A new MOOC (short for massive open online course) designed by Parham Aarabi, a professor in The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto, is launching on Sept. 15, that will teach anyone with an internet connection how to develop Swift-based applications for Apple’s new iOS 9 mobile operating system. For those who aren’t aware, Swift is Apple’s new app language, that was designed to help novice developers start building their own applications for mobile devices.
“This Specialization is going to teach thousands of people how to build apps that meet their own needs,” says Aarabi, a professor in The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto, as well as the founder and CEO of ModiFace Inc.
Aarabi is teaming up with one of ModiFace’s iOS development experts, Jack Wu, as well as University of Toronto’s Michael Spears, to deliver the Specialization through Coursera, the world’s largest open online education provider.
“Teaching at U of T, I can impact about 200 students a year,” says Aarabi. “The thing that initially interested me about teaching this Specialization was the chance to reach up to 100,000 people through the courses”.
Aarabi and Wu together have overseen the development of over 100 iOS apps at ModiFace that have been downloaded more than 60 million times. Spears manages U of T’s Mobile App Development Lab, and Aarabi is well known as an expert on optimizing user experience and user interfaces.
Registration is now open on Coursera, with classes beginning Sept. 15. Students interested in the course can download a new app called SHIFT, built in Swift as a preview of what students can expect to learn, after iOS9 is released on Sept. 16.
