Under the title „AI in Education – New Beginning or Beginning of the End,“ the 26th CARNET Users' Conference CUC2024 – the largest educational conference in Croatia – concluded today in Rovinj.
The conference explored key themes for the future of education in the digital age, focusing on CARNET's project "Support for the Application of Digital Technologies in Education – BrAIn," which aims to improve the quality of the educational process through the integration of digital technologies to establish a personalized approach to learning and teaching, and through the development of curriculum and digital educational content in the field of emerging digital technologies.
The project was also discussed at the conference by Juraj Bilić, Assistant Director of CARNET for the Artificial Intelligence Sector, an expert in the OECD's working group on the future of artificial intelligence, and the BrAIn project leader. He commented on the Artificial Intelligence Act and presented newly developed artificial intelligence curricula that will be implemented experimentally starting this fall, as an extracurricular activity for elementary schools and an elective subject for secondary schools.
In addition to the online portion held on April 9th and 10th, the conference hosted participants in Rovinj on April 18th and 19th. Over 1000 participants from all over Croatia, including representatives of schools, higher education institutions, and other educational institutions, had the opportunity to participate in more than 30 workshops and informal Birds of a Feather discussions, over 70 interactive presentations, as well as focus groups and a panel discussion that marked the official opening of the conference.
On the topic of Artificial Intelligence: from regulation to education, along with Juraj Bilić, the speakers also included Saša Mladenović, a full professor at the Faculty of Science of the University of Split and head of the Artificial Intelligence research group, Dalia Kager, an IT teacher and mentor from Eugen Kvaternik Primary School in Velika Gorica, Antonija Capan, a mathematics teacher at Grabrik Primary School, and Jaye Richards Hill, Director of Microsoft EDU for Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
This conference provided a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas, experiences, and best practices in integrating technology into education. Continuing the tradition of fostering innovation in education, CARNET has once again demonstrated its commitment to advancing the Croatian education system.