Lifelong Learning through Audio Courses

“Lifelong learning” is one of the hottest buzzwords in the library world today. Basically, this means that libraries such as ours play a pivotal role in the pursuit by individuals and groups of new knowledge and fresh learning experiences past the time of traditional schooling. Among the most popular lifelong learning tools available at the Ridgefield Library are audio recordings of lecture courses by respected and popular professors from top colleges and universities. Recognizing this popularity, we are working to make these unique materials more accessible for Ridgefield adults (and even teens pursuing topics of interest for school courses).

The Library’s collection includes offerings from two series: “The Modern Scholar: Great Professors Teaching You!” from Recorded Books and “The Great Courses: Teaching that Engages the Mind” from The Teaching Company. Each “course” consists of multiple lectures on topics ranging from classical mythology to 20th century astronomy. Accompanying course guides help the listener tackle the material as one might in a traditional classroom, with lecture notes, suggested reading and websites and additional material. Delve into “The Symphonies of Beethoven” with Robert Greenberg of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music or “Behold the Mighty Dinosaur” presented by Wheaton College’s John Kricher or explore one of scores of other subjects.

To keep up with voracious learners, we now receive new Modern Scholar titles on CD each month, thanks to the Friends of the Library. To accommodate this growing collection and make browsing easier, we have set up a separate shelving area for all the CD and cassette versions. Here you can also find the latest information on the dozens of Modern Scholar titles available for download to a computer or mp3 player. Stop by the Fiction Room to pick up a brochure listing available titles or to find out more about using our downloadable audiobook service to pursue your lifelong learning interests.