Mark Nichols
President, International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE)
Mark Nichols is a distinguished leader in the field of open, distance, and flexible learning, with over 25 years of experience in higher education. Mark's commitment to education is reflected in his role as President of the International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE) since 2024, and he has also served on the executive committees of ICDE, EDEN, Ascilite, and FLANZ. He currently serves as the Executive Director of Learning Design & Development at the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand, where he leads a team of over 100 professionals in creating innovative, inclusive courseware. Mark is a current Commonwealth of Learning Chair, holds a PhD from the University of Otago, and is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA). His career includes time as a Director of Technology Enhanced Learning with The Open University in the UK, and over 40 scholarly publications. He is also a member of the editorial boards of several leading international journals in open, distance, and online education. Mark's professional philosophy centres on the principles of availability, inclusivity, scalability, and sustainability in education – and the design of education practices that include these principles. Mark's dedication to and leadership in open education continue to shape the future of learning in New Zealand and beyond. In November of 2025 Mark will co-convene the 30th ICDE World Conference in Wellington, New Zealand.
A learning society must seek to offer lifelong learning opportunities to as many people as possible, to enrich their lives and provide them with future opportunities. In lifelong learning, students might be from a local group, or be regionally dispersed; the subject might be for interest, or as a means of upskilling for work; students might be early career, or incarcerated. Lifelong education must be provided in many different ways, because no single model can apply across the many situations and learners who will participate. Teaching retired people traditional dance, for example, will be different to teaching mid-career professionals how to use Artificial Intelligence.
How do we design lifelong educational models, that make the most of digitalisation?
This presentation will describe different teaching and learning possibilities in support of inclusive, scalable, and sustainable education, using six different components that make up an education model. The six components are: learner activity; teaching activity; learning materials; timetabling; assessment; and success services. Each of these can be designed in ways that make lifelong learning as inclusive, scalable, and sustainable as possible.
The presentation will include a suggested process for designing educational models that includes digitalisation in a supportive role. By considering the six components, educators can design an optimal education model that thoughtfully applies digitalisation.
Stéphan Vincent-Lancrin
Deputy Head, Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI)
Senior Analyst, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Stéphan Vincent-Lancrin is Deputy Head of the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) and a Senior Analyst at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), where he leads work on digitalization in education (“Smart data and digital technology in education: AI, learning analytics and beyond”), on education during the covid-19 crisis as well as a large international practice-engaged innovation project in 24 countries on “Fostering and Assessing Creativity and Critical Thinking in Education”. His work has focused on innovation in education and on higher education, looking at how to support innovation-friendly ecosystems in education, how to drive change and adapt to innovation, and studying specific innovations.
His recent reports include the OECD Digital Education Outlook 2021: Pushing the Frontiers with AI, Blockchain and Robots and OECD Digital Education Outlook 2023: Towards an effective digital education ecosystem (2023), Fostering Students' Creativity and Critical Thinking: What it Means in School (2019), Measuring Innovation in Education 2023: Tools and Methods for Data-driven Improvement (2023) as well as Schooling during a pandemic (2021) and How Learning Continued during the COVID-19 Pandemic (2022).
He is a Marie Curie Fellow, a 2007 Fulbright New Century Scholar, a 2023-24 residential fellow at Stanford University's Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) and received awards for his work from the US National Association of Assessment Directors and from the International Center for Innovation in Education. He holds a PhD in economics, a master's in philosophy and a grande école diploma (Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris).
Stéphan will talk about the state of digital transformation in OECD countries with a focus on AI. Building on OECD Digital Education Outlooks 2021 and 2023 as well as the upcoming OECD Digital Education Outlook 2025 on generative AI and his other work on innovation in education, he will reflect on the current state of digitalization: what digital AI tools might bring to education, what we know about the level of adoption within countries, some of the challenges that countries are talking about, etc. He will present some AI applications to support student learning, teaching professional learning as well as system-level then reflect on generative AI specifically and where some of its opportunities and challenges lie for different types of educational processes and outcomes. He will contrast the speed of AI developments with the level of country adoption, present where most OECD countries are at, and note the difference between generative and non-generative AI in that respect. He will eventually highlight the OECD guidelines on the effective and equitable use of AI in education, developed in collaboration with Education International, the federation of teacher unions, and invite some ideas for upcoming guidelines on generative AI.
Dragan Gašević
• Distinguished Professor of Learning Analytics
• Director, Centre for Learning Analytics
Monash University
Dragan Gašević is Distinguished Professor of Learning Analytics and Director of Research in the Department of Human Centred Computing of the Faculty of Information Technology and the Director of the Centre for Learning Analytics at Monash University. Dragan's research interests center around data analytic, AI, and design methods that can advance understanding of self-regulated and collaborative learning. He is a founder and served as the President (2015-2017) of the Society for Learning Analytics Research. He has also held several honorary appointments in Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America. He is a recipient of the Life-time Member Award (2022) as the highest distinction of the Society for Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR) and a Distinguished Member (2022) of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). In 2019-2024, he was recognized as the national field leader in educational technology in The Australian's Research Magazine that is published annually. He led the EU-funded SHEILA project that received the Best Research Project of the Year Award (2019) from the Association for Learning Technology.
Generative AI promises to revolutionize education by streamlining tasks and offering tailored scaffolds. Yet, as AI increasingly takes over routine cognitive processes, learners risk losing essential metacognitive skills. This talk explores the paradox where AI-driven cognitive offloading can both enhance and impair learning. Based on the findings of empirical studies and learning analytics, we dissect how AI impacts learners' abilities to monitor and control their own learning, and discuss the phenomenon of “metacognitive laziness.” The presentation outlines innovative strategies for designing AI tools that not only improve performance but also actively foster robust self-regulated learning, ensuring that technology remains a tool for empowerment rather than a substitute for human expertise.
Huang Kan
President, Beijing Education Association for International Exchange
Huang Kan serves as President of the Beijing Education Association for International Exchange. He holds a Doctorate in Engineering and is a distinguished Professor. Previously, he was Deputy Director-General of the Beijing Municipal Education Commission, where he held a Level I Bureau Rank position. Dr. Huang brings extensive experience in higher education, vocational training, and international educational cooperation. His contributions to education have been recognized with the First Prize for National Teaching Achievements.
The global trends of digital transformation and learning society construction highlight their interconnectedness: digital transformation serves as a new engine driving the creation of a learning society, while a learning society offers a key application scenario for digital transformation. The Outline of the Plan for Building a Strong Education Country (2024–2035) proposed by the Chinese government emphasizes leveraging education digitization to build a learning society, open new development pathways, and cultivate competitive advantages.
By 2025, Beijing aims to establish a modern education system characterized by advanced concepts, comprehensive structures, exceptional quality, supportive environments, and robust foundations. This effort seeks to create a vibrant learning city distinguished by developed educational initiatives, abundant learning resources, a strong culture of learning, favorable conditions, a concentration of top talent, and a spirit of innovation and vitality.
The Beijing Municipal Government places significant emphasis on the digital construction of a learning city. It prioritizes experience sharing, resource exchange, and the creation of a new learning ecosystem that is both engaging and enjoyable. Beijing's initiatives include exploring innovative digital learning platforms, smart learning companion services, and the integration of digital teaching resources to build a digitally intelligent learning city.
Li Kam-cheong
• Dean, School of Open Learning
• Director, Institute for Research in Open and Innovative Education
Hong Kong Metropolitan University
KC Li is the Dean of the School of Open Learning and the Director of the Institute for Research in Open and Innovative Education at Hong Kong Metropolitan University (HKMU). He has also been appointed as a Visiting Professor by education and research institutions such as Middlesex University of the United Kingdom, and Hebei Academy of Social Sciences and Hebei University of Economics and Business in China. Dr. Li has published about 300 refereed journal articles, book chapters, conference papers and 8 monographs/textbooks, and co-edited 12 books. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Asian Association of Open Universities Journal and one of the editors of the 'Innovation and Technology in Education' section of SN Computing Science. He has also served as a guest editor of special issues for five renowned journals and an editorial board member for several distinguished journals. Dr. Li is keenly interested in research in innovative and open education and has successfully obtained funding for numerous research and development projects. He has earned three bachelor's degrees, four master's degrees and a PhD from renowned institutions, including the University of Hong Kong, Peking University, and the University of London.
As we transition into the era of Industry 5.0, the rapid evolution of jobs and the nature of work presents unprecedented challenges for traditional education systems. The need to shift from conventional models of education to a “learning society” built on the principles of lifelong learning is increasingly clear and undisputed. A learning society fosters continuous upskilling and reskilling, enabling individuals and communities to thrive and adapt in dynamic environments.
This keynote will explore the essential criteria for establishing a learning society and the conditions necessary to make lifelong learning both accessible and sustainable. By identifying these key characteristics, the talk will outline a roadmap for integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and digital tools as enablers that support and enhance the roles of educators and learners. The discussion will delve into the transformative potential of digitalisation, demonstrating how effectively leveraging technology can bridge the gap between conventional education and learning societies to cultivate a culture of continuous learning.
The keynote will further examine innovative educational technologies and successful programmes from around the world that illustrate how digitalisation can drive this transition. Practical implementation strategies and case studies will be presented to offer actionable insights into how universities and institutions can adapt their approaches to better prepare students for the future of work. By bringing together these criteria, examples, and strategies, this talk aims to provide a comprehensive framework for integrating digitalisation and lifelong learning into the foundation of a resilient and future-ready learning society.
