Question : ONLINE EDUCATION IUPOE PROGRAMME

(a) the details of Indo-U.S. Partnership for Online Education (IUPOE) programme;

(b) whether the students have to be enrolled in a college/university to be part of the Study Webs of Active-Learning for Young Aspiring Minds (SWAYAM) platform and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the estimated number of students who will benefit from the IUPOE programme; and

(d) whether the Government is exploring partnerships with more countries for ICT courses on the SWAYAM platform and if so, the details thereof?

MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (SMT. SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)

(a) As a part of the Indo – U.S. Partnership for on-line education, an MoU has been signed between IIT Bombay and edX, USA for Massive Open On-Line Courses (MOOCs) on June 25, 2013 during the India-US Higher Education Dialogue, 2013. IIT Bombay has already offered 3 courses on the edX platform to the global community under the cooperation.

(b) to (c) SWAYAM platform will offer courses for all Indian learners, including to those who are not enrolled in any college or university. The online courses will progressively reach out to a very large number of Indian learners.

(d) No, Madam.