2025 Keynotes
Prof. Fatos Xhafa
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), Spain
Editor in Chief: Elsevier Book Series "Intelligent Data Centric Systems"
Editor in Chief: Springer Book Series "Data Engineering and Communication Technologies"
Editor in Chief: Internet of Things; Engineering Cyber Physical Human Systems, Elsevier
Biography: Fatos Xhafa, PhD in Computer Science, is Full Professor at the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Barcelona, Spain. He has held various tenured and visiting professorship positions. He was a Visiting Professor at the University of Surrey, UK (2019/2020), Visiting Professor at the Birkbeck College, University of London, UK (2009/2010) and a Research Associate at Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA (2004/2005). Prof. Xhafa has widely published in peer reviewed international journals, conferences/workshops, book chapters, edited books and proceedings in the field (H-index 62). Prof. Xhafa has an extensive editorial service. He is founder and Editor-In-Chief of Internet of Things - Journal - Elsevier (Scopus and WoS Science) and of International Journal of Grid and Utility Computing, (Scopus and WoS Science). Prof. Xhafa is a member of the IEEE Communications Society, IEEE Systems, Man & Cybernetics Society and Founder Member of Emerging Technical Subcommittee of Internet of Things. His research interests include IoT and Cloud-to-thing continuum computing, massive data processing and collective intelligence, optimization, and machine learning, among others. Please visit http://www.cs.upc.edu/~fatos/ and http://dblp.uni-trier.de/pers/hd/x/Xhafa:Fatos.
Speech Title: Open Data and Open Science in Education and Learning Technologies
The fast advances in Data Science, Artificial Intelligence and other technologies of Cloud-to-Thing-Continuum Computing have propelled the design and development of Open Data and Open Science in many fields to achieve high research standards. Similar initiatives and efforts are found in the education and learning communities. Indeed, Open Data and Open Science are cornerstones to research and technology in education and learning. In this talk we will address the recent trends in Open Data and Open Science in education with a focus on how to successfully support research and technology in these fields. The talk will be exemplified with a real life case study of designing and building an open data set for emotion in learning for the purposes of scaffolding students and achieving high learning outcomes.
Prof. Piet Kommers
University of Twente, The Netherlands
Biography: Dr Piet Kommers is an emeritus professor at the University of Twente in the Netherlands and a UNESCO professor of Learning Technologies. His research focuses on the conditions for mediated learning: collaborative, vicarious, web-based, AI- and VR-enabled. The foundation of Piet’s learning theories is the structure of knowledge and its conceptual nature as needed for problem solving and creative thinking. In the late 70ies, he explored the various rationales for adaptive hypertext. Students who tend to digress on the outskirts of episodic memorization tended to suffer from a typically weaker short-term memory and thus need a considerably longer time-on-task. However, they developed a much more interconnected semantic memory in the long run and became better problem solvers. The students who accept the linear-prescribed order of information showed a better short-term memory and learned quicker, however suffered from a more brittle long-term memory. Similar patterns were seen in the fields of 3D spatial learning games, such as surgical training and group heterogeneity in collaborative learning tasks. One deficiency in learning modality causes secondary effects that help the learner survive the more complex task performance in real life. This lecture will bring you to the ideational question of learning optimization: what instructional and curricular measures are plausible interventions that are likely candidates for a better learning condition? The recent book ’Sources for a better Education’ has recently been published and surpassed the expectations worldwide.
Speech Title: A.I.: The Need for Conceptual Thinking in Education
His lecture addresses the challenge of upgrading criteria for new student assessment procedures, as artificial intelligence now provides the most up-to-date understanding and application of human expertise.
•What new didactic measures are needed to encourage students to reconcile new with prior knowledge?
•How to fully exploit STEAM (the thematic integration among curricular pillars like Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics)?
•What future facilities for teachers and learners are needed in Open A.I. to stimulate intuition and imagination?
•Demystify ‘Conceptual Thinking’ to let students work together in creative problem-solving.
•How to instigate ‘critical thinking’ to make students resilient towards fake news?
•‘Existential awareness’ and ‘learning by heart’; how to arrange Problem-Based Learning for social-cognitive development?
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Prof. Thorsten Fröhlich
IU International University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Biography: Thorsten Fröhlich is an IT Management and Big Data Professor at the IU International University of Applied Sciences. His expertise includes applied artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, IT management and digital marketing. His research focuses on the practical application of AI in education, ethics and natural language processing (NLP). As a recognised expert, he lectures on AI and ethics in education in collaboration with UNESCO, among others. He recently published a comprehensive compendium on scientific writing with M.C. Hemmer. After studying chemistry at the University of Cologne, he completed his doctorate in physical chemistry in 1992. He has been an entrepreneur since 1987 and has founded several successful companies in software development, IT management and digital marketing for the life science industry. As a business angel, he supports student start-ups and promotes innovative technology projects.
Speech Title: No Robot Left Behind: Ensuring Fairness and Human Agency in AI-Driven Higher Education
As generative AI becomes embedded in higher education, the challenge is to harness its potential and ensure that no one, human or system, is left behind in the pursuit of fairness, trust, and educational equity. This talk presents the AI CARE Framework—Compliance, Accountability, Responsibility, Ethics—as a practical guide for institutions to govern AI responsibly. Drawing on global insights from the EU AI Act, UNESCO AI Ethics, and real-world case studies, we explore how universities can operationalize accountability across technical, ethical, and pedagogical domains. Attendees will gain strategies for aligning AI with human values, ensuring robust oversight, and maintaining human agency in an increasingly automated world of learning.