The SEAMEO Congress 2021 for Education, Science and Culture, gathered regional and global leaders and experts virtually on April 28-29, 2021. Honorable speakers invited by the Ministry of Education of Thailand and Malaysia and SEAMEO, as well as academia invited through selection of submitted abstracts, presented papers and initiated discussions under the overarching theme of “Transforming Southeast Asian Education, Science and Culture in the Digital Age”.
SEAMEO CONGRESS 2021 provided a platform for conversations on innovations, breakthroughs and best practices in Education, Science and Culture to achieve SDG4 2030 into and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The Congress also examined sustainable development platforms, networking and strategic collaboration among education actors and stakeholders in Southeast Asia and beyond for enhancing the quality of learning and ensuring wider access and relevance of education in the region.
The Congress featured diverse topics that supported the transformation of Education, Science and Culture that could effectively contribute towards the promotion of human development at the community, country, regional and at the global levels. SEAMEO Congress 2021 had 6 plenary sessions and 13 parallel sub-sessions, each with paper presentations and discussions corresponding to one of the 9 sub-themes chosen for the congress – 1. Reimagining People Transformation Toward SDGs; 2. Building back better: Actions for Digital Transformation in AI Era; 3. Transforming Education in the Post-COVID 19 Era; 4. Sufficiency Economy Philosophy and the New Normal: Balancing Reforms for Achieving the SDGs; 5. Southeast Asian Education and Future’s Agenda; 6. Transforming Education System and for Quality and Excellence; 7. Building A Future for the Alpha Generation; 8. Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Reform and Innovation; 9. STEM Education Design for Improving the Quality of the Workplace. More than 15,000 participants from 65 countries with diverse backgrounds in education attended the 2-day event. More than 104 speakers from 22 countries presented at the SEAMEO CONGRESS 2021.
Speakers also included leading policy makers, education leaders, researchers, teachers and youth with more than 60 paper presenters from the region and beyond. As similar as face-to-face conferences, in this event participants could also visit 50 virtual booths provided by the SEAMEO partners, as well as 50 e-Poster presentation booths. Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU) joined the SEAMEO Congress 2021 as a SEAMEO Partner. There were 3 speakers, 2 presenters and a number of interested personnel joining the virtual sessions. STOU also organized virtual booths showcasing the university operations in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Somporn Puttapithakporn, Acting Vice-President for Education and Learning Support joined the event as a speaker in Parallel Session 3 “Transforming Higher Education in the Digital Era” on Thursday 29 April 2021 at 10.15-11.30 hrs.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Walisa Romsaiyud and Asst. Prof. Dr. Pimpaka Prasertsilp from the School of Science and Technology shared their research studies in Parallel Session 4 “School Improvement to Strengthen STEM Education” on Thursday 29 April 2021 at 11.30-12.30 hrs.
Dr. Adirek Vajrapatkul from the School of Economics presented his research work in Session B “Teaching Innovation and Research in TVET” on Wednesday 28 April 2021 at 17.45-19.00 hrs.
Dr. Worrawit Nakpan from the School of Health Science presented his research work in Session E “Research at classroom and school levels” on Wednesday 28 April 2021 at 17.45-19.00 hrs.
