• Breadcrumb MIT News Teen builds an award-winning virtual reality prototype thanks to free MIT courses Teen builds an award-winning virtual reality prototype thanks to free MIT courses Press Contact: Previous imageNext image When Freesia Gaul discovered MIT Open Learning’s OpenCourseWare at just 14 years old, it opened up a world of learning far beyond what her classrooms could offer. • Her parents had started a skiing company, and the seasonal work meant that Gaul had to change schools every six months. • Growing up in small towns in Australia and Canada, she relied on the internet to fuel her curiosity. • “I went to 13 different schools, which was hard because you’re in a different educational system every single time,” says Gaul. • “That’s one of the reasons I gravitated toward online learning and teaching myself. • Knowledge is something that exists beyond a curriculum.” The small towns she lived in often didn’t have a lot of resources, she says, so a computer served as a main tool for learning.
Article Summaries:
- Teenager Freesia Gaul, who moved between schools in Australia and Canada, turned to MIT OpenCourseWare at age 14 to supplement limited local resources. She studied electrical engineering, circuits, and later quantum physics through free online courses, using the knowledge to build and prototype projects with a 3D printer. At 15 she launched a blog on quantum concepts and later studied quantum engineering at the University of New South Wales, where she earned an honorable mention at the MIT Quantum Hackathon. Leveraging her self‑taught skills, Gaul created a virtual‑reality prototype that received an award for innovation and creativity.
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