GSEPP202501. RETRIDOL: Providing Leadership in Transforming ODeL Policy, Research and Practice in West Africa

• Participants: 

  Olufemi A. Peters, Christine I. Ofulue, Amos Illiya, Felix K. Olakulehin

• Keywords: 
  

• Regional impact, Open and Distance Learning (ODeL), Innovation in Education, Learning Analytics, Micro-credentials

• Executive Summary: 

  The Regional Training and Research Institute for Distance and Open Learning (RETRIDOL) provides leadership for the transformation of Open, Distance, and e-Learning (ODeL) across West Africa by driving policy development, fostering research and strengthening professional practice. Through strategic partnerships with ECOWAS, UNESCO, COL, and national bodies, RETRIDOL offers region-specific capacity-building, innovative online short courses, and a pioneering journal dedicated to ODeL research. By spearheading learning analytics and micro-credential project initiatives, RETRIDOL contributes to ensuring sustainable, inclusive, and resilient education systems in the sub-region.

• Project Description: 

  Hosted at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), the Regional Training and Research Institute for Distance and Open Learning (RETRIDOL) serves as a regional hub for promoting quality education by transforming ODeL policy, research, and practice across West Africa. Responding to the region’s urgent need for context-sensitive solutions, RETRIDOL serves its regional stakeholders by facilitating capacity building for policy development, research, practice, and technology integration through strategic regional partnerships and a collaborative professional learning ecosystem. RETRIDOL designs and delivers thematic workshops on critical aspects, including ODeL and Digital Policy development, Generative AI in Education and Research, authentic assessment, and dual-mode ODL delivery. It has directly supported the development and implementation of ODeL and digital policy initiatives, as well as dual-mode delivery systems, at institutional, national, and regional levels. RETRIDOL’s innovations—such as its online courses on Open Educational Resources (OERs) for Online Learning, Mastering Digital Learning, UNESCO Guidelines for Generative AI in Education and Research, and the ODeL Research Repository, a Directory of Open and Distance Learning Institutions and Programmes in West Africa, as well as the Learning Analytics project, inform institutional strategic planning, policy, and upskill professionals. The Institute’s flexible, competency-based framework enables ODeL professionals to pursue customised online short courses and, more recently, micro-credentials aimed at closing skills gaps for a rapidly evolving digital landscape.The West African Journal for Open and Flexible Learning (WAJOFEL), the only regional, open-access journal publication focused on ODeL research, and RETRIDOL’s monthly ODL discourse webinar series provide critically needed dissemination platforms, support collaboration and foster a robust thought leadership community.

GSEPP202502. Smart Education for All: Empowering Inclusive, Lifelong STEM Learning Through Accessible Technology

• Participants: Sanura Jaya, Azman Jusoh

• Keywords: 

  Inclusive STEM Education, Educational tools for lifelong learning, Rural Teacher Empowerment, Project-Based Learning (PBL), Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs)

• Executive Summary: 

  Smart Education for All addresses educational inequity by equipping rural educators with inclusive, technology driven pedagogical tools. Using the mobile-based Magnetcode application, this initiative empowers teachers to integrate coding and computational thinking into STEM instruction through project-based learning. Initially launched in Zambia and later adapted across Southeast Asia, the project bridges the digital divide by offering accessible, hands-on strategies that foster 21st-century skills. Recognized through national awards and student deployment, the project advances SDGs 4, 9, and 10 by promoting inclusive, lifelong STEM learning that supports quality education, innovation, and reduced inequality.

• Project Description: 

  The inspiration for Smart Education for All emerged during the Third Country Training Programme (TCTP) at SEAMEO RECSAM on 19 September 2023, where I facilitated a session titled “Transition Skills for Integrating Coding in the Science Curriculum.” During the session, participating educators, particularly those from third country educators, expressed a clear challenge. They lacked the skills, tools, and confidence to integrate project based learning or any form of technology into their STEM lessons. Many were still using traditional, lecture based approaches, leaving them and their students behind in comparison to global trends in STEM education. This insight revealed a critical gap in professional development and digital readiness for rural STEM teachers. They were unfamiliar with how to design lessons that align with computational thinking or apply real-world problem-solving through hands-on activities. These constraints are exacerbated by limited access to technology, a lack of localized training, and minimal exposure to modern pedagogical models. Motivated by this urgent need, I designed a solution that combines accessible technology (Magnetcode) with project-based learning (PBL) strategies. The idea was to create a model that empowers rural teachers to deliver engaging, student-centered STEM lessons using affordable, mobile-based tools. The project formally began with a JICA-funded workshop in Serenje District, Zambia, in partnership with Malcolm Moffat College of Education. It is specifically designed to bridge the digital divide by addressing three main issues: lack of technological integration, absence of training in PBL, and limited support for implementing STEM in resource-constrained classrooms.

GSEPP202503. Cloud for Youth     

• Participants: 

  Huang Guijing, Ma Xin, Yu Jun, Luo Cheng
  

• Keywords: 

  LLM; Cloud Computing; Rural K-12 Schools; AI Literacy

• Executive Summary: 

  "Cloud for Youth" is a technology-driven public welfare initiative launched by the Alibaba Group. It donates "AI Cloud Classrooms" to rural schools leveraging cloud computing and intelligent technologies. Addressing challenges in county-level basic education—such as inadequate investment in technological education and uneven distribution of urban-rural educational resources—Cloud for Youth utilizes continuously optimized cloud computing solutions and industry-leading artificial intelligence models. This initiative pioneers next-generation digital learning spaces, fosters cross-regional and interdisciplinary co-creation of high-quality educational content, and enhances technological education in rural primary and secondary schools. Furthermore, through sustained teacher training programs, cloud-based extension courses delivered by volunteer technical instructors, and technology study tours for outstanding students, it mobilizes diverse stakeholders to connect rural children with cutting-edge technology and ignite their passion for technological innovation.

  As of April 2025, the project has been deployed in over 300 rural schools across 25 provinces, reaching more than 290,000 rural K-12 students and teachers. Dialogue interactions with AI have reached 610,000 instances.

• Project Description:

  Our vision is to advance educational equity by leveraging equitable access to digital tools, igniting rural children’s technological creativity as early as possible. In the project's initial phase, Cloud for Youth's nationwide survey covering over 3,000 schools (both online and offline) revealed that rural students face restricted access to cutting-edge technologies, manifesting prominently in three dimensions: "what to learn," "how to learn," and "learning outcomes." What to learn: Rural students have limited exposure to the technological world. Outdated computing equipment and mismatched resources hinder their access to technological frontiers. How to learn: Structural shortages of specialized teachers in rural areas prevent educators from integrating advanced technologies (e.g., AI, cloud computing) into teaching. They also lack capacity to implement innovative pedagogies like collaborative or project-based learning. Learning outcomes: Traditional evaluation systems fail to accurately assess students’ development in critical thinking and self-directed abilities. A dynamic, big-data-driven platform with real-time feedback is needed. Our vision is to advance educational equity by leveraging equitable access to digital tools, igniting rural children’s technological creativity as early as possible.

GSEPP202504. Breaking Down Data Barriers to Forge a New Regional Digital Education Ecosystem

• Participants:

  Xiao Fangming, Gong Fangde, Chen Xiang, Deng Jincan

• Keywords: 

  Digital education; Digital infrastructure; Interconnection; Ecosystem

• Executive Summary: 

  Yuzhong District of Chongqing Municipality is dedicated to developing a region-wide smart education platform with unified standards and open interfaces, establishing a regional education data standard system, and building a unified digital infrastructure for education data. This initiative aims to eliminate data silo, achieve application integration, resource sharing, precision teaching, and scientific governance, thereby forging a new digital ecosystem for regional education.

• Project Description:

  The inspiration for this project stemmed from common challenges in the development of regional digital education, including inconsistent data standards across different types and levels of schools, redundant system development, isolated application scenarios, insufficient resource sharing, inaccurate data governance, and imbalanced development among schools. To break down these barriers, both technological and administrative efforts are required to promote high-quality, balanced digital education. Yuzhong District has innovatively formulated the Digital Education Development Action Plan of Yuzhong District, Chongqing (2024–2030). Guided by unified top-level design and a coordinated development strategy, and leveraging big data and AI technologies, the district has established an integrated “digital infrastructure +intelligent applications” ecosystem to address three core challenges:

  1. Breaking down data silos through standardized integration, eliminating fragmented application practices, and ensuring the efficient circulation of high-quality educational resources. 

  2. Delivering personalized instruction at scale by harnessing AI, enabling differentiated teaching even within large-scale education systems. 

  3. Strengthening regional educational governance effectiveness by instituting a sustainable digital governance framework.

GSEPP202401. Pepper in the Classroom: Enhancing Education through Robotics and AI

• Participants: 

  Maja Babic, Branka Milicevic, Mirjana Ilic, Ivana Dimitrijević, Danica Nikolić, Danica Simović, Nemanja Segrt

• Keywords:

  Interpretable, Enhancement of LLM, Personalized learning, Recommendation System

• Executive Summary:

The "Pepper in the Classroom" project at Savremena Primary School introduces Pepper, a semi-humanoid robot, to enhance education through AI. This initiative modernizes teaching by utilizing Pepper's emotion recognition and interactive communication to create an engaging learning environment for students aged 7-11.

Key Benefits:

1. Enhances Engagement: Pepper's interactivity and emotional responsiveness make lessons more engaging and personalized, boosting student participation.

2. Improves Learning: AI aids in delivering lessons, conducting quizzes, and providing instant feedback, enhancing comprehension and retention.

3. Promotes Metacognition: by programming and responding to Pepper’s interactivity, both students and teachers are more aware of their own teaching and learning processes.

4. Promotes Technological Literacy: Familiarizing students with advanced tools prepares them for a tech-driven world.

• Project Description:

The "Pepper in the Classroom: Enhancing Education through Robotics and AI" project was inspired by the pressing need to modernize education and adapt to technological trends. Recognizing that traditional teaching methods often struggle to keep young students engaged, we sought an innovative solution that could transform the learning experience. The introduction of Pepper, a semi-humanoid robot with AI capabilities, was seen as a way to bring a new level of interaction and engagement to the classroom. By incorporating Pepper, we aim to create a dynamic and immersive learning environment that captures students' interest and makes learning more enjoyable.

Our project specifically addresses the need to develop future-ready skills in students. Through the practical application of robotics and AI, we aim to foster creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities. Pepper's interactive lessons and personalized feedback help students develop these essential cognitive skills, preparing them for the challenges of the future. Moreover, the project promotes teamwork and collaboration, as students work together to interact with Pepper and complete various educational activities.

Additionally, the project seeks to inspire students by demonstrating the real-world applications of AI and robotics. By showing how these technologies are used in fields such as medicine, industry, and aeronautics, we hope to spark students' interest in pursuing careers in these areas. Overall, the "Pepper in the Classroom" project not only enhances the quality of education but also prepares students for a technologically advanced future, making learning both effective and inspiring.

GSEPP202402. Shenzhen Welkin School: A New Paradigm of Smart Education

• Participants:

  Gong Weidong, Tang Xingchu, Chen Hao 

• Keywords:

  Welkin School, smart education, school community, Welkin multi-teacher teaching

• Executive Abstract:

Shenzhen Welkin School is the key project initiated by Shenzhen Municipal Party Committee and Government to build a pilot demonstration area of socialism with Chinese characteristics and to explore future education. It is also a core component in the construction of the "National Information-based Teaching Experimental Zone" and "Smart Education Demonstration Zone" in Shenzhen. The school breaks the tangible boundaries and physical space of traditional schools, leads its participating schools throughout the city and forms a new type community school with “Headquarters Campus+N Participating Schools”. It has developed a new model of multi-teacher co-teaching mode under the “Co-preparation, Co-research, and Co-teaching” approach, innovative personalized learning methods through "cross-school"classes, and new pathways for teacher’s development, establishing a teaching paradigm known as "One Community, Two Companions, Three Unisons."

Welkin innovative practice has covered three grades of junior high schools, involving 450 teachers, benefiting 3,600 students, and achieving full coverage of junior high school subjects. The educational achievements of Welkin School have won wide attention from the educational sector and been highly recognized by education experts, attracting visits from domestic and international guests, including the Deputy Minister of Education from Saudi Arabia.

• Achievement Description:

The new practice model of the Shenzhen Welkin School fundamentally addresses educational challenges such as difficulty in school attendance, school selection fever, and remedial class fever, providing new methods and ideas for teaching students according to their aptitude, which helps promote the high-quality and balanced development of education.

To address the dual challenges of optimizing resource allocation and enhancing supply capacity faced by Shenzhen's education in the new era, Shenzhen has utilized the momentum of the Internet to innovate resource supply models and talent cultivation patterns, determining them as core development issues for basic education. In 2021, the Shenzhen Municipal Committee and the Municipal Government made a strategic deployment to create a cloud school and explore a new paradigm for future schools. In October 2022, the Organizational Establishment Committee of the Shenzhen Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China made a key reply to the construction of Shenzhen Welkin School, establishing it as a directly-affiliated public school under the Municipal Education Bureau and clarifying its important tasks in "basic educational teaching tasks", "demonstrative basic educational teaching reform and experimental activities", "exploring new teaching models", and "leading the forefront of Shenzhen's basic education".

Against this backdrop, Shenzhen Welkin School has taken the resolution of basic education challenges as its fundamental goal, guided by practical needs, with organizational and institutional reform as the key breakthrough, integrating and optimizing the new generation of disruptive information technology, and carrying out a series of innovative practices in school operation, teacher development models, and shared classroom plans. After three years of exploration, it has built a new form of "Internet+ School", forming a school operation structure and organizational scale across 13 schools in 10 administrative districts of Shenzhen, providing new ideas for using the Internet to promote balanced development of basic education and exploring an open and interconnected future school model.

 

GSEPP202403. Digital Transformation Empowers High-quality Development of Regional Education

• Participants: 

  Wang Yan, Nie Tingfang, Miao Yaqin, Zhou Xiaoqing, Wang Jianye, Huang Junshan, Huang Xu

• Keywords:

  Smart Education, Digital Transformation, Teaching and Learning Styles, Educational Evaluation, Educational Governance

• Executive Abstract:

  Promoting the digital transformation of education is of great significance in reshaping the connotation and form of education, improving the quality of education, promoting educational equity, optimizing educational governance, and changing the mode of education. In recent years, Changsha, as one of the first national smart education demonstration zones, has applied new-generation information technology to develop the Changsha Smart Education Cloud Platform, create a new platform for building and sharing digital education resources, build new scenarios for teaching and learning, innovate new modes of teaching and learning with interaction and mingling, create a new paradigm for objective and accurate education evaluation, explore a new system of data-supported education governance, and create a new ecosystem of education, which has led and supported the high-quality development of Changsha's basic education.

• Project Description:

In recent years, Changsha City has insisted on taking the digitalization of education as a new engine and a new track to promote the high-quality development of regional education. 

1. Based on the space “reconstruction ecology” to play a good data base. We use new-generation information technology to build a standardized and interconnected smart education platform to create a digital pedestal; we guide schools to build digital twin campuses that are empowered by cyberspace, combined with reality and virtual reality, and resonated with the school, family and community.

2. Building a new education system of “five education”. Taking “Renren Tong” as a carrier, it builds new scenarios of education that combine online and offline, integrate virtual reality, collaborate both inside and outside the schools, and promote changes in the way of education and teaching.

3. Integrating and promoting changes in the way of educating people according to their aptitudes. Actively promote the innovative integration of information technology in “teaching, research, management, evaluation and testing”, innovate the mode of teaching and learning, promote the organic combination of large-scale education and personalized training, and achieve large-scale teaching according to ability.

4. A comprehensive education service system has been constructed to “reduce the burden and improve quality”. It has developed a smart homework management system that integrates homework resource selection, hierarchical design, one-click release, statistical analysis, time management and classroom learning reports, and includes both paper homework and electronic homework; it has developed a one-stop after-school service system; and it has developed a system for supervising and implementing out-of-school training to conduct dynamic monitoring, so as to build an education service system that “simultaneously promotes burden reduction both inside and outside of school”.

5. We are pushing forward the reform of “objective and accurate” education evaluation. We will further promote classroom teaching evaluation, comprehensive quality evaluation and comprehensive evaluation of education quality, which strengthen the process, are based on data and evidence, and target improvement, so as to return to the value of evaluation in educating people. 

6. Comprehensively deepen the “data-supported” education governance system. The city's education big data decision-making command center has been built to support and lead the modernization of education governance.

7. Relying on artificial intelligence experiments to improve the information literacy of teachers and students. We have developed a smart research and training system, formed 286 network teaching and research alliances, popularized basic artificial intelligence courses, and improved the information literacy of teachers and students.

 

GSEPP202404. The implementation of digital technologies to enhance mental health education for promoting the holistic development of students in multi-ethnic regions within Qinghai Province

• Participants: 

  Shen Hongxing, Li Haisheng, Gan Changfu, Luo Haidong, Wang Jie

• Keywords:

  Digital education, mental health, multiethnicity

• Executive Summary:

To fully implement the Party's educational policies and guidelines, our province, in collaboration with Beijing Normal University, has established a unified "Qinghai Province Primary and Middle School Student and Teacher Mental Health Service Cloud Platform." This platform provides comprehensive mental health services for a total of 742,500 students and teachers in 733 primary schools, 263 junior high schools, and 106 regular high schools across Qinghai Province. The services include monitoring of mental health conditions, establishment of mental health records, individual and group psychological counseling, creation of a mental health-friendly environment, early warning and intervention for psychological crises, guidance on career education development, psychological quality training, psychological potential development training, and remote multi-media mental health education, research, and supervision system construction.

• Project Description:

Before its establishment, the mental health service system for teachers and students in primary and secondary schools in our province was not perfect. Mental health education lacked a foundation and pertinence, and a comprehensive psychological crisis prevention and intervention mechanism for primary and secondary school students had not been established. Schools lacked objective and scientific methods to deeply understand students' personalities and potentials, which prevented education and teaching from being effectively tailored to individual needs. Students also lacked a correct and objective way to understand themselves. 

After the establishment of the "Qinghai Province Primary and Middle School Student and Teacher Mental Health Service Cloud Platform," significant importance has been generated in the following three aspects:

1. Implementing national policies and further advancing mental health education in our province

By obtaining real records of students' mental health development through psychological assessments, it helps to conduct scientific case analyses and provides timely and accurate support in educational and teaching research. It assists schools, families, and individual students in understanding the basic situation of students, reflects important

information about mental health development and learning conditions, seeks the root causes of mental health issues, and carries out targeted psychological education. This helps to mitigate and resolve students' psychological problems and provides a scientific basis for the direction and decision-making of the educational sector's mental health education work. 

2. Improving the quality of education and building a safe campus

With professional and accurate assessment results as a reference, the implementation of mental health work has become evidence-based. The school's mental health education guidance institutions, together with psychological teachers and class teachers, conduct mental health education without relying on subjective impressions or occasional behaviors to make assumptions or judgments. General psychological issues are addressed, and the psychological early warning system timely identifies and refers students with serious psychological problems or mental disorders, ensuring the overall mental health development of the school, preventing malignant events, and creating a positive and healthy campus environment. 

3. Promoting the comprehensive development of students' morality, intelligence, physique, beauty, and labor

Scientifically and authentically assessing and recording the psychological state and changes of primary and secondary school students is not only beneficial for teachers to teach according to students' aptitudes, harmonize teacher-student relationships, and improve teaching quality, but more importantly, it allows students to understand their own psychological state, discover and grasp their psychological growth needs, actively adjust their learning state, and thereby form good psychological quality. This promotes the harmonious and sustainable development of students' physical and mental health, laying the foundation for their healthy growth and happy life.

 

GSEPP202405. Higher Education Press Digital Textbook “Yunchuang” Platform

• Participants: 

  Li Jie, Xie Tao, Han Guanglei, Geng Liping, Chen Xingyue, Sun Lianjiang, Han Jiawei, Fan Pengpeng, Tian Meng, Fang Yongchao, Hao Yuan, Ma Xiaoqing 

• Keywords:

  Digital textbook, Intelligent authoring and creation, Textbook construction, Educational services 

• Executive Summary:

“YunChuang” Platform is an independently developed, top-tier digital textbook creation tool by Higher Education Press. It offers intelligent digital textbook authoring and teaching application services aimed at higher education and vocational education. It has been selected as the “2023 Publishing Industry Science Technology and Standard Innovation Demonstration Project” by the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee. “Yunchuang” plays a significant role in the creation, editing, application and management of digital textbooks:

1.   Creation–“Yunchuang”provides resource services for textbook creation using massive digital resources with proprietary copyrights; It offers a number of intelligent services for the initial construction of textbooks based on artificial intelligence technology; It integrates multiple media forms of expression to present knowledge content in a three-dimensional way, achieving the integration and innovation of textbook construction.

2.   Editing and proofreading–“Yunchuang” facilitates online collaborative work among multiple roles. Assists the editing and proofreading process through utilizing artificial intelligence, natural language processing, machine learning and other advanced technologies, enhancing the informatization level of textbook editing and publishing, and improving quality and efficiency.

3.   Application–“Yunchuang” seamlessly connects to the teaching platform, enabling rapid deployment of comprehensive online teaching processes. It supports diversified learning scenarios, and promote the intelligent transformation of learning paradigms.

4.   Management–“Yunchuang” allows higher education institutions, vocational schools, and publishers to intuitively overview their textbook construction as a whole, grasp detailed textbook data, and promote the digital upgrade of textbook management.

• Project Description:

To deeply implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, advance the National Education Digitalization Strategic Action, and actively promote the digital transformation of education, Higher Education Press (HEP) has been vigorously promoting the research and construction of digital textbooks. Achieving the digitalization and intelligent innovation of textbooks is a crucial part of advancing the digitalization of education. Therefore, Higher Education Press has independently developed “Yunchuang” platform, a digital textbook creation tool with its own intellectual property rights, which helps to make textbook writing, editing and reading more intelligent, professional, and systematic, and strives to create a digital textbook ecosystem. Through “Yunchuang”, multiple application modes and comprehensive services, a new high-quality content resource system centered on digital textbooks is constructed to provide textbook writing, editing and management services for publishers and universities at different levels, and intelligent and professional educational services for teachers and students. The specific issues it aims to address include:

1. Support for authors–“Yunchuang”provides a full-process, accompanying series of intelligent services for digital textbook writing based on a digital and intelligent foundation, aiming to enhance the professional and creative ability of authors in textbook writing and meet the personalized writing needs of different disciplines.

2. Collaborative production environment–“Yunchuang” creates an open and collaborative production environment that allows online collaborative work of multiple roles and positions. It continuously iterates and optimizes editor and the processes of digital textbook creation, editing, reviewing, and publishing to improve publishing quality and efficiency.

3. Educational model Support–“Yunchuang” provides large education models support application services to create an immersive training and teaching environment for students. It achieves the “contextualization, simulation, and visualization” in education and teaching through integrated media presentation and interactive design. It accurately retains learning data through human-computer interaction and a large amount of interactive resources, providing personalized and tailored teaching based on precise learner profiles.

4. Resource integration–“Yunchuang” actively connects user pools and resource channels with other high-quality application platforms of our company to continuously expand the coverage of quality resources, aiming to achieve effective aggregation and shared construction of quality resources.

5. Service provision–Relying on the open and collaborative production environment of “Yunchuang”, we provide other publishers with urgently needed and scarce services, and the entire publishing process is visible and controllable online. Universities, vocational schools, and publishing houses can grasp the construction of digital textbooks online, and maintain real-time control over content ideology, effectively alleviating the technical, platform, funding, and talent pressures faced by small and medium-sized publishers in developing digital textbooks.

 

GSEPP202406. Smart Education "644" Model in Liangjiang New Area, Chongqing

• Participants: 

  Li Tingyi, Wang Dong

• Keywords:

  regional coordination, integrated, teach students in accordance with their aptitude, artificial intelligence

• Executive Summary: 

As the first national level development and opening up new area in the mainland, Liangjiang New Area closely follows the overall development of "Digital Chongqing, Smart Liangjiang" and innovatively proposes the "644" model of smart education. Through high positioning, high-level planning, and efficient promotion, we have successfully established a national intelligent social governance education experimental base, undertaken the national 5G+smart education application pilot project, created a large-scale application pilot zone for artificial intelligence courses under the Ministry of Education, and achieved full coverage of smart education application scenarios and practical cases. The proportion of smart campus schools (20) construction in Chongqing ranks first in the city. With the convenience of high-quality resources, the accuracy of data connectivity, the universality of diverse forms, and the openness of shared value, we will lead the modernization of education with digital support and make new and greater contributions to building an education powerhouse and a learning society.

• Project Description: 

The unique "644" model of Liangjiang smart education has explored the optimal path that conforms to the characteristics of Liangjiang in the practice of digital education.

The first is to solidify the foundation of the "Six One Architecture" and play a game of smart education with a lofty vision. Liangjiang is leading the direction of creation by drawing a blueprint; Establish a center to form an innovation engine; Implement an action to solidify the foundation of development; Build a platform to establish a cloud hub; Covering a dedicated network to achieve efficient sharing; Focusing on one quality, cultivating intelligent teachers and students, and comprehensively enriching the regional smart education ecosystem.

The second is the integration and innovation of "4D exploration", focusing on teaching to play the "combination punch" of smart education. With the continuous application of cutting-edge technology in various aspects of education, the teaching ecology in Liangjiang has been revitalized: the curriculum is deep and lively, and the digital scene expands the radius of knowledge acquisition; The classroom is exquisite and beautiful, and the integrated platform for preparation and teaching implements personalized teaching; Collaboration is broad and strong, leveraging digital platforms to establish a collaborative education system between families, schools, and communities; Conduct comprehensive and detailed evaluations at the district and school levels, and generate personalized digital portraits.

The third is to upgrade the efficiency of the "four forces" and activate the "acceleration" of smart education based on human centeredness. To enhance the effectiveness of smart education, Liangjiang adheres to a people-centered approach, cultivates practical expert principals and management teams, and enhances digital leadership; Building a data center and integrated cloud platform to enhance digital governance capabilities; Guide teachers to participate in the construction of digital courses, encourage students to independently choose learning resources, and enhance digital teaching capabilities; Building a community for the development of smart education and enhancing digital collaboration.

Through years of development, we successfully established the National Intelligent Society Education Governance Experimental Base recognized by eight ministries and commissions in 2021; Undertake the national 5G+smart education application pilot project in 2022; Establish a pilot zone for large-scale application of artificial intelligence courses in the Central Electronic Education Center of the Ministry of Education in 2023.

GSEPP202407. Exploration on large-scale application of regional virtual experiment teaching

• Participants: 

  Ting Tan, Jing Sheng, Ming Chen, Jiahui Zhu, Jin Zhang, Shunqing Chen, Lingfei Wang, Jing Jiang

• Keywords:

  Virtual experimental teaching, Community of practice, Smart education

• Executive Summary:

  Enhancing the quality and efficiency of digital-enabled experimental teaching has emerged as a crucial focus for advancing science education in China. Traditional experimental teaching often involves hazardous experiments and is constrained by limited resources. In response, Hanyang District has implemented the virtual experimental teaching service system, known as the "Virtual Experiment of the Central Library," which is integrated with the "urban school integration" platform of Hanyang District. This system facilitates extensive innovative teaching practices in the subjects of physics and chemistry for primary and secondary education. By establishing an application practice community and outlining a comprehensive "1145" implementation strategy—comprising innovation, research, application, administration, and production—this initiative fosters a virtual experimental teaching application model. It aims to cultivate a cadre of lead teachers and generate exemplary application cases, thereby actively exploring region-wide strategies for virtual experimental teaching practice. The "Virtual Experimental Teaching Application and Practice Community of Primary and Secondary Schools in Hanyang District" has been recognized as a national "excellent" project and is being disseminated across the country.

• Project Description:

This initiative, anchored in the core values of exploration, collaboration, practice, innovation, sharing, and mutual benefit, utilizes a diverse array of strategies, including expert guidance, educational discussions, model demonstrations, and innovative practices. In alignment with the principles of virtual experimental teaching—characterized by mutual supplementation, the integration of virtual and real elements, prioritization of practicality over illusion, and the emphasis on applied value—we have developed a curriculum framework tailored for elementary science and middle school physics, chemistry, and biology. This framework introduces an "immersive" flipped classroom teaching model that seamlessly integrates virtual and real components, alongside a "blended" autonomous inquiry learning model applicable in both online and offline contexts. These pedagogical models are set to be implemented across various educational environments, encompassing comprehensive in-school instruction, after-school services, and independent learning during holiday periods.

Our objective is to cultivate a core group of teachers who are innovative, skilled, practical, and collaborative in their approach to virtual experimental instruction. To date, over fifty lesson examples have garnered national awards, with more than twenty articles published in esteemed national journals. Six member schools and ten educators have been acknowledged as virtual experimental teaching base schools and trainers by the Central Library. Practical case studies have been established, primarily centered on member schools, alongside innovative teaching cases led by subject teachers. Five application projects from member institutions related to virtual experimental teaching have been classified as key provincial projects in information technology, while three cases have been distinguished as exemplary national smart education cases. Notably, one member school presented at the 2022 Global Smart Education Conference, and our regional advancement case has received an invitation to share at the 2024 Global Smart Education Conference. These relevant experiences have attracted media coverage from various platforms, including Learning Power, Hubei Daily, and numerous educational television channels.

The model developed from this initiative has been replicated and disseminated across 24 member institutions located in the Shangyu District of Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province, positively impacting over one hundred thousand teachers and students. This community project has distinguished itself as the first "excellent" project recognized by the Ministry of Education in Hubei Province within the past six years and stands as the sole "excellent" project in the domain of virtual experimentation for basic education at the national level.

 

GSEPP202408. Practice and Application of Virtual Reality Technology in Teaching in Ethnic Minority Areas

• Participants:

  Wu Dingcui, Ao Xiangdong, Liu Mingfang

• Keywords:

  Ethnic minority areas; Virtual reality technology; classroom teaching

• Executive Summary:

  With the development of modern science and technology, traditional teaching models can no longer meet the needs of modern teaching, and teaching methods represented by computer-aided teaching have emerged. In this context, virtual reality technology has entered our sight and gradually entered our lives. In the future education and teaching process, we will apply more virtual reality technology to assist teaching. The teaching practice of virtual reality technology in schools in ethnic minority areas has proven that applying this teaching aid not only broadens students' horizons, but also stimulates their curiosity and interest in learning. We will combine technology, traditional culture, and the characteristics of ethnic minority areas to form new educational methods and teaching resources suitable for ethnic minority areas. 

• Project Description:

Applying virtual reality technology to teaching in ethnic minority areas is both a challenge and an opportunity, and has significant implications for the education and teaching industry. On the teaching equipment, we use AR globe, combined with AR globe related apps on mobile phones, and the projection function of Xiwo whiteboard for comprehensive design. Students can see virtual objects in our space in real time through the whiteboard. We also use the recording function of our mobile phones to create micro lessons and share them with students.

In terms of achievements, we have attempted to apply virtual reality technology in teaching, and have integrated it into the teaching of Chinese and science courses in multiple lesson examples. Science courses such as "Weather and Plants and Animals" and "The Sun, Earth, and Moon"; Practice and exploration are carried out in Chinese classes such as "The Century that Summons Wind and Rain" and "Dinosaurs Flying towards the Blue Sky" to improve students' mastery of knowledge, enhance their learning enthusiasm, and strengthen their comprehension ability.

In terms of achievements, firstly, we designed virtual reality teaching content and scenarios based on the characteristics of the lesson examples and the teaching content, such as simulating ecological environments under different weather conditions and bringing dinosaurs into our environment. Stimulate students' interest in exploration, and finally summarize and reflect on it. From the initial exploration of images to the current trend of video sharing and micro videos, I believe there will be even broader opportunities in the future. 

Now, the introduction of virtual reality technology poses new challenges to the technical literacy requirements of teachers and students. But these challenges also bring rich and diverse learning resources and experiences, stimulate the interest of teachers and students in learning, and improve teaching efficiency.

Overall, virtual reality technology brings new opportunities and challenges to education in ethnic minority areas. We should leverage its advantages, explore more application examples and resources, form teaching methods and resources for selection and use, strengthen learning from developed regions and Beijing Normal University, enhance teacher literacy, and promote the development of education in ethnic minority areas.

 

GSEPP202409. Promoting Authentic Scientific Practices through Idea-Friend Maps and Opportunistic Collaboration in a Knowledge-Creating Community

• Participants: 

  Xueqi Feng, Carol Chan, Jan van Aalst, Yuqin Yang, Jianhua Zhao

• Keywords: 

  authentic scientific practice, Idea-Friend Maps, opportunistic collaboration, knowledge-creating community

• Executive Summary:

This project consists of three interrelated core components, forming a cyclical and progressive learning model: the learning environment enhances the learning trajectory, which in turn leads to learning outcomes. The core idea is to build a knowledge-creating community through the close collaboration of researchers, teachers, and students, integrating AI technology and social configuration design. This community aims to deepen scientific practices, fostering the symbiotic development of individual learning and community knowledge innovation.

1.1 Learning Environment: Co-Design of the Knowledge-Creating Community

Building a knowledge-creating community involves the collaboration of researchers, teachers, and students, integrating AI technology with strategic social configurations. Central to this is the use of knowledge graph technology, particularly through the Knowledge Building Discourse Explorer (KBDeX), a semantic network analysis tool. KBDeX analyzes students’ interactive notes on the Knowledge Forum, creating keyword networks that develop into multi-level Idea-Friend Maps (IFM). These maps help students identify and connect related concepts, fostering mutual recognition of ideas and collective knowledge building. 

1.2 Learning Trajectory: Incremental Deepening of Scientific Practices

The incremental deepening of scientific practices organizes students’ collaboration at intragroup, intergroup, and community levels, effectively mapping the core trajectory of scientific practices. It begins with strengthening internal team collaboration through group-level Idea-Friend Maps combined with interactive social structures. This expands to broader scientific communication via community-level Idea-Friend Maps integrated with opportunistic collaboration, and finally, advances the entire scientific field through the fusion of knowledge-creating level Idea-Friend Maps with opportunistic collaboration. These structured collaboration methods not only enhance students’ understanding of scientific knowledge but also simulate the real-world processes of scientific knowledge innovation and dissemination. 

1.3 Learning Outcome: Symbiotic Development of Individual and Community Knowledge

Individuals interacting within the community can absorb new knowledge and internalize it through enhanced cognitive and metacognitive abilities. This isn’t just about accumulating knowledge; it’s a dynamic cycle where individual progress continuously contributes to the deepening and expansion of community knowledge. Such interactions ensure the constant flow and renewal of knowledge within the community. Learners benefit from and contribute to community knowledge innovation, adapting to changes while actively engaging in new knowledge creation, promoting the collaborative advancement of both individual and community knowledge.