course then tells you how to describe your profession, where you work and aspects of your job. You will learn key words and phrases for shopping for day to day basics like bread, cheese, fruit and vegetables. When buying clothes you will learn how to ask for recommendations or assistance in a shop, and ask for an item of clothing by colour. If you are ill you will learn how to describe your symptoms to a pharmacist and request medicine. The remaining modules address leisure time such as sporting activities, going to the theater, and making plans for the weekend. You will also learn how to book a hotel or hostel, check in when you arrive, report any problems with your room, make inquires about activities, ask for information and directions as well as talk about your holidays to other people. This free online Diploma in Basic German Language Studies course will be of great interest to anybody wanting to travel to Germany, either as a tourist or in a professional capacity, business people who have regular contact with German colleagues and for any learner who has an interest in speaking or reading German.<br />

The free online course Diploma in Building an Online Business provides a broad overview of how you can build a successful online business using web and internet technology. It also highlights the benefits, opportunities and challenges associated with conducting business online. <br /><br />The course begins by introducing you to the concept of e-business, its categories and benefits. You will learn how to assess if a business is ready to start conducting e-business and you will learn about issues that need to be addressed when conducting e-business. You will also learn about services you can use to help your business and the steps involved in creating a web presence. You will learn about the different benefits of online marketing for your business. <br /><br />Next, you will be given an overview of e-commerce and its categories. You will learn where e-commerce can be applied and the different benefits that come from purchasing and selling online. You will also learn about what you need to consider before integrating e-commerce into your business. You will learn about different features and issues associated with selling products and services online, and about options to consider when you have decided to sell online.<br /><br />Next, you will learn about the variety of issues that need to be addressed once a company has decided to conduct e-business. You will be introduced to a range of services that are available for businesses in order to deal with these issues and conduct e-business successfully. You will learn the importance of creating a web presence for your business and the steps and options involved in doing so. You will learn about different types of e-commerce solutions, websites and popular e-commerce trends. <br /><br />The course continues by teaching you about the different elements of a dynamic website and how to plan for creating a dynamic website. You will learn about different areas that need to be considered when creating a website for your business. You will learn about different types of social media and how a business should engage with social media. You will learn the different ways for preparing and sharing social media content. You will learn how to measure social media engagement using popular social media platforms.<br /><br />Finally, you will be introduced to the process of social media advertising and the rules you should follow for successful social advertising. You will learn about social advertising platforms and what they can offer your business. You will learn about using online display advertising for any ad campaigns your business may have. You will learn about different approaches to online display advertising that you can choose from to suit your business’s needs. You will be introduced to the process of search engine optimization which involves optimizing your website to ensure relevant visitors find it. You will learn how to use search engine optimization effectively with your website. You will also learn pitfalls and barriers that are involved with search engine optimization. <br /><br />This free Diploma in Building an Online Business will be of great interest to business professionals in small-to-medium enterprises, entrepreneurs and anyone who wants to build a successful online business in the modern digital world. <br /><br />

ALISON's free online Diploma in Business and Legal Studies course covers key topics in business and law such as corporate management, human resources, operations management, accounting, types of law, how laws are created, the adversary system, and legal procedures. <br /><br />This business online course offered by ALISON is ideal for those who want to gain comprehensive knowledge and understanding of business and legal systems. Having this knowledge will greatly improve your career prospects.<br />

The free online course Diploma in Business Communication Skills will help you develop effective communication skills for the workplace, from enhancing your professional writing techniques to improving your interpersonal and presentation skills. Good communication skills are an important element for a business or organisation to function effectively, and for the development of good relationships between work colleagues within a business and with clients and customers outside a business. The course first introduces the principles of written communication. You will learn that preparation is key for successful writing and will allow you express your thoughts in a clear, concise and efficient manner. You will learn about writing styles, how to use a planning checklist for business writing, and which writing style is most appropriate for business communication. Next, the course covers the key communication skills needed for successful team meetings. You will learn about the importance of the purpose statement and agenda for the meeting. The course also covers the communication skills needed to manage a meeting once it is in progress. You will learn how to transition from one topic to the next, how to help team members contribute positively at the meeting and how to bring the meeting to a successful conclusion. The course then shows you how to plan and develop effective presentations. You will learn how to assess the expectations of your audience and engage with them effectively. You will also learn how to overcome nervousness and become more confident when speaking in public. Finally, the course introduces you to the concept of cross-cultural communication and its importance in the modern globalized workplace. It then describes strategies for identifying both similar and divergent cultural characteristics across different cultures, and why they play an important role in effective cross-cultural communication. This free Diploma course will be of great interest to all business professionals who want to improve their communication skills, and to any learner who is about to enter the world of business and wants to develop an engaging and responsive communication style.<br />

ALISON's free Diploma in Business Management and Entrepreneurship online business course gives you the opportunity to gain extensive knowledge and understanding of the principles and practices behind key business management subjects.<br /><br />Subjects include corporate management, operations management, accounting, human resources, financial accounting, and project management, as well as providing insight on key entrepreneurial skills from Bill Liao, co-founder of the social networking site XING.com.<br /><br />ALISON's business management certificate, with a focus on entrepreneurial studies, is ideal for those who want to further their knowledge and understanding of business management and entrepreneurship through an online business course, and will greatly enhance your career prospects.<br />

Major advances in technology have resulted in the widespread implementation of information systems into businesses and organizations. The management of processes and data are critical to the overall success of a business. <br /><br />ALISON's free online diploma course introduces you to business processes and their management. The course will explain business intelligence and knowledge management systems, systems analysis, systems design and systems implementation. It will also give you a basic knowledge and understanding of how to design, test and implement information systems for a business process. <br /><br />This business diploma course will be of great interest to business professionals, as well as any learner wanting to expand their knowledge and understanding of business process management.<br />

The C programming language is one of the most popular and widely used programming languages and is commonly used to program operating systems such as Unix. It is a general-purpose programming language and one of the main advantages of programming in C is that it allows the programmer to write directly to memory. This means that key constructs within C-generated software programs can be used within the memory in an efficient and machine-independent fashion. <br /><br />ALISON's free online C programming Diploma course introduces you to the important concepts when programming in C. You will learn how the C programming language works with data, what program flow is, and how to use functions, methods and routines. You will be introduced to conditional flow statements, the mechanisms for controlling flow statements, and how to implement simple statements. Logical operators such as OR, GOTO and the While loop are also discussed in detail. The course covers topics such as using pointers for direct memory access and manipulation in C, changing the memory address contained within a pointer and introduces constants and string literals. You will learn why pointers contain memory addresses of multi-byte variables, and how to visualize RAM in a new way. You will also get step by step instructions on how to create simple C programs and how to run them. <br /><br />This free online C programming Diploma course will be of great interest to all IT, software and computer professionals who would like a greater knowledge and understanding of the C programming language and its key concepts and features, and to learners who would like to learn more about this widely used programming language.<br />

The free online course Diploma in C# Programming presents the basics of programming in C# using the Visual Studio Express from Microsoft. The course begins by showing you how to download and install Visual Studio Express, which is a free software package available from Microsoft, in a step-by-step manner. You will then be guided around and shown the features and functions of the Visual Express Integrated Development Environment (IDE). The .NET Framework is the software framework developed by Microsoft that runs primarily on Microsoft Windows and you will be shown how C# can be used to create .NET applications. <br /><br />You will learn how to write correct C# syntax for operators, expressions, and statements of duration. You will also learn how to declare and use for iterations, as well as create arrays of values and create and call simple overload helper methods. The course then shows you how to declare and use while Iterations and Reading Data from a Text File. You will also learn how to code with Strings and with DateTime. <br /><br />You will learn how to use classes and methods in C# programming and how to declare a new instance of a class. You will also learn how to work with classes and inheritances in the .NET Framework class library. You will learn about constructors which have the same name as the class, and usually initialize the data members of the new object. You will learn about constructor overloading, the name given to constructors with different sets of parameters. You will learn about inheritance which is the ability to create a class from another class, the &quot;parent&quot; class, extending the functionality and state of the parent in the derived or &quot;child&quot; class. You will learn about the FileStream class, which supports both synchronous and asynchronous read and write operations. You will learn how to code in C# using namespaces which are C# program elements designed to help you organize your programs. <br /><br />You will learn about the different types of decision making statements such as the switch decision statement, if...else statement, and the if...else...if statement. In C# if you have a number of constants that are logically related to each other, then you can group together these constants in what are called enumerations. You will learn how to declare enumerations using the enum keyword. You will learn about using the try-catch statement when handling exceptions. You will learn how to create and manage groups of related objects using collections. You will learn about Language-Integrated Query (LINQ) and how it offers a consistent model for working with data across various kinds of data sources and formats. You will learn how to use the C# WPF application and which parameters the AddHandler statement takes. <br /><br />This free Diploma course on C# Programming will be of great interest to all learners who would like to learn more about C# programming and how to use Visual Studio Express for programming software applications.<br /><br />

The free online course Diploma in Caregiving is designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide effective care to any clients or family members that you may find in your care. This course will cover a broad range of topics that will help you become a successful carer who holds your clients' best interests at heart. The course begins by introducing you to the fundamental roles and responsibilities that a carer holds. You will learn about the basic legal and ethical issues of providing care and develop the skills necessary to ensure that you can communicate effectively with all members of the care service team and the client. You will then study the health and safety skills necessary to keep both yourself and your clients safe while you provide them with care. As a caregiver, whenever you are with your clients, you face a variety of risks. As a carer you need to be able to deal with any emergency that you encounter in a calm manner. This section of the course will help you develop the skills necessary to provide care to your clients with greater peace of mind. The course then focuses on providing care to clients who have been diagnosed with dementia. You will develop an understanding of what exactly dementia is. You will also examine the various forms of dementia that exist and study their symptoms, causes, and how they affect the lives of those who must live with them. The course then introduces you to a range of skills which will help you provide effective care to clients with dementia, such as communication techniques and behaviour management. The course then concludes by examining the skills necessary to provide care to elderly or disabled clients. You will develop a strong understanding of how aging and a range of disabilities affect the body. You will then learn how to develop strategies to adapt the care you provide to any elderly or disabled clients you find in your care. This free diploma course will be of great interest to all professionals working in the caregiving profession, who wish to ensure that that their skills are kept to the highest standard possible. The course will also be of great interest to any learner who is interested in a career in the caregiving profession. <br />