Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Taiwan Higher Ed Consortium Launches Free Online Course Initiative

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 01/07/09

A consortium of colleges and universities in Taiwan has launched the "Open Course Ware Consortium," with the goal of sharing its resources with the public. The program is modeled after the OpenCourseWare Consortium originally developed by an MIT faculty committee wishing to share their course materials openly on the Web and now involving 200 institutions and organizations.

The initiative in Taiwan, started by the National Chiao Tung University's (NCTU) Open Education Office, will allow users to download materials for personal use and modify the content.

Currently, NCTU offers 40 online courses in calculus, physics, and chemistry. Materials from those classes available online include outlines, handouts, assignments, and exams, "just like those you would get if you attended classes in person," said Pai Chi-kuang director-general at the Open Education Office. Some courses also offer video clips.

Other members of the consortium are expected to post resources for at least 10 courses over a two-year period.

Although no credit nor degrees will be offered to people who use the materials, high school graduates may be eligible for advanced credit at their respective colleges if they're able to pass an exam on the a subject they've studied using the online materials.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Jason Palm

    AI, Identity, and Speed: Cybersecurity Priorities for Higher Ed

    Fortinet Security Operations Specialist Jason Palm explains how AI is raising new security challenges for higher education, requiring stronger governance, identity protection, threat detection, automation, and incident readiness.

  • circuit patterns

    Anthropic Launches Lower-Cost Claude Sonnet 5

    Anthropic has released Claude Sonnet 5, positioning the model as its most autonomous mid-tier offering to date and a lower-cost alternative to its flagship Opus 4.8 system. The company said the model can plan multi-step tasks, operate tools such as browsers and terminals, and complete agentic work at a level that previously required larger and more expensive models.

  • Glowing route lines merging into single gold pathway

    Microsoft Merges Copilot Apps Into a Single User Experience

    Microsoft recently announced it is consolidating its consumer Copilot app and Microsoft 365 Copilot app into a single destination, addressing a fragmented product strategy that has required users to navigate separate applications for AI chat and productivity tools.

  • Blue digital wireframe classical building structure

    Before AI, Fix Your Data

    Institutions don't have to solve every data problem before they can begin using AI responsibly. But they do need to treat information as a strategic asset — not a byproduct of operations — and start building toward AI-ready data now.