Joining online, Jacob contributed to the forum’s session on turning ideas into responsible action with an intervention titled “Students as Co-Creators: Shaping Education in the Age of AI.”
The forum, organised by Beijing Normal University and the Global Smart Education Network and hosted by the university’s Smart Learning Institute, brought young people into dialogue with researchers and education experts to explore educational futures, inclusive innovation and the capabilities needed to shape change.
Jacob’s intervention focused on what makes student co-creation meaningful in practice: involving students in identifying educational priorities, giving them influence over decisions, and sustaining their participation through implementation and review.
The starting point is a shared understanding of the educational purpose. Before selecting an AI tool, students and educators should identify the learning problem they want to address, the capabilities they want to strengthen and how they will judge success. Students’ different languages, circumstances and learning needs must inform those decisions from the beginning.
Co-creation also requires participation while decisions remain open. Representative student organisations can connect institutions with organised student communities, alongside wider opportunities for individual students to contribute. Preparation, accessible formats and clear feedback on what changed help make that participation effective and accountable.
Finally, evaluation should examine whether AI improves learning, inclusion and students’ ability to exercise independent judgement. Students should help assess these outcomes and shape any changes that follow.
For GSF, this approach connects the development of educational technology with a broader commitment to student participation in education governance. Through its member organisations, GSF brings experiences from different education systems into international discussions and helps build partnerships grounded in students’ priorities.
The forum provided an opportunity to advance that approach with students, educators and researchers working across different contexts, and to explore how sustained collaboration can translate student contributions into better educational decisions.
