To facilitate the smooth progress of the ASEAN-China Digital Education Alliance's initiatives, the first online meeting of the Alliance Research Committee was organised by the Open University of China (OUC), the Alliance’s Secretariat, on 27 September 2024.
Representatives from over ten institutional members, including the University of the Philippines Open University, Open University Malaysia, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, University of Technology Sarawak, Vietnam Multimedia Corporation, Prince of Songkla University, East China Normal University, Guangzhou Open University, and Guangdong Construction Polytechnic, attended the meeting. This online meeting is a pragmatic measure to implement the guiding principles of the Alliance's 2024 annual conference.
Fan Xianrui, secretary-general of the Alliance and member of the Party Committee and vice president of the OUC, participated in the work discussions. She expressed her gratitude to the institutional members of the Research Committee for their active participation in promoting the Alliance's work. She hoped that the Research Committee would use this work discussion as an opportunity to explore topics for collaborative research in the digital field, enhance in-depth and practical cooperation, and provide exemplary models and valuable insights for other working groups and committees within the Alliance.
Professor Jean A. Saludadez, vice chancellor of the University of the Philippines Open University and foreign co-chair unit of the Research Committee, proposed that the institutional members conduct case studies, systematically review literature on digital education, and carry out research on the current status and needs of digital education at the institutional level. She also suggested jointly formulating digital education quality evaluation standards. All participating units engaged in lively discussions on these topics, unanimously agreeing on their strong practical significance. They committed to leveraging their respective strengths and actively participating in these initiatives.
Since the establishment of the ASEAN-China Digital Education Alliance in August 2023, the OUC has actively promoted and coordinated the work of the Alliance's various working groups and committees. It aims to foster deep cooperation and exchange on digital education within the Alliance and is committed to implementing the outcomes of the Third ASEAN-China Education Ministers’ Roundtable Meeting, "Building an Amicable Home Together: Vision and Action on ASEAN-China Education Cooperation and Development (2020-2030)". The OUC will continue to deepen friendly exchanges and dialogue with relevant units in ASEAN countries, jointly promoting the construction of a closer ASEAN-China community with a shared future.
Written by Wang Fei, photos by Zhang Yi, OUC