Leading Transformation to Shape the Digital Future and Integrating Innovation to Embark on a New Journey of Intelligence — Forum on “Leadership and Digital Transformation” Successfully Held
date：2025-09-04 17:05author：adminsource：Smart Learning Instituteviews：
On the afternoon of August 18, the Forum on “Leadership and Digital Transformation” under the Global Smart Education Conference 2025 (GSE2025) was held at Beijing Normal University. Officials, experts, scholars, and industry leaders from domestic and international universities, research institutions, and international organizations gathered to explore key topics such as the pathways for digital transformation of education in the intelligent era, digital governance in regional and school education, and digital leadership in education. The forum was jointly organized by the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report Team, the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (UNESCO MGIEP), and the UNESCO Chair on AI in Education (UNESCO Chair in AIED).
Group photo of attendees
In his opening address, Mr. QIN Changwei, Secretary-General of the Secretariat of National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO, emphasized that the digital transformation of education is a critical breakthrough for achieving the 2030 goals, requiring enhanced leadership to coordinate multi-stakeholder efforts and avoid the digital divide. He noted that China has built the world’s largest smart education platform, promoted the integrated application of AI, and prioritized capacity building among administrators. He also called for strengthened international cooperation to jointly create an open and inclusive new ecosystem for digital education.
Mr. QIN Changwei, Secretary-General of the Secretariat of National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO
Mr. Shahbaz Khan, Director of UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, pointed out that emerging technologies such as AI are profoundly transforming education, bringing opportunities while exacerbating the digital divide and posing ethical challenges. He emphasized the need to strengthen leadership and policy guidance to ensure the inclusiveness and safety of technology integration in education. Furthermore, he called for investment in the digitalization of public education, promotion of cross-sector collaboration, and a human-centered approach to foster sustainable development and ensure that no one is left behind.
Mr. Shahbaz Khan, Director of UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia
During the outcome release session, Dr. Manos Antoninis, Director of the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report Team, released the Lead for Technology: A Regional Edition of the 2024/5 GEM Report on Education Leadership and Digital Transformation in East Asia. The report focuses on the achievements of educational informatization transformation in China, Japan, and South Korea, offering actionable recommendations to provide reference and inspiration for global practices in the digital transformation of education.
Dr. Manos Antoninis, Director of the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report Team
Prof. ZHAO Jianhua from the Center for Future Education Research and Director of the Center for AI Education Research, Southern University of Science and Technology; Mr. Yuta Yoneda, Manager of KOEI Research & Consulting Inc., Japan; and Dr. Eun Young Kim, Director of the Korean Educational Development Institute (KEDI), engaged in in-depth discussions on their respective countries’ practices in educational leadership and digital transformation.
Panel discussion
During the keynote speech session, Dr. Obijiofor Aginam, Director of the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP), delivered a keynote speech titled Leadership and Digital Transformation. He pointed out that while digital technologies have the potential to reduce education costs and improve information access efficiency, the global digital divide continues to widen, with developing countries particularly facing severe challenges due to shortages in technological resources. To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in education, it is imperative to establish a new social compact for education and ensure equitable access to education as a fundamental human right.
Dr. Obijiofor Aginam, Director of the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP)
Prof. WU Fati from the School of Educational Technology, Faculty of Education of Beijing Normal University, who is also the Director of the Engineering Research Center of Digital Learning and Educational Public Service under the Ministry of Education, delivered a report titled Innovation in Teaching Models and Teacher Role Transformation within the Teacher-Student-Machine Instructional Framework. He pointed out that generative AI is driving the transformation of the teaching structure from a “teacher-student duality” to a “teacher-student-machine tripartite entity,” a shift that is restructuring the educational system and positioning the intelligent agent as a “third entity” deeply involved in the teaching process. The new structure supports human-AI collaboration, personalized learning guidance, and intelligent tutoring, fostering innovative teaching models and providing a structural foundation for achieving educational goals in the intelligent era.
Prof. WU Fati from the School of Educational Technology, Faculty of Education of Beijing Normal University
Prof. GU Xiaoqing, Director of the Department of Education Information Technology, East China Normal University, mentioned in her report titled How AI is Reshaping Education: Adaptive Strategies for Schools that AI is transforming the educational ecosystem and driving profound changes in perspectives on knowledge, learning, and the role of teachers. She emphasized that under AI-powered learning, education is becoming more personalized, with teaching interactions enabling real-time diagnosis and feedback, thereby offering students a more diverse experience. Schools need to proactively respond to changes and adjust their educational models from the dual ecological perspectives of society and education to meet the new requirements for talent cultivation in the intelligent era.
Prof. GU Xiaoqing, Director of Department of Education Information Technology, East China Normal University
Mr. Ahmed Ansary, Founder President and Group Managing Director of Asia e University, pointed out in his keynote speech titled Shaping Education’s Future in the Intelligent Era that the current knowledge renewal is accelerating exponentially, doubling every 12 hours. He emphasized that education should not only focus on degree conferral, but also cultivate students’ lifelong learning capabilities to address future challenges. He called for the education system to rethink learning objectives and methods, proactively adapt to the transformations of the intelligent era, and provide learners with opportunities to continuously update their knowledge and skills.
Mr. Ahmed Ansary, Founder President and Group Managing Director of Asia e University
During the invited speech session, Mr. YANG Xiaohui, Director of the Education Commission of Fengtai District, Beijing; Mr. Thierry Verdel, Rector of Universite Senghor, Egypt; Mr. LI Xiaohai, Director of the Education Commission of Kaizhou District, Chongqing; Prof. Don Klinger, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Education at Murdoch University, Australia; Dr. Sylvie Mucyo, Vice-Chancellor of Rwanda Polytechnic, Rwanda; Ms. ZHANG Huimin, Director of Shenzhen Education Information Technology Center; Ms. PENG Xuezhuang, Deputy Director of the Digital Education Department of the Affairs Center of Guangdong Provincial Department of Education (Guangdong Provincial Center for Educational Technology); Ms. WAN Shulan, Principal of Yuhua Experimental Primary School Group in Yuhua District, Changsha City; and Prof. Romeela Mohee, Commissioner of Higher Education Commission, Mauritius, among other distinguished guests, shared their insights and practical experiences from diverse perspectives including the construction of an AI-powered educational ecosystem, the enhancement of teachers’ digital literacy, regional smart education practices, AI-powered innovations in teaching models, transformations in learning and assessment paradigms, the digital transformation of vocational education, and global digital equity. Together, they explored viable pathways for the digital transformation of education.
Guests at the invited speech session
The forum was co-chaired by Prof. ZHANG Jingjing, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University; Dr. Manos Antoninis, Director of UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report Team; and Dr. Shitanshu Mishra, Chief of Digital Learning, AI and IT, National Information Technology Officer, UNESCO MGIEP.
Forum moderators
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