EdX’s new developments, partners
EdX’s new developments, partners
A number of recent developments have been announced regarding edX, the online learning initiative started by MIT and Harvard that has since accepted various other partner institutions.
On Sept. 10, edX announced that Google would participate in a partnership to develop Open edX, the open source software for the platform. As part of the partnership, Google will also develop and run a site announced as MOOC.org, which is planned to be a platform for non-edX partner organizations to publish online courses.
On Sept. 17, edX announced that MITx would offer certificates for students who finish specific sets of online courses. According to the press release, these “‘XSeries’ sequences” will offer tracks of related courses. The announcement mentions the first two sequences available, Foundations of Computer Science and Supply Chain and Logistics Management. The content will be produced by MIT faculty as has been the case with MIT’s other massive open online courses (MOOCs) through its MITx initiative.
Other edX developments involve international efforts using its platform. On Oct. 3, edX announced that France would build a new “national MOOC and blended learning portal” on edX’s platform. The press release stated that over one hundred French institutions would be a part of the effort.
On Oct. 10, edX announced that its platform would be used for a similar program in China. A group of Chinese universities will build a new online center, XuetangX, for MOOCs. The courses hosted there will include curriculum produced by some of the participating universities. The press release stated that blended learning courses would also be hosted on the platform and used on some university campuses in China.
—Austin Hess