Release Date: 2024-11-26

On November 23-24, the 9th Sino-Finnish Joint Learning Innovation Institute annual conference on "Education in the Digital Era - Bridging Research and Practices" was successfully held in Shenzhen, Guangdong. The conference was organized by the Faculty of Psychology and the Sino-Finnish Joint Learning Innovation Institute (hereinafter referred to as "JoLII") at Beijing Normal University, and co-organized by the Experimental School of Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology and Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology. The supporting institutions were the Nanshan District Education Bureau (Shenzhen), and the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Nearly 300 participants, including researchers, educators from the field of innovative education in China and Finland, as well as representatives from primary and secondary schools in Nanshan District, attended the forum.

The conference focused on "Education in the Digital Era," with an emphasis on educational research and practices in the digital ear. Professor Hannele Niemi from the University of Helsinki, Jia Jiyu from Peking University, Lu Yu from Beijing Normal University, and Jari Multisilta, President of Satakunta University of Applied Sciences, delivered keynote speeches. Professor Tuija Turunen from the University of Lapland, Li Baoping from Beijing Normal University, Jari Lavonen from the University of Helsinki, and Luo Jiutong, Assistant Professor at Shenzhen University,delivered invited talks. The topics included curriculum and assessment transformation in the digital ear, the application and development of artificial intelligence, the cultivation of innovation ability through artificial intelligence, and teacher education with artificial intelligence.

The "World Café Workshop" was co-organized by the Sino-Finnish Education Research Centre (SFERC) , which was jointly established by Tampere University and Beijing Normal University, and the Global Research Institute for Finnish Education (GRIFE) at the Education University of Hong Kong. Participants focused on discussing how to find new opportunities in Sino-Finnish educational cooperation and overcome current challenges.

On the second day, the conference proceeded with five parallel sub-forums. Hosts of the sub-forums were Dr. Yang Dong from Beijing Normal University, Dr. Qian Wenden, from the University of Helsinki, Associate Professor Tang Xin from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Dr. Niu Shuanghong from the University of Helsinki, and Assistant Professor Wang Yan from Shenzhen University. The sub-forum themes were "Teaching and Learning with New Technology" "Teacher Education in the Digital Era" "Students and Teachers' Learning and Wellbeing" "Early Childhood Education in the Digital Era" and "21st Century Competencies Teaching and Learning". Researchers and students from China and Finland presented a total of 28 reports, live discussions and profound reflections were given after the reports.

The closing ceremony of the conference was co-hosted by Professor Wang Jun from Beijing Normal University and Dr. Olli-Pekka Malinen from the University of Helsinki. They expressed their gratitude to the particpants, and presenters for their wonderful speeches, discussions. They also conveyed their sincere thanks to the supporting and organizing institutions for all their supports. They believe that this conference will provide more innovative and practical insights and ideas for breaking through the closed loop of "research-technology-innovative practice" in education.

Since its establishment in 2015, JoLII has held annual conferences every year, providing a diversified platform for communication and resource sharing for educational researchers and practitioners both in China and Finland. JoLII is committed to combining the strengths of universities, basic education, and educational enterprises from both countries to jointly create universal, student-centered learning solutions, in order to better cultivate talents for the 21st century. With the continuous development of digital education, JoLII and its partners will further open up cooperation, share digital educational resources and achievements, and strengthen collaboration, making greater contributions to promoting educational innovation and fostering high-quality and balanced development of education.