GINTL-JoLII webinar series ‘Dialogues on education and society’

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TopicsEvent series

The GINTL-JoLII Webinar Series ‘Dialogues on Education and Society’ engages leading experts in dialogues on Chinese and Finnish education and society with comparative broader European and global perspective. The dialogues are in various formats, and they are targeted to researchers, policymakers, education practitioners, and administrators.

The organisers

This webinar series is jointly organised by the Global Innovation Network for Teaching and Learning (GINTL) and the Sino-Finnish Education Research Centre (SFERC) of the Sino-Finnish Joint Learning Innovation Institute (JoLII).

Webinars in the series

An overview of the past and upcoming webinars of the series are listed below. More information as well as the presentation slides and recordings of the individual webinars can be found on the respective event page of each webinar session.

  1. Education tendencies and reforms in China and Finland 
  2. Reimagining the Future of Education
  3. Regional universities transformation in China – What can be learned from the Finnish UAS reform?
  4. Higher education cooperation between China and Finland: Opportunities and challenges
  5. Worklife relevance of secondary vocational education in China and Finland 
  6. Models and organisation of teacher professional development in the Finnish and Chinese education system
  7. Education and Sustainable Development Goals: Policies in China and Finland
  8. Phenomenon-based learning in the eyes of Chinese and Finnish educationalists
  9. Cultural traditions and modern education: Experiences in China and Finland
  10. Reforms on higher education admissions in China and Finland

Webinar 1 – Education tendencies and reforms in China and Finland 

1.3.2022 | 13:00–14:15 Finnish time | 19:00–20:15 Beijing time

The speakers introduce current reforms and development tendencies in Chinese and Finnish education systems. They will also engage in a facilitated dialogue discussing issues, such as:

  • How can the tendencies of education reforms in both countries be compared?
  • How can China learn from the experience of Finland and vice versa?
  • How can the Chinese and Finnish experiences help address global challenges in education?

This webinar features speakers Jussi Välimaa from the Finnish Institute for Educational Research (FIER) at the University of Jyväskylä, Liu Baocun from the Institute of International and Comparative Education at Beijing Normal University. The event is facilitated by Yuzhuo Cai, Co-Director of Sino-Finnish Education Research Institute, JoLII at Tampere University.

Webinar 2 – Reimagining the Future of Education

6.4.2022 | 13:30–14:45 Finnish time | 18:30–19:45 Beijing time

The speakers with share their perspectives to the future of education as it is laid out in the UNESCO’s 2021 report “Reimagining Our Futures Together”. They will also engage in a facilitated dialogue discussing issues including:

  • How do the supranational organizations such as UNESCO aim to influence education development in Finland, China, and globally?
  • How does the UNESCO’s vision for the future of education align with scalable education innovation around the world?

This webinar features speakers Teng Jun (Institute of International and Comparative Education, Beijing Normal University), Johanna Kallo (Academy Researcher, Faculty of Education, University of Turku), and Crystal Green (Head of Research, HundrED organisation).

Webinar 3 – Regional universities transformation in China – What can be learned from the Finnish UAS reform?

19.5.2022 | 13:00–14:15 Finnish time | 18:00–19:15 Beijing time

Webinar recording on YouTube

The event discusses findings from the Finnish universities of applied sciences reform in relation to the case of the transformations of regional universities in China. The webinar features guest speakers Po Yang from Peking University and Ritva Laakso-Manninen from Professional Publishing Finland with facilitator Yuzhuo Cai, Co-Director of Sino-Finnish Education Research Institute, JoLII, at Tampere University.

Webinar 4 – Higher education cooperation between China and Finland: Opportunities and challenges

21.6.2022 | 13:00–14:15 Finnish time | 19:30–20:45 Beijing time

Webinar recording on YouTube

In this webinar speakers Jing Meiying, Deputy Director for International Cooperation at the Chinese National Academy of Education Administration (NAEA), Mari-Anna Suurmunne, Counsellor of Education and Science at the Finnish Embassy in Beijing, and David (Wei) Liu, University of Alberta International (Canada) discuss opportunities, challenges, and recommendations for the collaboration of Finnish and Chinese higher education institutions. The event is moderated by Yuzhuo Cai, Co-Director of Sino-Finnish Education Research Institute, JoLII at Tampere University.

Webinar 5 – Worklife relevance of secondary vocational education in China and Finland 

23.8.2022 | 13:00–14:15 Finnish time | 18:00–19:15 Beijing time

Webinar recording on YouTube

The fifth event in the GINTL-JoLII webinar series ‘Dialogues on education and society’, co-organised by the Global Innovation Network of Teaching and Learning (GINTL) and Sino-Finnish Education Research Centre (SFERC) of the Sino-Finnish Joint Learning Innovation Institute (JoLII), took place on 23 August 2022. The event featured guest speakers Wu Xueping, professor of education at the Zhejiang University, College of Education and Sanna Nummela, who is is currently working in EduCluster Finland as a service director within responsibility of planning and implementing teacher training and vocation education training programmes. The event was moderated by Olli-Pekka Malinen, GINTL China regional expert.

Webinar 6 – Models and organisation of teacher professional development in the Finnish and Chinese education system 

13.9.2022 | 13:00–14:30 Finnish time | 18:00–19:30 Beijing time

Webinar recording on YouTube

The speakers of this webinar were Congman Rao from the Faculty of Education at Northeast Normal University, China, and Jari Lavonen from the Faculty of Educational Sciences at the University of Helsinki. Prof. Rao presented the topic ‘Retrospect and prospect of the teacher education reform in China since the 1990s’, while Prof. Lavonen talked about ‘Teachers’ professional learning in Finland: Providers of education in key role’. Tapio Lahtero, Administrative Principal of the Helsinki University Teacher Training Schools, served as the commentator for both presentations.

Webinar 7 – Education and Sustainable Development Goals: Policies in China and Finland

13.10.2022 | 13:00–14:30 Finnish time | 18:00–19:30 Beijing time

In 2015, the United Nations (UN) adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, providing a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and in the future. The implementation of the blueprint is through achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), set by the UN’s 2030 Agenda. This has significant implications for education. Besides the SDG 4: Quality Education, education is key to the success of the remaining SDGs (UNESCO, 2017). In this webinar researchers from China and Finland will share their insights and research findings related to education and sustainability.

In this webinar, Lili-Ann Wolff (Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Helsinki) will be presenting on “Sustainable educational leadership” and Huang Yu (Institute of International and Comparative Education, Beijing Normal University) will introduce the topic of “Green transition in higher education: Universities for sustainable development”.

Webinar 8 – Phenomenon-based learning in the eyes of Chinese and Finnish educationalists 

8.11.2022 | 13:00–14:30 Finnish time | 19:00–20:30 Beijing time

Webinar recording on YouTube

This webinar features Kirsti Lonka from the University of Helsinki and Yang Mingquan from the Beijing Normal University as the speakers, and Sari Muhonen from the University of Helsinki Teacher Training School as the commentator.

Webinar 9 – Cultural traditions and modern education: Experiences in China and Finland 

13.12.2022 | 13:00-14:15 Finnish time | 19:00-20:15 Beijing time

Webinar recording on YouTube

In the ninth webinar of this series, the speakers Jyrki Kallio (Finnish Institute of International Affairs, FIIA) and Xiaoyang Wang (Capital Normal University) share how certain aspects of education were understood in the ancient Confucian texts and tradition. In addition, they will reflect how those understandings are connected to present-day expressions concerning the purpose of education in China. The speakers and chair Baocun Liu (Beijing Normal University) will also reflect what the modern higher education could learn and adopt from the Confucian tradition.

Webinar 10 – Opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence for higher education pedagogy

28.2.2023 | 12:00-13:15 Finnish time | 18:00-19:15 Beijing time

The 10th webinar of the series “Dialogues on education and society” goes into the potential and challenges that artificial intelligence (AI) carries with it when it comes to higher education. In this webinar, speakers Yu Lu (School of Educational Technology; Beijing Normal University) and Anna-Mari Rusanen (University of Helsinki; Ministry of Finance of Finland), together with chair Olli-Pekka Malinen (Global Innovation Network for Teaching and Learning; University of Helsinki) explore the opportunities and challenges of using AI in higher education, and discuss best practices for integrating AI into teaching, learning and research.

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Project coordinators

GINTL Finnish higher education institutions