YouTube is well-positioned to make teaching difficult topics in STEM subjects more engaging than textbooks in our digital age. The high school student can now learn physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics using the world-class teaching resources available from world-famous scientists, engineers, and educators who take difficult topics and break them down into consumable and entertaining videos. The following list of focus channels is some of the best educational experiences available for any student who wants to better understand complex subjects, prepare study aids, or just satisfy curiosity in the incredible world of science and criticism in mathematics.
Essential Physics and General Science Channels
1. Veritasium
Veritasium is one of the most popular science education channels on YouTube, created by Derek Muller. Muller has a PhD in physics education18. The name of the channel is a play on the Latin word "Veritas," which means truth, and the suffix of many chemical elements, "-ium." Ultimately, Veritasium does a good job of challenging misperceptions while taking complex scientific ideas and showing them in easily identifiable visual demonstrations and engaging experiments.
2. Physics Girl
Physics Girl is created by Dianna Cowern, and her style was enthusiastic and informal, while still explaining physical situations in everyday experiences. Cowern graduated with a physics degree from MIT. She started her YouTube channel after she participated and won the 2014 Flame Challenge from the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science. Physics Girl's videos are fast-paced, showcase her eccentric personality, and she is not afraid to make her videos jumpy with frequent jump-cuts. She maintains viewer engagement and spans a variety of topics from curveballs to more advanced levels of physics. Cowern has turned Physics Girl into one of the most highly subscribed science communication channels on YouTube and has collaborated with many well-known people, such as Bill Nye and Tony Hawk.
3. Smarter Every Day
Smarter Every Day, hosted by engineer Destin Sandlin, uses approachable demonstrations to facilitate scientific exploration and exploration. Sandlin is uniquely qualified to deliver this educational entertainment because of his background in missile flight testing as both a military engineer and test engineer at Redstone Arsenal. Although the primary topics relate to flight and space science, the program will present lessons from submarine operations, topics surrounding brain physiology, and other topics offering students insightful perspectives in STEM knowledge, which integrates theoretical knowledge with real-world experiences.
Mathematics Mastery Through Visual Learning
4. 3Blue1Brown
3Blue1Brown, developed by Grant Sanderson, changes the way we think about math education by teaching higher-order math visually. Sanderson, who graduated from Stanford with a mathematics degree and worked at Khan Academy, places a big emphasis on the process of discovery, inquiry-based learning, or what he calls "inventing math". The strength of 3Blue1Brown's method is the visual specificity that can be done using complex animation, bringing something profoundly abstract to a physical state.
5. Numberphile
Numberphile encompasses a broad range of linear qualifications and perspectives. Numberphile features university professors and world-renowned mathematicians discussing everything from specific numbers to things like "Fermat's Last Theorem" and the "Riemann hypothesis". Numberphile is produced by Brady Haran, a former BBC video journalist who has developed several mathematics and education channels that consistently rank in the top rankings of YouTube channels. Numberphile uses the format of having the expert diagram on brown paper, while standing in front of a camera (shot on video) to make something complex a bit more understandable, for average viewers.
Chemistry and Biology Excellence
6. Crash Course
Crash Course also has high-quality content for high school students, especially biology and chemistry, with videos featuring many hosts—Hank Green among them—who not only entertain, but also try to maintain a serious level with serious scientific topics. Some educators may take note that some moderate irreverence permeates Calvite's style of presentation. Nevertheless, teenage audiences seem to find it refreshing and authentic, even in a learning experience. The content is very thorough for those students embarking on AP exam prep or just hoping to find enrichment for learning the lesson.
7. Periodic Videos
Periodic Videos delivers focused chemistry information with Sir Martyn Poliakoff and any other nerdy scientist you can think of from the University of Nottingham. In all, there are videos on all 118 known chemical elements and a good amount of supplementary chemistry content that makes chemistry interesting via big grins and funny little experiments, along with clear explanations. Prof. Poliakoff looks like he explains chemistry in 265 million-plus views.
8. ASAPScience
ASAPScience demonstrates different creative ideas, in that it uses songs and colored sketches to explain scientific concepts, and has also taken a unique angle on scientific ideas by employing musical mnemonics to make scientific concepts and terms relatable and memorable for students and audiences. ASAPScience is even making it relevant for students by making it "make sense." The channel is also effective in detailing complex scientific principles using more sketches on a whiteboard.
Engineering and Technology Innovation
9. Mark Rober
Mark Rober takes an engineering view of educational YouTube. With nine years at NASA and a subsequent position as a product designer at Apple, he brings a unique mix of experience to his work. He has spent the last few years making videos focused on DIY gadgets and potential applications of popular science principles, facilitating meaningful real-world engineering applications through entertaining and engaging projects and experiments. Robert's experience in aerospace engineering and consumer electronics devices exposes students to various educational and experiential engineering options.
10. TED-Ed
TED-Ed further conveys TED's mission of sharing great ideas using a series of short animated videos from science and technology, as well as several other topics to educate viewers. TED-Ed partners with exemplary educators and animators to produce outstanding educational content that brings a level of craftsmanship to convey complex ideas in an approachable way to high school students. TED-Ed uses multiple types of technology to demonstrate fancy ideas as they are released from cutting-edge research, in ways that viewers can digest and share.
Comprehensive Learning Platforms
11. Khan Academy
Khan Academy offers organized video lessons in a range of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects, from chemistry and science and technology, to mathematics, across grade levels. As a well-structured platform for teaching and learning, Khan Academy provides options for some of the videos' Chinese subtitles. The platform is particularly useful for students from different backgrounds. Khan Academy provides systematized and careful coverage, while also providing opportunities to complement traditional learning.
12. SciShow
SciShow is one of the most well-known educational channels on YouTube, and can engage students in opportunities to take part in live debates, ask questions, or simply watch interesting content related to science. The channel is engaging, allowing students to take part in active learning while presenting a range of topics around science that are suitable for high school audiences.
13. Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell
Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell makes animated educational videos that take complex scientific and technological concepts and explain them through beautiful visual stories. What makes the channel so good is its ability to engage the viewer with mind-blowing scientific concepts through breathtaking animation and storytelling.
Specialized and Interactive Content
14. Vsauce
Vsauce, delivered by Michael Stevens, presents videos about science, psychology, mathematics, and philosophy in a very engaging way that inspires prophetic thought. Vsauce's unique approach to asking questions and exploring science, philosophy, culture, and illusion makes it especially interesting for students as they develop a broader scientific literacy.
15. Minute Physics
Minute Physics answers physics questions in less than two minutes, which is useful for quick learning sessions or exam preparation. Minute Physics allows the student to efficiently capture basic concepts of physics while remaining actively engaged through focused, short (under two minutes) videos.
These YouTube channels represent the best in online STEM education, providing high school learners with access to excellent teachers and engaging content. Students can leverage these resources to augment in-person classroom instruction, study better for tests, and perhaps cultivate a greater appreciation for STEM. To get the most out of these resources, students must be active learners; taking notes, pausing to try and solve problems, and using these videos to follow up on concepts introduced in class. If you are studying for your AP exams, exploring a possible career in STEM, or just looking to satisfy your curiosity about natural phenomena, these resources can provide the tools you need for academic success and lifelong learning in STEM disciplines.
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