Keynote Speakers

Prof. Tak-Wai Chan
Chair Professor,
National Central University, Taiwan
Prof. W. Lewis Johnson
Professor,
University of Southern California
Prof. Maria Roussou
Professor,
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
Prof. Yu-Ju Lan
Chair Professor,
National Taiwan Normal University

From AI Companions for Learning to AI Companions for Global Harwell

Prof. Tak-Wai Chan

National Chair Professor
National Central University, Taiwan


 
Speaker Bio
Professor Tak-Wai Chan is a visionary. In 1988, he published his PhD thesis on AI learning companions, a groundbreaking research on AI in education (AIED). After completing his PhD in the USA in 1989, he worked on a series of network learning research projects at National Central University. Together with his colleagues, he developed the first dedicated network learning system in the world to support collaborative learning and competitive game-based learning, published in 1992. He launched the world's largest online learning community, EduCities, in 2000. He has been at the forefront of research on intelligent classrooms, one-to-one technology-enhanced learning, and mobile learning, and proposed the notion of Seamless Learning in 2006. To support the long-term transformation of Asian education from examination-driven to interest and creation-driven, he developed the Interest-Driven Creator (IDC) Theory with Asian scholars in 2018. Currently, he promotes Global Harmony and Wellbeing (Global Harwell) as a shared Global Educational Goal. Professor Chan was a key co-founder of the Asia-Pacific Society for Computers in Education (APSCE) and the Global Chinese Society for Computers in Education (GCSCE). These societies organize annual conference series ICCEs and GCCCEs and publish their official journals. He also founded the Association of Reading for Tomorrow and a mini experimental elementary school in Taiwan.
Abstract
In 1988, I proposed the concept of AI companions for learning and developed a prototype of it. Today, AI is seen as a potential threat to human beings. In fact, humanity is facing unprecedented challenges—millions of lives lost to COVID-19, climate change, resource depletion, environmental pollution, and wealth disparity. Furthermore, the escalation of global conflicts raises concerns about the possibility of a nuclear apocalypse and World War III. The world is teetering on the brink of peril. We must ask: What is the very reason for the existence of the human knowledge and technologies we have created? What is the meaning of going to school? What is education? However, researchers in our field have long been focusing on how students learn and what they learn, but not why they learn. The resurgence of AI, particularly AI companions, therefore, must be able to guide us from how we learned and what we knew in the past to how we’ll learn and what we need to know in the future. Much more important is that we must adopt Global Harwell (a term combining harmony and wellbeing) as a shared global educational goal and build AI companions to assist in achieving this goal. This talk is based on a series of nascent thoughts on AI learning companions developed with my colleagues in Taiwan, as well as on the Global Harwell Goal in collaboration with international researchers.

Pedagogical Agents in the Age of Generative AI

W. Lewis Johnson

Professor
University of Southern California


 
Speaker Bio
Dr. W. Lewis Johnson co-founded Alelo in 2005 as a spinout of the University of Southern California, under his leadership Alelo has developed into a major producer of innovative learning solutions. Alelo’s AI-powered pedagogical agents to help people rapidly learn new skills. Alelo has developed learning products for use in a number of countries around the world, with over 500,000 learners to date. Dr. Johnson is a co-winner of the DARPATech Technical Achievement Award, the IFAAMAS Influential Paper Award, and the XPRIZE Rapid Resklilling Competition. He speaks Chinese, Russian, and other languages of the East Asian region.
Abstract
Generative AI is powering a new generation of pedagogical agents that are highly effective and can transform how people learn. Pedagogical agents are now more adaptive and personalized than has ever been possible before. They give learners opportunities to practice new skills in a safe environment, resulting in rapid learning gains and improved retention.
Generative AI is also transforming the workforce, and this poses challenges for training, education, and society at large. As organizations adopt generative AI, jobs are being transformed and entry-level positions are being eliminated. Pedagogical agents can help people quickly develop the skills that they will need to succeed in the workforce of the future, including people skills, critical thinking, and responsible use of AI.
This talk will discuss current trends in generative AI and pedagogical agents and also look toward the future, as generative AI expands its capabilities and is integrated into education and training.

Designing Reflexivity into Extended Reality Experiences for Learning

Maria Roussou

Professor
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens


 
Speaker Bio
Dr. Maria Roussou is an Associate Professor in Interactive Systems at the University of Athens. Her career-long explorations of Virtual Reality and Human-Computer Interaction have been positioned at the nexus of education and culture, specializing in designing, developing, and evaluating digital environments and XR experiences for formal and informal education. She holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of London (UCL); a Master in Fine Arts in Electronic Visualization and an MSc in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago; and a BSc in Applied Informatics from the Athens University of Economics and Business. She is the recipient of the 2013 Tartessos Award in Digital Heritage and Virtual Archaeology.
Abstract
The integration of immersive experiences into learning has reached a pivotal stage, coinciding with the emergence, accompanied by heightened expectations, of the metaverse and its promise to revolutionize social dynamics. Cultural institutions are actively exploring the metaverse's potential to enrich visitor engagement. In this keynote, I draw from case studies of extended reality applications, emphasizing their role as exploratory tools to foster reflexivity, sociality, hybridity, and historical empathy across diverse cultural landscapes. My aim is to address the complexities encountered during design and implementation, particularly focusing on aspects that may undermine the authenticity of social and cultural nuances within shared physical and virtual spaces. By examining both sophisticated XR applications and lower-end mobile applications, I showcase the evolution of immersive experiences evolving from didactic presentations to interactive, emotive, and socially engaging environments. Through leveraging interactive storytelling and participatory elements, immersive technologies in informal learning can facilitate deeper learning, reflective practices, and historical resonance while preserving the essence of human interaction.

New Realities in Language Education: Enhancing language Learning through the metaverse and AI

Yu-Ju Lan

Research Chair Professor
National Taiwan Normal University


 
Speaker Bio
Dr. Yu-Ju Lan is a Research Chair Professor in the Department of Chinese as a Second Language at National Taiwan Normal University. She is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Educational Technology & Society, Associate Editor of Language Learning & Technology, and on the editorial board of Ampersand. She was awarded the Outstanding Research Award by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), Taiwan, in 2022. Dr. Lan is the founding president of the Taiwan Pedagogy and Practice in TELL Association. Her research interests include technology-enhanced foreign language learning, virtual reality, AI, and online synchronous teacher training. Association.
Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) has long been playing an essential role in language education. However, the recent emergence of generative AI models like ChatGPT and Midjourney has reignited interest in the potential of AI applications in education, prompting both excitement and caution. Generative AI holds considerable promise for revolutionizing education across various fronts. With the advent of the Metaverse era, hailed as a transformative phase in internet evolution, there's an urgent need for educators and researchers to reassess the relationship between humans and AI as we reshape our teaching, learning, and everyday experiences. As educators, it's imperative that we engage in open conversations about integrating the Metaverse and AI into language learning, topics that are currently at the forefront of academic discourse. In light of this, the speech will cover several key areas, including an introduction to the Metaverse and generative AI, their practical application in language learning, the opportunities they present, the challenges they pose, and recommendations for future research.