Background of the ASEFClassNet Project Series
For over two decades, the ASEF Classroom Network has been providing collaborative capacity-building opportunities to secondary, high, and vocational schools in Asia and Europe. It explores the potential of cutting-edge EdTech tools through integration of contemporary education topics such as ESD, CCE, and GCE. Its target group is broad, given its intergenerational & multi-stakeholder outreach. It ranges from students, teachers, school leaders, teacher trainers, researchers, policymakers, and to EdTech experts. Since its inception, more than 2,800 teachers from Asia and Europe have participated in various activities and become members of the ASEF Classroom Network. As a result, more than 40,000 students have been engaged in 430 Asia-Europe School Collaborations and local spin-off activities. Since 2022, the project also empowered teachers to design over 125 Innovative Teaching Practices that contribute to advancing the quality of education across secondary and vocational schools in Asia and Europe. Learn more about the Project series here.
ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration
The ASEFClassNet Faculty Collaboration is a dynamic programme for academics, researchers and teacher trainers to connect, collaborate and innovate secondary and vocational education across Asia and Europe. This initiative fosters an environment where participants exchange knowledge, experiment with creative ideas driven by real-world education challenges, and develop new knowledge to tackle the challenges.
Since its launch in 2023, the ASEFClassNet Faculty Collaboration Programme has empowered over 60 participants across 30 higher education institutions (HEIs) and ministry associated teacher training institutes, who together designed over 10 collaborative cross-faculty projects. These initiatives have contributed to improving teacher training and resource development, ultimately enhancing the quality of education for teachers and students alike.
In 2025, the ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration project envisions building a community of experts who can:
- Critically examine AI in education (AIED) through the lenses of effectiveness, inclusion, and ethics, integrating diverse perspectives from multiple academic disciplines.
- Future-proof teacher education by working across faculties to co-create impactful and innovative insights to advance teacher education for AIED
- Contribute to a Springer-published book in the series on “AI and Sustainable Development” with United Nations University (UNU), and showcase innovative insights, research findings, and practical strategies that contribute to the global discourse on AI in education tools (AIED) and its impact on teaching and learning.
About the Topic
What is AIED and AIED Design?
- Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIED), refers to the integration of AI technologies into education to enhance teaching and learning experiences and outcomes.
- AIED Design, on the other hand, refers to the process of creating and developing ethical AI-enabled educational tools and systems. This includes designing user-friendly interfaces, ensuring the alignment of AI features with educational goals, and considering ethical implications such as data privacy and data ownership.
Why focusing on effective, inclusive and ethical AIED Design is significant?
The goal of focusing on AIED Design is to create meaningful dialogues that advocate for innovative, accessible, and effective AI-enabled approaches that enhance the teaching and learning process.
In this programme, we will discuss the following aspects:
- Effectiveness: Participants in their roles as academics, researchers, and teacher trainers in shaping future educational landscapes, will explore the effectiveness, safety and classroom impact of cutting-edge AI technologies of their choice.
- Inclusion: Participants will examine how AI, if not carefully designed, can unintentionally reinforce biases or exclude certain learners. By focusing on inclusive design principles, they will gain insights into identifying and mitigating biases and advocate for the development of fairer AI systems that benefit all learners, ensuring equitable access to relevant and ethical AI-enabled learning opportunities.
- Ethics: Data privacy, transparency, and responsible AI use must be at the core of EdTech innovation. In this context, academics, researchers and educators play a key role in safeguarding student data, ensuring AI transparency, and addressing ethical concerns. Participants will discuss how to conduct ethical studies on AI’s impact in educational settings.
To learn more about the topic, please read the concept note below.
ASEFClassNet Faculty Collaboration Advisers
ASEFClassNet18 is guided by four exceptional Academic Advisers—leaders in educational innovation who bring deep insight, passion, and purpose to the project. Professor Li YUAN, Professor Wayne HOLMES, Professor Miki SUGIMURA, and Professor Margus PEDASTE were outstanding alumni who were part of the inaugural series, ASEFClassNet16 Faculty Collaboration in 2023. Their unwavering commitment to reimagining teaching and learning continues to inspire new directions, ensuring the programme remains bold, relevant, and transformative. Click on their profile to learn more about them!
Professor Li Yuan
Professor Wayne HOLMES
Professor Miki SUGIMURA
Professor Margus PEDASTE
ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration Fellowship
What is the Fellowship?
The full ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration will take place in the form of a Fellowship that is a 7-month long (May-November 2025) hybrid knowledge and capacity-building programme for academics, researchers and teacher-trainers.
Who are the Fellows?
Fellows of the project are forward-thinking teacher-trainers, researchers, and academics committed to shaping the future of teaching at secondary, high and vocational education levels across Asia and Europe.
Fellowship Eligibility
Eligibility for the Fellowship:
The ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration Fellowship is designed for:
- Academics and researchers working at a Faculty/Department of Education at a Higher Education Institution (HEI) or other faculties involved in teacher-training programmes
- Teacher-trainers working at a ministry/government associated teacher training institution/academy
All Fellows must be citizens of an eligible Asian and European country and work for an institution based in one of these countries:
*Asia: Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.
*Europe: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Programme Design
The ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration is a 7-month long (May-November 2025) hybrid knowledge and capacity-building project for teachers-trainers, academics and researchers.
The phase includes a virtual welcome session, and 5 cross-faculty dialogue sessions (total 6 sessions) takes place every Thursday from 15 May 2025 to 19 June 2025:
- Welcome & Keynote | Getting to know the project & setting the scene
Thursday, 15 May 2025 |CEST 10:00 – 11:00
Fellows will learn about the project, key goals, methodology and targeted deliverables through a presentation by the ASEFClassNet Team. They will also participate in icebreaking activities to get to know each other. The session will also feature a Keynote speech and inspirational messages from the high-level Faculty Collaboration Advisers.
- Cross-Faculty Dialogue Session 1 | Knowledge Exchange, Pitching & Team Forming
Thursday, 22 May 2025 | CEST 10:00 – 11:30
In the first part of this session, Fellows will share about their work highlighting latest trends, challenges and their contribution in the field related to the topic to set the scene for the cross-Faculty Dialogues and the joint publication. In the second part, participants will discuss their joint publication ideas and form interdisciplinary and multicultural team to jointly work together on a publication.
- Cross-Faculty Dialogue Session 2 | Work Progress Sharing & Teamwork
Thursday, 05 Jun 2025 |CEST 10:00 – 11:30
The session will begin with a plenary knowledge exchange, where all teams share progress on their joint work and receive feedback from peers outside their team. In the second part, teams will move into breakout groups to continue developing their joint publications.
- Cross-Faculty Dialogue Session 3 | Work Progress Sharing & Teamwork
Thursday, 12 Jun 2025 |CEST 10:00 – 11:30
The session will begin with a plenary knowledge exchange, where all teams share progress on their joint work and receive feedback from peers outside their team. In the second part, teams will move into breakout groups to continue developing their joint publications.
- Cross-Faculty Dialogue Session 4 | Work Progress Sharing & Teamwork
Thursday, 19 Jun 2025 |CEST 10:00 – 11:30
The session will begin with a plenary knowledge exchange, where all teams share progress on their joint work and receive feedback from peers outside their team. In the second part, teams will move into breakout groups to continue developing their joint publications.
From July to October 2025, Fellows will work independently in teams to co-author the book chapter they signed up for, which will be presented at the ASEFClassNet18 Conference in Zhuhai, China in November 2025 and published in the UNU “AI and Sustainable Development” series in May 2026 (tbc).
- Cross-Faculty Peer-to-Peer Feedback Session | All Teams
Thursday, 18 Sep 2025 | CEST 10:00 – 11:30
There will be one group session in mid-September for all Fellows, to provide an opportunity for all teams to exchange input before finalising their work to be presented at the conference.
From 11-16 November 2025, participants will gather in Zhuhai, China for a 5.5-day long on-site conference to present the final publications, which will be included in the AI and Sustainable Development book series by the United Nations University (UNU). The conference will also serve as a platform to deepen cross-faculty collaboration, explore spin-off project ideas, and establish sustainable academic partnerships.
This conference will be organised in conjunction with the Chinese Education Innovation Expo, allowing participants to explore a wide range of cutting-edge educational innovations and engage with other international stakeholders from the education and EdTech sectors.
Please note: Invitation to the conference is conditional on active engagement, meaningful peer contributions, and strong progress on the joint publication during the virtual phase.
What will the Fellows achieve?
The Fellows joining the ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration aims to achieve the following key outcomes:- Join the China Education Innovation Expo: During the on-site conference, Fellows will have the chance to join the prestigious China Education Innovation Expo that will take place alongside the ASEFClassNet18 Faculty Collaboration Conference to broaden their exposure to AIED tools.
- Joint Publication for a Prestigious Book with UNU: Jointly publish for the AI and Sustainable Development Book Series with United Nations University (UNU to guide secondary school leaders in adopting ethical AI in classrooms.
- Strengthen Cross-Cultural Cooperation & Partnerships: Through initiating and leading joint publications, between Faculties of Education and Teacher Training Institutions across Asia and Europe, Fellows will foster mutual learning and sustainable academic partnerships.
- Advance Effective, Ethical and Inclusive AI in Teacher Training: Fellows will drive conversations through their collaborative work through the joint publication that promote the effective, inclusive and ethical integration of AI in teacher education, enhancing teaching and learning practices for secondary, high and vocational schools.
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