Suyang News Update | Global Education Future Forum Held in Edinburgh: Internationalization, Innovation and Cooperation Discuss the New Picture of Future Education

OPENING

At the opening of the forum, Professor Peter Mathieson, President of the University of Edinburgh; Professor Carol Campbell, Dean of the Moray School of Education and Sports; Professor Hu Zhifeng, Dean of the School of Arts and Media at Beijing Normal University; Councillor Amy McNeese-Mechan, Councillor of Edinburgh; and Xing Zhongmei, Vice President of Beijing Normal University Education Group and Deputy Director of the Beijing Normal University Education and Training Center, took the stage to deliver speeches, deeply explaining the forum. Internationalization, innovation, and cooperation for the future."

Professor Peter Mathieson, President of the University of Edinburgh, shared in his speech on three key words: "authorization," "innovation," and "future," emphasizing that interdisciplinary collaboration and international exchange are the core drivers of educational innovation. The theme of this forum aligns closely with the University of Edinburgh's long-standing commitment to open communication, cross-sector collaboration, and forward-looking development missions. He warmly welcomed global education professionals to engage in in-depth intellectual exchanges here.

Professor Carol Campbell, Dean of the Moray School of Education and Physical Education, focuses on educational equity and inclusion, arguing that in the face of global change, educational innovation cannot be separated from collaborative governance. The Morey School of Education and Sports has long emphasized "innovation, cooperation, and social justice," and regards "equality, diversity, and inclusion" as key value foundations in education and research. She hopes that this forum will enable educators from different backgrounds to share experiences, learn from each other, and jointly consider a fairer, more inclusive, and sustainable educational future through cross-cultural and cross-institutional exchanges.

Professor Hu Zhifeng, Dean of the School of Arts and Media at Beijing Normal University, redefined the deeper meaning of education internationalization from a global educational development perspective. He proposed that true international exchange is not about one-way experience transfer, but about balancing three core relationships: adhering to a people-oriented approach, clarifying the primary and secondary boundaries between technology and people, and allowing technology to serve people rather than replace them; Break free from a single standard of short-term economic efficiency, and focus on the long-term innovative value of disciplines such as humanities and arts; Rooted in local education and culture, and based on its own mature practices, conduct equal international dialogue.

Edinburgh City Council member Amy McNeese-Mechan warmly welcomed the guests from the Chinese and UK education community, noting that August is the busiest and most internationally flaired season of the year in Edinburgh. As a councilor who maintains close ties with the city's cultural, arts, and science festival institutions, she has a large amount of work to participate in during the festival, but the internationalization of education and global cooperation are crucial, so she made a special trip to exchange ideas. Speaking about international exchange, she pointed out that Edinburgh has always been a city with a strong international spirit, long-standing connections with the world through education, culture, and intercity exchanges. At the same time, she wished all guests to experience Edinburgh's unique cultural atmosphere in August, and to use this forum as a starting point to promote more long-term and in-depth Sino-British educational and cultural cooperation.

Xing Zhongmei, Vice President of Beijing Normal University Education Group and Deputy Director of the Beijing Normal University Education and Training Center, mentioned in her speech that this forum, themed "Internationalization, Innovation, and Collaboration," builds a dialogue platform for academic research in universities, primary and secondary school teaching practice, and urban education governance. She especially emphasized that Sino-British educational cooperation should break free from the limitations of short-term visits and one-off projects, and build long-term mechanisms such as two-way training, joint research, co-construction of courses, and co-creation by youth. Relying on the network of affiliated (experimental) schools of Beijing Normal University, the Beijing Normal University Education Group and the Education and Training Center of Beijing Normal University look forward to jointly building a teaching and research community with the University of Edinburgh and local schools, sharing curriculum and teaching achievements, and continuously promoting Sino-British youth exchanges.

INNOVATION

The first seminar centered on "Educational Innovation and Future-Oriented Talent Cultivation." Representatives from Beijing Normal University Taizhou Experimental School, Beijing Normal University Nanshan Affiliated School, and Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School successively showcased the achievements of school-based specialty curriculum implementation. The sharing session concluded, followed by the first thematic roundtable discussion.

Wang Jin, Party Secretary of Beijing Normal University Taizhou Experimental School, shared on the topic "MEET Course: Using Drama as a Bridge to Move into Interdisciplinary Talent Cultivation in School Practice." The school focuses on students' comprehensive and personalized growth, building a MEET curriculum system composed of four dimensions: perception, inquiry, practice, and critical thinking. Drama serves as an interdisciplinary carrier, linking Chinese, English, aesthetic education, ideological and political education, and creating an integrated classroom model of "learning, thinking, creation, and performance." After eight years of dedicated cultivation, the school has completed more than forty stage play rehearsals, including 11 original productions, and has conducted over 25,000 class hours of drama teaching, with tens of thousands of students participating in practical courses. In the future, the school will continue to improve curriculum evaluation standards, promote the deep integration of AI technology and interdisciplinary drama courses, and return to the essence of holistic education.

Tian Ning, Deputy Director of the Academic Affairs Office at Beijing Normal University Nanshan Affiliated School, introduced the university's twelve-year integrated talent training system under the theme "Rooted in Cultural Heritage and Fertile Soil, Connecting to Cultivate True Talent." The school adheres to the pursuit of "True Education · Cultivating Real People," using four major integrated mechanisms—curriculum, teaching research, moral education, and evaluation—to break down barriers between primary, middle, and high school levels, and to build a complete and continuous talent cultivation chain. In primary school, the school relies on half-day extension courses, mathematical modeling, and life and cultural education to connect the classroom with daily life; Junior high promotes autonomous interdisciplinary inquiry through literacy classes and regional culture festivals; High school focuses on solving real problems and long-term life development, adapting to different students' growth needs through the college system and specialized subject competitions. Director Tian Ning stated that the school will continue to refine its integrated education model in the future, helping every student achieve comprehensive and personalized growth.

Hong Ali, Director of Teaching at the High School Department of Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School, presented "Innovative Curriculum Practice for High School Students Aimed at Cultivating Scientific Literacy." Facing the increasingly diverse learning foundations and development needs of high school students, the school has established three major advanced laboratories: Earth and Environment, Molecular Biology, and Traditional Chinese Medicine, and has built a three-level interdisciplinary curriculum system of "Foundational—Extended—Applied." Teacher Hong Ali stated that the value of science education is not only reflected in competition results or award certificates, but more importantly, in helping students develop scientific thinking, innovative awareness, and a sense of social responsibility through real problem inquiry. In the future, the university will further break down the barriers between basic education and cutting-edge research, allowing the seeds of technological innovation to be planted earlier in students' growth processes.

After the first course practice sharing session concluded, the first roundtable discussion began, focusing on innovative long-term course implementation paths and exploring how to transform course theory and frontline practical achievements into a sustainable linkage model across primary, secondary, and higher education. Dr. Wendy Timmons, Senior Lecturer in Dance Science and Education at the University of Edinburgh, shared the university's mature collaborative experience: universities connect industry organizations, primary and secondary schools, and communities to build collaborative education networks, bridging academic study, hands-on training, and students' long-term development.

Associate Dean Zhen Wei and Professor Ren Shengshu of the School of Arts and Media at Beijing Normal University, along with Dr. Derek Williams from the School of Art Edinburgh, among other guests, engaged in supplementary exchanges from diverse perspectives on art and aesthetic education, higher education development, and interdisciplinary teaching practice.

The guests reached a unified consensus: truly sustainable educational innovation should not be limited to one-off, short-term cooperation projects. Universities, basic education schools, and professional institutions need to build stable long-term partnerships, participate throughout the process in top-level curriculum design, regular teaching research reviews, and teacher professional growth cultivation, fundamentally breaking down the gap between academic research in universities and classroom practice in primary and secondary schools.

CREATIVE

The second session focused on creative teaching methods and the cultivation of broad comprehensive literacy, with representatives from Beijing Normal University Changping Affiliated School and Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School focusing on three types of innovative classrooms: drama, physical education, and distinctive interests, exploring diverse educational values. After the sharing, the second roundtable discussion session was held.

Yang Yang, Deputy Director of Primary School Teaching and Head of Drama Projects at Beijing Normal University Changping Affiliated School, shared the school's practical achievements in advancing educational drama over the past decade under the theme "Exploring Educational Drama Aimed at Cultivating Students' General Learning Abilities." The school has built a three-in-one learning development model for reading, thinking, and practical skills, relying on the complete educational drama process to complete the entire chain of learning input, thinking processing, and practical output. After three development stages: the implementation of school-based curricula, integration of traditional culture, and the construction of a cross-grade grand drama perspective, drama has evolved from a single artistic activity into a comprehensive educational platform covering all disciplines and all educational stages. The school is also supporting expert guidance from universities, regular teacher training, and regional drama education alliance exchange mechanisms, continuously exporting mature drama teaching experience externally and driving coordinated regional education development.

Yan Yu, a key physical education teacher at Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School, shared on "Learning Emotional Cognition and Resilience in Sports Games." He pointed out that physical education classes not only serve the functions of fitness and interest stimulation, but are also an important setting for emotional education and the shaping of sound personalities. Students face a variety of emotions through competition, collaboration, and trial and error. Teachers need to guide students to see, accept, and reasonably regulate negative emotions, regularly experiencing setbacks in a safe classroom environment. By weakening win-loss evaluation and strengthening process reviews, students are cultivated to develop resilience, empathy, and teamwork, truly achieving physical education and emotional development.

Wu Wenzhi, a key physical education teacher at Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School, gave a presentation titled "Quality Education and Innovative Courses for Primary and Secondary School Students—Introduction to Interest Cultivation Education and School-Based Specialty Courses," introducing the school's more than twenty-year development of interest courses. Since 2001, relying on Beijing's rich educational resources, the school has established six major course categories: fine arts and crafts, sports, arts and humanities, science and technology production, labor technology, and traditional culture, offering more than 140 course groups and more than 80 distinctive learning contents. Systematic courses, professional faculty, and regular achievement presentations provide students with a platform for long-term interest development. In the future, the school will further expand its international curriculum content to broaden students' global horizons.

The second roundtable focused on "how innovative, competency-oriented teaching can be implemented across different educational stages and national education systems." Around this topic, Dr. Paul McMillan, lecturer at the Moray School of Education and Sport at the University of Edinburgh and chairman of the Scottish Education Research Association; Professor Shen Jiliang from Beijing Normal University; Dr. Julie Smith, Associate Dean of the Moray School of Education and Sport at the University of Edinburgh; and Associate Professor Xiao Yan from the School of Arts and Media, Beijing Normal University, gathered to jointly discuss the practice of cultivating innovation capabilities in both China and the UK.

The guests outlined the educational reform approaches in China and the UK that adapt to the times: To respond to the wave of artificial intelligence development, China's basic education is advancing curriculum system reform in three aspects, deepening school-society integration and linkage, promoting interdisciplinary curriculum development, and simultaneously enriching diversified textbook carriers; Scotland relies on regular interaction among multiple stakeholders to stimulate teaching innovation. Education administrators and frontline teachers participate year-round in various research exchanges and annual special meetings, focusing on sharing, reflection, collaboration, and innovation centered on teaching practice.

INTERDISCIPLINARY

The third seminar focused on interdisciplinary learning and cross-cultural collaboration, with representatives from Beijing Normal University Haikou Affiliated School and Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School showcasing practical examples of integrating localized teaching with an international perspective, starting from regional aesthetic education, mathematics and science, and basic Chinese language disciplines. After the sharing session, the third special roundtable discussion began as scheduled.

Lu Bingrong, Principal of Beijing Normal University Haikou Affiliated School, shared his exploration of promoting local aesthetic education based on Hainan regional culture under the theme "Rooted in Local Aesthetic Education, Empowering Cross-Cultural Creativity—Creative Talent Training Practices Based on Hainan Regional Characteristics." Principal Lu Bingrong proposed that cross-cultural creativity is not simply imitating external cultures but should be based on a thorough understanding of one's own culture. The school fully utilizes Hainan's tropical ecology, marine culture, and Li and Miao traditional cultural resources to build an aesthetic education curriculum system with distinctive regional characteristics. At the primary level, creative art learning is conducted using natural materials such as coconut shells, shells, and mangrove branches and leaves; In junior high, courses focus on intangible cultural heritage projects such as Li brocade, indigo dyeing, pottery making, and batik embroidery; The music course integrates Hainan's natural soundscapes, Li and Miao ethnic instruments, and musical cultures from different countries into the classroom. Principal Lu Bingrong stated, "Cross-cultural creativity blooms on deep roots." Only by truly understanding the beauty of one's hometown can one better understand and empathize with the beauty of the world.

Liu Xuli, a key mathematics teacher at Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School, gave a presentation titled "Counting Along the Way, Moving Forward Warmly—Mathematical Literacy Education Based on Junior High School Academic Proficiency Exams," exploring the transformation of mathematics classrooms under core competency orientation in conjunction with Beijing's junior high school entrance exam reform. As exam evaluation gradually shifts from knowledge memorization and question type imitation to core competency assessments, mathematics learning pays more attention to whether students can observe the real world with a mathematical perspective, analyze it with mathematical thinking, and express it in mathematical language. The school integrates innovative forms such as life modeling, open-ended inquiry tasks, interdisciplinary practice, and students' independent topic presentations and question design, eliminating the drawbacks of practice-based teaching. Teacher Liu Xuli admitted that the entrance evaluation system will still impose constraints on the practical implementation of literacy mathematics, but in the long run, the rational thinking and decision-making abilities shaped by mathematical competence will accompany students throughout their lifelong growth.

Li Ruijuan, a key teacher at Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School, shared her experience on classroom reform in elementary mathematics on "Benchmarking Competency to Educate, Co-Building Innovative Courses—Classroom Reform Practices for Improving Quality and Efficiency in Primary School Mathematics." Based on fourteen years of frontline teaching experience, Teacher Li Ruijuan introduced practical exploration from four aspects: goal restructuring, curriculum integration, classroom transformation, and evaluation iteration. The school has built a three-tier goal system of "knowledge and skills—thinking and methods—core competencies," transforming relatively abstract core competencies into learning objectives that can be observed and evaluated in the classroom; At the same time, real-world issues such as "campus parking lot optimization design" are used as project carriers to promote math knowledge beyond textbooks into real life. Classroom teaching adopts a three-stage model of "inquiry before inquiry — presentation and peer evaluation—guidance and enhancement," and enhances student autonomy through micro-innovations such as math mini-lectures and independent question setting. In terms of evaluation, through a multi-dimensional "process + result" approach, students' literacy development can be continuously observed, tracked, and fed back.

Ji Xueli, a key Chinese teacher at Beijing Normal University Asia-Pacific Experimental School, gave a cross-cultural educational dialogue titled "Interdisciplinary Development and Frontier Trends—School-Based Practice of the Junior High School Chinese 'Interdisciplinary Learning' Task Group," starting from China's compulsory education curriculum reform and engaging in Scottish interdisciplinary learning practices. She pointed out that China's new compulsory education curriculum plan in 2022 clearly requires each subject to allocate no less than 10% of its class hours to interdisciplinary thematic learning. A key question arises: when interdisciplinarity becomes a course requirement, does it actually dilute the depth of the discipline itself? Focusing on this question, she provided answers through two school-based practices: implementing micro-theater adaptations during the entire reading of "Rickshaw Boy," forcing students to repeatedly read the original text; Poetry study is complemented by poetry and painting creation, using visual creation to test literary understanding. Two types of practice have proven that high-quality interdisciplinary learning can solidify the foundation of disciplines rather than dilute professional depth. To address current teaching pain points, schools adopt process-based evaluation methods such as task sheets and multi-subject peer evaluation, but how to accurately distinguish between the depth of text comprehension and the level of artistic expression remains a topic for ongoing exploration.

The third roundtable focused on core topics: how to overcome the limitations of single-project-based collaboration, establish long-term linkage mechanisms, and continuously empower interdisciplinary learning development. Dr. Hui-Chuan (Jane) Li, lecturer in mathematics education at the Moray School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh; Fellow of the British Society of Mathematics and Its Applications; Sonia Edwards, Vice Principal of St George's School; and Professor Wang Jie from the School of Arts and Media at Beijing Normal University, shared the stage to discuss the implementation paths for cultivating innovative literacy, combining case studies from both China and the UK.

Combining the practice of cultivating innovation capabilities between China and the UK, the guests proposed that all cross-border inter-university cooperation should be based on shared educational values to build communication bonds, guide students to set goals for shared growth, perceive diverse civilizations through cross-cultural interaction, and cultivate a global perspective. A unified consensus was formed on site: an international perspective is by no means a supplementary content outside the curriculum, but should be deeply integrated into the entire teaching process, serving as the core thread of curriculum design and educational practice. Cultivating a comprehensive international perspective not only strengthens students' cross-cultural understanding abilities but also simultaneously hones academic inquiry, communication, and collaboration to support innovative development.

COOPERATION

At the end of the forum exchange, Zhen Wei, Associate Dean and PhD supervisor at the School of Arts and Media at Beijing Normal University, and Xing Zhongmei, Vice President of the Beijing Normal University Education Group and Deputy Director of the Education and Training Center at Beijing Normal University, formally invited the Moray School of Education and Sports and the Internationalisation Futures Network (IFN) to visit China on site. All parties at the meeting unanimously agreed that this Edinburgh Global Education Future Forum is a new starting point for deep collaboration between the two sides, and will continue to broaden communication channels around five major areas: international education research, teacher professional development, distinctive curriculum innovation, interdisciplinary teaching practice, and inter-school collaboration among primary and secondary schools.

Both parties have reached a consensus on cooperation. In the future, the educational ideas and practical achievements sparked by this forum will be extended to Beijing for practical exchanges. Through diverse cooperation projects such as mutual visits, joint academic seminars, paired school co-construction, and joint research and development of teaching practice, the goal is to promote the establishment of a long-term, stable, and pragmatic strategic cooperation mechanism between the University of Edinburgh and its partner primary and secondary schools, the Beijing Normal University Education and Training Center, and the Beijing Normal University Education Group, creating a dynamic and sustainable platform for Sino-British basic education exchange.