EdX Launches Eucalyptus, the Fifth Release of the Open edX Platform

The latest Open edX software called "Eucalyptus" was officially released this weekend. It replaces "Dogwood" and it comes with new course navigation, bookmarks, CourseTalk for reviews, teams, student notes and badges for completing course events. It also includes "Subsection prerequisites", which require learners to achieve a certain score before they progress to the next subsection. Additionally, there are a number of new XBlocks, such as: Completion, Drag and Drop Problem and Peer Instruction. The Release Notes detail all of these functionalities. "Eucalyptus.1 is the first release on the Eucalyptus line", explained Ned Batchelder, manager at edX . "We're proud of all the work that went into producing Eucalyptus, we hope you get good use from it". Several features have been deprecated or deleted: REST APIs (deprecated): Mobile, course structure, and profile images REST web services Tools & Problem Types (deprecated): Randomize component (replaced by randomized content blocks Original drag and drop problem type (replaced by mobile-friendly drag and drop problem Tools & XModules (deleted): The graphical slider tool The crowdsource hinter XModule Support for the always_recalculate_grades XBlock field The ENABLE_JWT_AUTH feature flag   "FICUS" WILL BE NEXT The next Open edX release, scheduled for early 2017, will be called "Ficus". It will include notifications, downloadable audio files and several improvements on mobile, commerce, grading, discussion, SSO integration, etc. This will be the sixth official release, after Aspen (September 2014), Birch (January 2015), Cypress (August 2015), Dogwood (January 2016) and Eucalyptus (August 2016).   Key Resources: Open edX Portal: Eucalyptus: A New Release to Chew On Slides and video with the announcement Open edX Eucalyptus Release Notes Eucalyptus Installation Instructions Upgrade instructions Getting Help on edX page XBlock Directory New Features: Self-Paced Course Configuration Subsection Prerequisites Course Navigation Teams Bookmarks Drag and Drop Problem XBlock Peer Instruction XBlock Completion XBlock CourseTalk for Course Reviews Configurable Data Storage Services Staff Grading Options for Open Response Assessments Learner ORA Response Report Updates to E-Commerce Checkout Badges for Custom Course Events Updates to Course Discussions Other Updates  

Harvard Hopes to Find a Way of Sustainability with its New Open edX Platform

Coursera Hosts a Course Created by PwC on Big Data Analytics

MITx Introduces an edX Course Where Students Will Have Their Work Graded By Professional Philosophers

The New Android App for edX Allows to Browse Courses without Logging In

edX has launched an advanced version of its app for Android on the Google Play Store. Version 2.6.2 of the mobile app allows learners to browse edX courses without creating an edX account and without logging in. Learners can register for an edX account or sign in from the about page for any course. The new edX mobile app is a companion to the edx.org website. It also works on Open edX installations.

Armando Fox, the Professor Who Coined the term "SPOC", Honored as an Outstanding Educator

Armando Fox, a professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at Berkeley, author of successful MOOCs and leader at the Open edX community, was honored in June with the Association for Computing Machinery’s Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award. "Mr. Fox was instrumental in adapting a software-engineering course at Berkeley to be offered as a massive open online course, or MOOC, beginning in 2011. One of the course’s innovations was an automatic grading system to evaluate the correctness and style of student programming assignments," Ruth Hammond reported at The Chronicle of Higher Education. Armando Fox is the author of the term "SPOCs" or Small Private Online Courses –that is, MOOCs intended for a small audience of learners on campus.

Global Freshman Academy Presents Its Credit-Eligible Courses

Teach for America Develops Innovative Ways to Teach High School Math

The University System of Maryland Will Offer For-Credit Courses on edX

Imperial College Joins edX and Offers a Series of MOOCs to Attract Applicants into its MBA

These free courses are offered as a part of a new agreement between Imperial College and the edX organization, that currently hosts over 100 top universities and educational organizations, with an overall audience of more than 8 million learners. The four-part Essentials for MBA Success series will cover math, finance, data analysis and accounting and start on October 17. This online program, now open for enrollment, has been designed to both help learners already enrolled in MBA programs to identify any additional knowledge and attract people who are considering doing an MBA degree at Imperial College. Dr David Lefevre, Director of the Edtech Lab at Imperial College Business School said: “As an active participant in the use of edtech and online programs, Imperial College Business School keenly recognizes the growing need for flexible learning programs that cater for people’s busy lifestyles. MBA programs, and business education generally, can change lives and through the edX partnership we are enabling more people from all over the world to access our renowned world leading expertise in business education.” "Each course features academic experts from the Business School and combines an active, social approach to learning with extensive multimedia. The courses also feature a personalized learning plan highlighting the areas that students need to focus on to acquire the base level of knowledge needed to undertake the core subjects on an MBA," explained Imperial College on its website. The courses are designed to provide a flexible learning experience. Students can study the courses in the order they choose, fitting them around their work and other life commitments. Each course will feature a mixture of academic theory and the ‘real world’ skills needed for business. The subjects are brought to life through interactive exercises and video content. Students also benefit from an expert online tutor to support them through the learning materials and associated activities. The courses also foster a learning community and encourage students to connect with other peers studying the same subjects online.   These are the four courses: Accounting Essentials for MBA Success Data Analysis Essentials for MBA Success Finance Essentials for MBA Success Math Essentials for MBA Success  

EdX's Best Professors

Who are the most inspiring teachers on edX.org? These 11 are the best professors in the edX community, according to an edX evaluation committee. They all have made "exceptional contributions in online teaching and learning". One of those finalists will receive the first edX prize on edX's 2016 Global Forum, which will take place in November in Paris, hosted by Sorbonne University. This is the list of professors: Michel Buffa HTLM5 from W3C XSeries W3Cx John Cook Making Sense of Climate Science Denial UQx Charles Fried Contracts Law: From Trust to Promise to Contract HarvardX Jeffrey Hellmer Jazz Appreciation UTAustinX Anthony D. Joseph Ameet Talwalkar Data Science Engineering with Spark XSeries UCBerkeleyX Ravi Ramamoorthi Computer Graphics UCSDx Mario Ricci Essential Human Biology: Cells and Tissues AdelaideX Nathalie Schiffino-Leclercq Min Reuchamps Pierre Baudewyns Ella Hamonic Vincent Legrand Découvrir la science politique LouvainX Armo Smets Solar Energy TU DelftX Maggie Sokolik English Grammar and Essay Writing UC BerkeleyX Erland Stevens Medicinal Chemistry: The Molecular Basis of Drug Discovery DavidsonX

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