Salman Khan runs the largest school in the world. Khan Academy, a non-profit organization, has over 10 million students. The academy site has over 3,000 videos as well as quizzes and other tools that teachers can use in their classrooms. Khan Academy is focused on providing a free education to everyone.

Khan’s idea of providing free education comes as a result of the current status of education. This subject grabbed the attention of writer Michael Noer, who put Khan Academy in the greater perspective of American economics, education and reform. Noer says, “…According to a report from the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, global spending on education is $3.9 trillion, or 5.6% of planetary GDP. America spends the most–about $1.3 trillion a year–yet the U.S. ranks 25th out of the 34 OECD countries in mathematics, 17th in science and 14th in reading. And, as in so many other areas of American life, those averages obscure a deeper divide: The U.S. is the only developed country to have high proportions of both top and bottom performers. About a fifth of American 15-year-olds do not have basic competence in science; 23% can’t use math in daily life.”

The headquarters of Khan Academy are in a run down 1960s office building in Mountain View California. The academy has weekly meetings with everyone in the organization to plan for ideas like translating their courses into different languages and for planning other events like their ski trips. With a educational reform enthusiasts like Salman Khan, it is likely that american literacy and mathematics will improve in the coming years.

– Techville