On December 8, 2022, the Global MOOC and Online Education Alliance held a sub-forum that was hosted by the International Center for Higher Education Innovation under the auspices of UNESCO (UNESCO-ICHEI).

The Global MOOC and Online Education Conference 2022 was held online, with more than 20 representatives of global higher education institutions, heads of international organizations, experts, and scholars in relevant fields from eight countries and regions around the world participating in the event.

Qikun XUE, President of the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), delivered a speech at the sub-forum.

He said that SUSTech has promoted the development of digital teaching in recent years and is committed to making breakthroughs in digital reform in developing the teachers’ digital competencies and skills.

The next decade will be an important period for higher education to blend with other stages to create a brand-new educational ecology. He added that SUSTech looks forward to contributing further to the development of the global higher education together with participating experts.

In the keynote session, Diana Lauriellard, Professor of Learning with Digital Technologies at University College London (UCL) Knowledge Lab, and Ethel Agnes Pasqua-Barensu, Director of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Secretariat, shared their insights on the digital transformation of higher education and local practices for improving the digital literacy of educators.

In the exchange session, representatives from universities in Asia and Africa and the International Institute of Online Education (IIOE) discussed pilot projects of IIOE in Asian and African regions to improve the digital literacy of higher education in universities.

Discussions were also held in a round table forum on the topic of developing digital teaching for university teachers, and the impact of digital technology development on the ecology of higher education.

Wei HAN, Executive Deputy Director of UNESCO-ICHEI, gave a speech at the closing ceremony.

In her remarks, she said that the sub-forum carried out in-depth discussions and exchanges around improving digital literacy for university teachers, which further provided an important reference for the digital transformation of higher education.

This sub-forum focused on the digital transformation of higher education and the digital capacity building of university teachers through keynote speeches, exchanges, and roundtable forums, with the aim of building a platform for multiple organizations and institutions to share academic research and practical experience in related fields.