Launched in 2018, the Global Competition on Design for Future Education has been successfully held for six consecutive sessions. With 10,000+ participants from 35+ countries and regions around the world, the competition has incubated 2,500+ outstanding educational design works and has become the most cutting-edge and innovative design competition in the field of education.

In 2024, co-organized by Beijing Normal University (BNU) and UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (UNESCO IITE), the 7th Global Competition on Design for Future Education will be held from March to October. For undergraduates and postgraduates in universities and colleges worldwide, the competition has set up the Higher Education Track, to display how college students in different countries think about the futures of education and put them into practice, providing high-quality solutions for the development of future education.

Organizers

Beijing Normal University

UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education

Special Support Organizations

Beijing Design Society

Beijing Design Week Organizing Committee

1. Registration and Team Building:

March 1 - April 30, 2024

2. Participants

(1) The participants should be undergraduates and postgraduates from around the world, with no limits to their majors.

(2) Register as an individual, then complete the team formation on the official website, and finally participate in a team of 3-5 people.

(3) Forming a team across countries and schools is recommended. The team members should cover at least 3 different major backgrounds, and at least one member should be fluent in English.

3. Themes

AIGC and Education: How can AIGC based on their features of generating texts, videos, programming codes, 3D printings, create infinite possibilities in improving the efficiency, effectiveness and equity, and make education more intelligent and more effective?

Metaverse and Education: How can an immersive online space construct educational scenarios in metaverse courses, metaverse conferences and metaverse with digital twins, cultural heritage and protection?

Rural Education: What design can help solve the needs of rural areas, such as teacher shortages, students’ motivation improving, utilization of rural resources and cultivation of technical talents?

Inclusive Education: How can an educational model help provide appropriate and high-quality education to promote educational equality? Consider people with physical disabilities and health impairments, the elderly, girls and women, students with learning difficulties, gifted children, vulnerable groups affected by war conflicts or crises, etc.

Educational Neuroscience: How to integrate evidence from neuroscience, psychology, and education to design scientific and effective educational solutions, including policy design, curriculum design, instructional design, evaluation design, educational culture and space design, teaching aids and toys design, artificial intelligence and meta-universe design, and so on, in order to improve the quality of education and teaching?

4. Work Requirements

The projects should be designed based on the themes of the competition and can reflect participants’ hands-on capability, innovative thinking and practical skills. The content should include innovative solutions and be presented in a visual format.

(1) Work Types

Physical Modeling Design: Design objects or models of educational products using model-making software or physical materials. Submitted works should include the design concept, images or videos of the product, explanations of its key structure, features, materials, functionalities, and application scenarios, etc.

Hardware Sketching Design: Design sketches of educational hardware products in the form of hand-drawn or computer-generated. Submitted works should include the design concept, overall and detailed images of works, description of the key structure, manufacturing process, main materials, dimensions, usage instructions, etc.

Software Prototyping Design: Design Prototypes of educational software products. Submitted works should include the design concept, product structure and core functionalities, etc. It is encouraged to include high-fidelity prototypes showcasing visual or interactive designs, to demonstrate the product through images or videos.

Solution Design: Design feasible solutions for specific educational issues, including courses, activities, resources, services, etc. Submitted works should include the design concept, main content, implementation steps, application scenarios, etc.

(2) Submission materials for the First Round (All four are compulsory)

5. Competition Arrangements

(1) First Round

Registration and Team Building: March 1 - April 30, 2024, participants should complete the registration, project launch (by the team leader), team building, etc. (Deadline for registration and team building is 18:00:00 April 30, 2024 (GMT+8). )

Online Learning and Project Submission: April 30 - May 31, 2024, participants are required to take courses from the “Training” module on the official website, read the Competition Handbook and recommended books, participate in training activities organized by the Organizing Committee, complete phase tasks, and submit final projects. (The final project submission channel will be opened from 18:00:00 May 19 to 18:00:00 May 31 (GMT+8). )

Project Review and Results Announcement: In June, 2024, the organizing committee will organize experts to review projects, and the shortlisted projects will be released on the official website.

(2)  Finals

Pre-Finals: July-August, 2024, the winning teams in the First Round will compete in the online or offline Pre-Finals. The organizing committee will organize experts to give guidance and to review the projects.

Global Finals: September-October, 2024, the finalist teams will participate in 48H educational project design and conduct multiple rounds of project optimization and roadshow presentations with the guidance of mentors.

6. Assessment Criteria

Works in the Higher Education track will be evaluated from five dimensions: problem awareness, innovation spirit, science and education integration, application prospects, and presentation and expression. The first review will primarily rely on submitted materials, with experts determining shortlisted works based on assessment criteria. The final review will focus on presentations and submitted materials, with experts selecting the winning works based on assessment criteria.

7. Benefits

Participate in the competition, and you may receive the following benefits:

(1) To participate in events organized by the World Digital Education Alliance;

(2) To win bonus and certificates of honor;

(3) Winning projects to be included in the GCD4FE Collection of Excellent Projects;

(4) Winning projects to be featured in the E-Library initiated by UNESCO IITE, accompanied by an inclusion certificate;

(5) Winning works to be displayed in international exhibition activities such as the Beijing International Design Week;

(6) Winning works can be transformed into achievements, such as intellectual property rights, patents, papers, etc.;

(7) To be invited to attend the conferences hosted by Beijing Normal University, such as the Global Smart Education Conference, etc.;

(8) To receive internship opportunities and letters of recommendation, etc.;

(9) To help participants apply for other projects and awards.

Contact

For consultation:

The Organizing Committee Office of the Competition (Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University)

Email: d4fe@bnu.edu.cn

Tel:（86-010）58807208; （86-010）58807206

Address: 12F, Block A, Jingshi Technology Building, No. 12 Xueyuan South Road, Haidian District, Beijing, China

New Media Platforms:

Weibo (Account: Global Competition on Design for Future Education)

Instagram (Account: gcd4fe)

Douyin (Account: GCD4FE）

YouTube (Account: GCD4FE）