Caught between expansive world-building and the status quo: Using figured worlds to understand world-building in AI for educational co-design contexts

This article documents and analyzes the deployment of the "Manual of Daily Actions to Survive in This Crazy World," an artistic tool designed to address discomforts of daily life through the practice of action art. Originally created by the Batas Nómadas collective for Madrid Salud's mental health awareness campaign, this tool has proven its versatility by being adapted to multiple environments. Three of its main applications are detailed: its use as an educational program in high schools in collaboration with the Fundación Manantial; its transformation into an online learning resource for the Master's in Teacher Training at UNIR; and its activation as a research-creation tool within the framework of this conference. The text explores how this manual facilitates a participatory approach to health, using art as a driver for promoting well-being and resilience in various social and educational contexts.

The purpose of this research study is to examine the status quo bias and reframing interventions among business students in an attempt to understand their role in the students’ entrepreneurial decision making, aiming eventually to find out whether we can affect students’ entrepreneurial thinking by using an educational intervention towards innovation and change adoption. Though these research topics have previously been examined separately and mostly in a non-entrepreneurial context, this research paper aims to integrate them into one laboratory experiment study in an educational context, considering business students at the university. The experimental study is conducted on a sample with more than 200 undergraduate university students in their third or fourth year of studies of the Management study program at the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje. Overall, we find that students are significantly biased towards status quo in 7 out of 18 cases, demonstrating a moderate level of status quo bias. The results from the second part of our study evidence a strong effect of the reframing intervention on overcoming the status quo bias. In any case, the research paper adds a unique practical contribution by offering an actual entrepreneurship learning approach, as an intervention towards the innovation and change adoption among students at business schools and universities.

This poster presents the overview and the first step of the PhD project Chinese Education at Confucius Institutes in Belgium: A Pedagogical and Socio-Cultural Perspective. In recent decades, the enhanced globalization (Badwan, 2021) and mobility (McWilliams, 2008) have increased the complexity in foreign language classrooms in multilingual contexts (Bonnet & Siemund, 2018). It is thus worthwhile to explore the dynamics among diverse pedagogical and socio-cultural factors in real-life practices of foreign language education. Situating this issue in Belgium, this project investigates Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) education at local Confucius Institutes (CIs), aiming to provide insights into educational approaches at CIs as designed; delivered and received by different stakeholders (administrators, teachers, and learners). In the sections of Project Overview and Research Design of the poster, the key information on the project is summarized. First of all, Research questions identify the scope of the research, probing mainly in the following directions: What are the gaps between actual local educational practices at CIs in Belgium and CIs’ official educational objectives? To what extent does the teaching of CFL at CIs reflect Belgian learners’ socio-cultural backgrounds? What are the pedagogical and managerial practices exerted at CIs in Belgium? How do these pedagogical and managerial practices interact with local socio-cultural contexts? It is evident from the Research questions that the project mainly focuses on the potential misalignment between official objectives and on-site practices of management, teaching, and learning at CIs in Belgium, as well as the interplay of local socio-cultural factors (e.g., language conflicts, language ideology) in such educational contexts. In regard to Methodology, a mixed methods approach is chosen for data collection, in order to tackle the research questions from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives. A variety of data collection instruments including interviews, classroom observations, and a survey questionnaire are applied among three main target groups, namely, administrators, CFL teachers, and CFL learners at CIs in Belgium. The section on Research design then synthesizes the key information of the project in a multilayered structure. At the outer layer, the official objectives of CIs are examined through document analysis. The inner layers of Administrators, Teachers, and Learners are then studied by employing fitted data collection instruments, with the foci on the status quo and the relevant socio-cultural factors. For example, the target group of teachers triggers the research on local socio-cultural contexts of CFL teaching, and the current teaching methods and classroom practices conducted by the CFL teachers at CIs in Belgium. Hence, interview and classroom observation data are collected to analyze these aspects. The next section on First Step of the Project provides general information on the initial systematic review of the project, which is a review of post-2010 literature on the administration at CIs around the globe. In the total research project, it is situated at the inner layer of Administrators of Research Design, acting as a preparatory study for the empirical research on administrators at CIs in Belgium, in order to tackle Research question ① and ③. The aim of this systematic review is to examine the actual managerial practices at CIs in different areas, especially regarding the misalignment of CIs’ official objectives in local institutions. The article selection routine follows the PRISMA guidelines (Page, M. J. et al., 2021) with “Confucius Institutes/CIs” as the search term. 347 articles were selected with research foci in seven categories and cases from 46 countries/regions. Relevant contents of the selected articles are then extracted for Thematic analysis, based on which a Coding tree of themes with three levels of generalization is constructed in the section of Present Findings. Level 1 of the coding tree is developed from the research aim of the systematic review, namely, to map CIs’ official status (Overview of CIs' management) and CIs’ actual managerial practices (successes, problems, and suggestions), which are then deconstructed. The practical sides of CIs’ management are categorized in the three most relevant aspects of Management, Education, and Intercultural communication at Level 2. Themes for further analysis surface at Level 3 and stand for the most prominent messages of the upper-level categories. For instance, the Level 3 theme “Lack of local socio-cultural concern” reflects one aspect of key information of the Level 1 and Level 2 categories “Problems of CIs' management – Management”. Finally, the Conclusion section of the poster states the strengths of the research project and the next step following the first step. The project is encompassing educational research collecting data from multiple sources, and the output might improve the localization of CFL education and intercultural understanding of such global educational institutions. The ensuing step of the project will be the systematic reviews of the other two target groups of teachers and learners as well as their practices at CIs.

School leaders, who subscribe to social justice leadership (SJL), are situated to combat inequitable outcomes inherently produced by educational contexts. For school leaders to transform inequitable systems, they must develop a broad and deep understanding of social justice in their leadership preparation programmes and beyond. Through qualitative interview data, we uncover the needs of graduates of an SJL doctoral preparation programme, who work in affluent school contexts in the USA. Affluent schools are defined as economically elite contexts, which ultimately can engender an ‘economic elite domination’ (Gilens and Page 2014, p. 566). SJL is needed in these contexts in order to dismantle the status quo and educate affluent students to work for and with others. Findings suggest that while graduates improved their own sense of leading for change, they often experienced tension attempting to overturn the status quo due to social and political pressures. Graduates often had different views than their colleagues, leading to alienation and burn-out. Insights from graduates about the implications for professional learning to lead socially just schools that touch upon the complex factors that impede aspirations for social justice, are highlighted in this manuscript.

Inclusive school environments require collaboration between teachers and allied health professionals to promote student access and participation. Collaboration is a complex phenomenon with no universally accepted definition or measurement and with many challenges to effective practice. The purpose of this scoping review is to describe what is known about interprofessional collaboration between teachers and therapists in inclusive primary schools. A scoping review of health and education literature was conducted using the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology. Peer-reviewed articles reporting on empirical studies with a focus on collaboration between teachers and school-based occupational therapists or speech and language therapists in inclusive primary schools were included. Results summarise how collaboration is reported in the literature. Numerical and descriptive summaries describe how collaboration is defined and measured, the challenges to collaborative practice, the structures required to support effective practice, and the outcomes of such practice. Definitions vary between studies and disciplines but contain common elements. For effective practice, the purpose of the collaboration must be clear, and the intended outcomes of the collaboration are measured. Measurement of collaboration requires further research using tools developed from robust theoretical frameworks and validated within the educational context and with professionals of different disciplines. Consistent measurement tools would allow cross-study comparisons. Barriers to collaborative practice are well documented; thus, future research should be directed to examining effective practice, investigating how professionals circumvent obstacles.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning, plus (LGBTQ+) youth experience significant health challenges relative to their peers, including higher rates of HIV, sexually transmitted infections, and mental health symptoms, partly due to minority stressors. Digital health interventions hold promise for addressing these issues, but their effectiveness hinges on human-centered co-design that ensures relevance and engagement. This study aimed to examine the use of Discord as a platform for conducting human-centered design (HCD) activities to adapt a digital text-based intervention designed to improve HIV testing rates among LGBTQ+ youth. We recruited 21 LGBTQ+ youth (aged 13-18 years) in the United States via social media and participant registries, oversampling minoritized gender, racial, and ethnic identities to ensure diverse representation. Over 9 months, participants engaged in structured HCD activities on a private Discord server, including polls, open-ended discussions, and interactive feedback tasks. Design insights were collected iteratively and used to refine the intervention in real time. We also surveyed participants to examine the acceptability of Discord as a tool for hosting the HCD process. We identified best practices for integrating HCD methods within Discord, including cocreating the server environment with participants and enabling real-time iteration of intervention components based on youth input. The privacy of the Discord server supported psychological safety; facilitated open and effective communication between participants and the research team; and fostered an informal, familiar atmosphere. Discord provides an effective and acceptable environment for conducting HCD processes in the design of digital health interventions. Its structural features, including anonymity, accessibility, and community-driven interaction, facilitated meaningful youth engagement in co-design activities. These insights offer a model for leveraging social media platforms to support participatory intervention development for LGBTQ+ populations.

Civic engagement has become a threat to the current state of affairs since Egypt’s 2014 presidential elections. The blooming of motivated and active organisations, informal groups and social entrepreneurs had definitely not been foreseen in the Mubarak era, and is still rarely accounted for in current political analysis. The daily ordinary practice of mundane people, not always linked to consolidated NGOs, development organisations or state institutions, has given birth to a very organic non-movement that has proven its ability to deal with diversity (in the many possible combinations of class, religion, gender and age) for the betterment of their communities in successful ways. Youth participation and young women’s involvement has been important in challenging the previous nation-State narrative and in the genesis of this movement. Nonetheless, youth engagement and their potential have seriously been constrained by stagnant old regime structures, difficulties in accessing funds, bureaucracy and heavy repression. All of these were elements manufactured and controlled by Mubarak’s regime, that have found continuity in the current State committed to restoring the status quo ante, prioritising security over rights, and not allowing civil engagement outside its strict paradigms. As such, the public sphere has been assimilated as the exclusive domain of the State/Government. This paper will address the particularities of this organic non-movement with regards to young women’s civic engagement in addition to the specific constraints that derive from its interaction with gender politics, with a particular focus on conventional forms of advocacy by state institutions and consolidated NGOs, and their links to international funding.

This article reviews the implementation and outcomes of a social action research, university-community partnership titled Building Information Technology Skills (BITS). BITS trains high school–age youth in geographic field methods to gather and analyze geospatial information as a means of fostering their civic engagement and motivation to persist in the study of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) disciplines. The program was designed from its inception to be culturally, historically, and geographically relevant. In order to accomplish this, the authors leveraged access to and use of the Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection as a beginning point for the youth in the program to consider and focus on the relationships between place, history, and digital geospatial technologies. This was achieved by introducing the youth involved in the program to geographic information through an inventory of historic markers depicting African American sites of interest in Philadelphia. The primary aim of the social action methods employed was to simultaneously increase the interest, engagement and geographic skills among the youth participants and to create a digital archive related to the historic markers that could in and of itself become a resource for the education of youth and community members in Philadelphia. Use of the Blockson Collection anchored the program's goals of a) advancing digital inclusion and digital content creation among relatively under-represented communities and b) promoting youth empowerment by fostering the development of STEM skills and engagement within a university setting. In grounding the acquisition of field methods and geospatial information technology skills in an understanding of local history and culture, the BITS program mutually reinforces the dual-objective of advancing STEM engagement and creating a more-empowering geography for students to learn from.

This study examines the identity construction of graduate teaching volunteers in China’s rural education context, focusing on the Graduate Teaching Volunteer Program in Western China. Using Dugas’s Identity Triangle Model and Wenger’s Communities of Practice theory as integrated frameworks, the research investigates how volunteers navigate professional identity in unfamiliar and under-resourced schools. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve volunteers serving in Yunnan, Guizhou, and Shanxi provinces. Findings reveal that identity development is a dynamic process shaped by internal beliefs, social interactions, and daily pedagogical practices. While volunteers begin with strong moral motivation and civic ideals, they often encounter role ambiguity, limited institutional support, and cultural dissonance. Over time, many transition from peripheral actors to situated practitioners through adaptive strategies and relational engagement. To address these challenges, the study introduces a University–District–School (U-D-S) collaboration framework—not as a theoretical lens, but as a practical mechanism for institutional support. The model emphasizes the complementary roles of universities (pre-service preparation), local governments (policy assurance), and host schools (professional and emotional integration) in fostering identity development. By capturing the emotional tensions and transformative trajectories of volunteers, this study highlights both the challenges and potential transcendence embedded in rural teaching experiences. It contributes to global discussions on novice teacher identity, educational equity in rural areas, and volunteer service by offering theoretical insights and actionable recommendations for policy and practice.

This paper explores the role of AI-assisted strategies in enhancing Chinese language proficiency for non-native students preparing for the AP Chinese exam. By analyzing the key requirements of the AP Chinese exam, the study identifies how AI tools, such as Speechling, FluentU, and HelloChinese, can support students in improving their listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. The paper also addresses the ethical and social implications of AI in education, focusing on data privacy, algorithmic bias, and educational equity. Key strategies for optimizing AI in language learning are discussed, alongside a comparison of different AI tools in AP exam preparation. The study emphasizes the need for a balanced approach to AI implementation in education, considering both the technological advantages and the ethical challenges. Future research directions are outlined to further explore the long-term impact and integration of AI in educational contexts.

Can linguists distinguish between ChatGPT/AI and human writing?: A study of research ethics and academic publishing

This chapter analyzes the incorporation of AI tools in blended language teaching, stressing their potential to boost language skill development among university students. it opens by describing blended learning and its significance in the educational field, particularly in the context of language learning. It evaluates existing research on AI applications in language learning, highlighting successful case studies and the benefits of tailored learning experiences. Furthermore, it tackles ethical considerations and obstacles related to AI adoption in educational contexts, such as data privacy and the role of teachers in leading AI-enhanced learning. Through a critical analysis of AI's impact on language pedagogy, this chapter aims to give educators and researchers insights into effective strategies for incorporating AI tools in blended learning environments, ultimately fostering improved language proficiency and engagement among pupils. The findings underline the significance of a balanced strategy that uses technology while keeping the important human elements of teaching and learning

This mixed-methods action research study investigates the integration of ethically designed generative AI tools as catalysts for active learning in English as Foreign Language (EFL) writing instruction. The research is situated within resource-constrained higher education contexts and is grounded in Kolb's experiential learning theory and active learning principles. The study employed a quasi-experimental design involving 148 undergraduate students from Bahauddin Zakariya University, Pakistan. Over a 15-week intervention, an experimental group utilized AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude AI, Meta AI, and Canva) within a cognitive partnership model, while a control group received traditional teacher-centered instruction. Quantitative data on writing performance was supplemented by qualitative data from semi-structured interviews to capture student experiences and the development of ethical awareness. Quantitative results show the experimental group achieved statistically significant improvements in writing performance (Z = -6.325, p < .001) compared to modest gains in the control group (Z = -2.128, p = 0.033), with notable skill progression emerging after 6-8 weeks. Qualitative analysis revealed that AI tools successfully functioned as cognitive partners, metacognitive mirrors, and equity tools. A strong majority of participants (79.7%) expressed positive views about AI integration, with 86% indicating intentions for continued use. The paper provides a practical model for embedding AI tools in collaborative-learning settings while upholding academic integrity through a disciplined process of ethical reflection. The findings challenge the presumption that technology alone drives educational improvement, demonstrating instead that it is the pedagogical structures mediating AI interaction that determine an effective and ethical educational process.

Purpose This mixed-methods action research study investigates the integration of ethically designed generative AI tools as catalysts for active learning in English as Foreign Language (EFL) writing instruction. The research is situated within resource-constrained higher education contexts and is grounded in Kolb&rsquo;s experiential learning theory and active learning principles. Design/methodology The study employed a quasi-experimental design involving 148 undergraduate students from Bahauddin Zakariya University, Pakistan. Over a 15-week intervention, an experimental group utilized AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude AI, Meta AI, and Canva) within a cognitive partnership model, while a control group received traditional teacher-centered instruction. Quantitative data on writing performance was supplemented by qualitative data from semi-structured interviews to capture student experiences and the development of ethical awareness. Findings Quantitative results show the experimental group achieved statistically significant improvements in writing performance (Z = -6.325, p &lt; .001) compared to modest gains in the control group (Z = -2.128, p = 0.033), with notable skill progression emerging after 6-8 weeks. Qualitative analysis revealed that AI tools successfully functioned as cognitive partners, metacognitive mirrors, and equity tools. A strong majority of participants (79.7%) expressed positive views about AI integration, with 86% indicating intentions for continued use. Originality/value The paper provides a practical model for embedding AI tools in collaborative-learning settings while upholding academic integrity through a disciplined process of ethical reflection. The findings challenge the presumption that technology alone drives educational improvement, demonstrating instead that it is the pedagogical structures mediating AI interaction that determine an effective and ethical educational process.

The rapid development of artificial intelligence technologies and their widespread implementation across various spheres of human activity highlight the urgent need for mass education in AI tool usage, particularly in mastering prompt engineering techniques. Traditional educational approaches cannot keep pace with technological change, creating a gap between labor market demands and competencies of educational programs’ graduates. Purpose. To present the architecture and design methodology of an interactive simulator system with automated assessment based on large language models for teaching various aspects of working with AI tools; to describe the practical implementation experience in development courses. Methodology and research methods. The study is based on instructional design methodology and gamification theory in education. The system architecture is implemented using client-side web technologies (HTML5, JavaScript) and integration with the API of large language models (OpenRouter) for automated assessment of open-ended tasks. Approbation was carried out in the context of advanced training courses under the program “Introduction to neural networks: practical development of AI platforms”. Results and scientific novelty. An interactive simulator system architecture was developed, including six specialized modules: prompt engineering techniques (Zero-shot, Few-shot, Chain-of-Thought, etc.), AI ethics, image and video generation, presentation creation, and AI data analytics. Scientific novelty lies in applying large language models for automated assessment of creative assignments with detailed feedback generation without instructor involvement. The system integrates gamification mechanisms (achievement system, progressive content unlocking) to enhance learner motivation. Practical significance. The presented system can be integrated into teacher professional development courses and higher education programs in various subject areas. The modular architecture provides the ability to adapt simulators to different subject areas and educational contexts. Areas for further development of the system have been identified, including integration with LMS through SCORM packages and the development of its own plugin for educational analytics.