From July 26 to 28, 2024 (UTC+8), the Finals of the Higher Education Track in the 7th Global Competition on Design for Future Education were successfully held at the Changping Campus of Beijing Normal University (BNU). This event was co-organized by BNU and the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (UNESCO IITE), in collaboration with various domestic and international organizations, universities, and notable enterprises. The event gathered teachers, students, and industry professionals from around the world to explore future-oriented educational solutions for a better educational opportunity for mankind. Over three days, the Finals featured 25 teams from more than 30 colleges and universities, with over 110 contestants competing intensely over a demanding 48-hour period through both online and offline formats. Nearly 80 participants, including award-winning teams from Maldives and Central and Eastern Europe (Croatia) of the Regional Selection Contest, as well as teams from India, South Korea and other countries, experienced the competition atmosphere on-site.

Group photo at the opening ceremony

Group photo at the closing ceremony

During the Finals, the competition topics were framed around the UNESCO initiative “Reimagining our futures together: a new social contract for education,” including seven themes: Inclusive Learning Space Design, Learning Environment Design Without Time and Space Limitations, Educational Resource Design for Coexistence with the Earth, Teaching Model Design with Multi-stakeholder Participation, Marginalized Cultural Heritage Design Empowered by Digital Technology, Quality Educational Resource Design for Rural Areas, and Intercultural Communication and Understanding Activity Design.

Posters of the seven competition topics

Under the guidance of the mentors, the finalists targeted core problems, set project topics, and completed new project designs based on the competition topics within 48 hours. A total of 18 teams stood out with their creative solutions and presentations, advancing to the final roadshow. During this stage, within the allotted time, each team showcased their educational project design proposals to the panel of experts through well-crafted presentations, including PPTs, video presentations, scenario performances, etc.

The panel of expert judges rated the projects in terms of problem awareness, innovation spirit, science and education integration, application prospect, and presentation and expression. Ultimately, they awarded the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awards for the Higher Education Track, as well as the Excellent Design Award, Excellent Creativity Award, Excellent Technology Innovation Award and Excellent Practice Award.

The Competition encouraged participants to leverage AIGC to address educational challenges, thereby enhancing human-machine collaboration capabilities for the future. During the Finals, several AIGC training sessions and lectures were held, receiving a warm response from participants.

The competition organizing committee also invited tech enterprises to deploy AIGC interactive experience spaces and related AIGC products for the participants, providing substantial support for efficiently completing their creative solutions.

Personal image design based on AIGC

Leap Motion hand interaction

VR interaction

Digital avatar

Amid the intense competition, participants also engaged in fun activities such as AI Debates, VR Games, Who’s the Spy, Pictionary, Pitch Pot, Just Dance, and Summer Handmade, experiencing cultural exchanges and creating colorful competition memories.

Fun activities

At the award ceremony, the Higher Education Track awarded one Gold Award, two Silver Awards, three Bronze Awards, three Excellent Design Awards, three Excellent Creativity Awards, three Excellent Technology Innovation Awards, three Excellent Practice Awards, and seven Finalist Awards.

The team receiving the Gold Award

This year’s event was specially supported by Beijing Design Society and the Beijing Design Week Organizing Committee. The event is hosted by Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University and the National Engineering Research Center of Cyberlearning and Intelligent Technology. The competition is graced with partners like the Department of Educational Psychology at East China Normal University, Zagreb University of Applied Sciences in Croatia, Maldives Polytechnic, and Fuzhou Software Technology Vocational College, etc., supported by sponsors including NetDragon, Rotime Engineering and Technology, Alibaba Cloud, and Hifly.

The Finals have concluded, while the journey of educational innovation is endless. The power of education lies in continuous exploration and breakthroughs. Looking forward to meeting more educational innovators in next year’s competition, jointly embarking on a new journey of educational innovation, and embracing the limitless possibilities of future education.