IIT Bombay, The First Indian Institute To Join edX

The IIT Bombay (Indian Institute of Technology) is the first Indian Institute to join edX consortium, making the virtual learning platform's first expansion into India and its seventh into Asia.

In order to strengthen the partnership with the Harvard and MIT founded Online Education venture, IIT Director Devang V.Khakhar has signed a memorandum of understanding at the US-India Higher Education in a conference.

The conference was chaired by US Secretary of State John F. Kerry and India's HRD (Human Resource Development) Minister M.M.Pallam Raju.

edX president Anant Agarwal said "At edX, our global community continues to grow at the student and institutional levels, India is an important market for us and is home to the largest population of edX learners outside of the United States."

IIT Bombay is a Globally recognized public Engineering institute known for its highly competitive admissions process and a part of the Indian Institute of Technology Higher Education system, which has already engaged in Online Learning.

Similar to the edX, the IIT system provides free access to the courses online via its National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning. This initiative has 600 course content pages utilized by affiliates from 800 colleges across India.

According to the edX statement, xIITB's courses could potentially aid in the training of India's teachers, particularly in cramped engineering programs in which 1.25 million students are enrolled in approximately 5,000 engineering colleges across the country.

In its own statement, IIT Bombay said that the partnership with edX will expand the scope of technology-aided learning to areas such as "vocational training, school education, and faculty empowerment."

Institutions contributing courses to the year-old online education platform span four continents and include universities, colleges, and an international organization.

What is edX?

edX is a non-profit created by founding partners Harvard and MIT. We're bringing the best of higher education to students around the world. edX offers MOOCs and interactive online classes in subjects including law, history, science, engineering, business, social sciences, computer science, public health, and artificial intelligence (AI).

edX was created for students and institutions that seek to transform themselves through cutting-edge technologies, innovative pedagogy, and rigorous courses. Through its institutional partners, the XConsortium, we present the best of higher education online, offering the opportunity to anyone who wants to achieve, thrive, and grow.

edX's goals, however, go beyond offering courses and content. Wit is committed to research that will allow us to understand how students learn, how technology can transform learning, and the ways teachers teach on campus and beyond.

The edX platform will be available as open source. By conducting and publishing significant research on how students learn, we will empower and inspire educators around the world and promote success in learning.