Rethinking Quality and Accountability in Educational Technologies
Bielefeld University
May 26-28, 2026
Digital technologies are impacting education worldwide, raising new questions about quality, responsibility and trust. Join us at Bielefeld University and Wissenswerkstadt to explore ideas and exchange perspectives with researchers and edtech professionals from ten European countries.
Practical information
Time: May 26-28 May 2026
Venue: Bielefeld University https://maps.app.goo.gl/6kkkATyRq5P3yv7y9
Wissenswerkstadt Bielefeld https://maps.app.goo.gl/iFdtNLub1QTdUC3e8
Participation is free of charge, but registration is required. Please note that places are limited.
Provisional agenda
A detailed program will be announced soon.
Tuesday, May 26 – Focus on quality
When does technology become valuable in education?
Workshops & Capacity building
| Bielefeld University – Room X-E1-201, X Building, Universitätsstraße 24, 33615 Bielefeld https://maps.app.goo.gl/6kkkATyRq5P3yv7y9 | |
| Morning session 9:00-12:30 | |
| * * * | Welcome and introduction Digital landscapes in German education Quality and assessment of technologies in practice |
| Afternoon session 14:00-17:00 | |
| * * | AI in (higher) education. Challenges and opportunities across countries Pedagogy and digital tool design |
Wednesday, May 27 – Focus on accountability
Should we trust AI and digital technologies in education?
International conference
| Wissenswerkstadt Bielefeld Wilhelmstraße 3, 33602 Bielefeld https://maps.app.goo.gl/iFdtNLub1QTdUC3e8 | |
| Morning session 9:00-12:30 | |
| * * | Unpacking ethics of AI and digital technologies in education Making sense of digital technologies in schools |
| Afternoon session 14:00-17:00 | |
| * * * | Intelligibility and responsibility. Perspectives from the edtech sector Why research and evidence matter What’s next? Engaging with (post)digital futures |
Thursday, May 28 – EdTech Talents project meeting
| Closed-door session |
About the event
This event brings together diverse stakeholders, such as educators, students, edtech professionals, or researchers, from across Europe to exchange perspectives through interactive workshops, evidence-informed discussions and invited talks.
It offers a space to challenge assumptions and further develop ideas.
Why this matters now
Educational technologies are increasingly used in different contexts, sometimes with the idea that their value is self-evident. Yet the ways in which they are introduced and interpreted raise important questions about who defines their value and under what conditions.
In this context, the event focuses on two interconnected notions, quality and accountability, both conceptually and in practice. They are intentionally framed in a broad way to create space for dialogue across diverse disciplines and professional contexts.
Quality
Quality is about the value given to educational technologies by various actors. This includes assessment practices, international frameworks, and policy approaches, as well as how certain technologies come to be seen as desirable or worth investing in. It also refers to more personal ways of defining what is good for one’s own teaching and learning practice.
Within this landscape, stakeholders may assume they “know how things work”, but do they? Such situations highlight the need for clearer communication and raise questions of explainability and intelligibility. How do various groups make what they do clear to one another? How does this shape how people think and organize their activities?
Accountability
Further issues point to less discussed questions of accountability and responsibility. They may be understood in a focused way, for example, in relation to data protection, transparency of AI processes, bias, or ethics.
But accountability can also be approached more broadly. What kind of education of tomorrow are we shaping through today’s decisions? How are responsibilities distributed at both local, national and international levels?
Meet the panelists and speakers
(to be updated)
Dr. José María Cañas
José María Cañas is a telecommunication engineer (1995) and PhD (2003) by U.Politécnica de Madrid. Cofounded the RoboticsLabURJC at Universidad Rey Juan Carlos (URJC) in 2000, where he holds a tenured position as Full Professor. He was member of Robot Learning Lab at Carnegie Mellon University (USA), did research at the Georgia Insitute of Technology (USA) and at the Instituto de Automática Industrial. He researches and regularly publishes scientific papers on AI driven Robotics and Robotics Education. He participates and leads competitive projects and private technological projects for companies. He teaches several courses on the same topics at bachelor degree and master degrees, has advised 10 PhD theses (+5 ongoing) and 40 Master theses.
He also leads the non profit JdeRobot organization (https://jderobot.github.io://jderobot.github.io), which develops open source software on Robotics and AI and develops robot programming tools. It has been selected by Google for its calls GSoC-2015 and 2017-2026, with more than 47 international contributors.
Dr. Sarah Fichtner
Dr. Sarah Fichtner is a social anthropologist and educational researcher. She is a post doc at the Institute of Educational Science at Leuphana University Lüneburg and was also a project manager and senior researcher at the FiBS Research Institute for Education and Social Economics until February 2026. Her research focuses on school leadership in both Germany and Africa. At FiBS, she led, among other projects, the first three editions of the Cornelsen School Leadership Study and, together with Hannah Glinka, the orientation paper “AI-Related School Leadership Training in Germany” for the Forum Bildung Digitalisierung. At the end of 2025, she was selected by the editors of Bildung.Table as one of the “100+10 Decisive Minds in the Education Sector” in the Think Tanks category.
Dr. Velislava Hillman
Dr. Velislava (Veli) Hillman is the founder of the EDDS Institute, a community-interest company that evaluates AI and education technologies and advocates for high-quality, child-centred digital learning. Her research examines the risks of weak guardrails in the commercial digitisation of education and the impact of data-driven systems on children’s learning and wellbeing. She has consulted organisations including UNESCO, the OECD, The World Bank, and the Council of Europe. Dr Hillman is currently a fellow of Asia-Europe Foundation, teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London, and is the author of Taming EdTech: Why Children Stand to Lose in an Unregulated Digitised Classroom (Bloomsbury Academic).
Tiina Kasuk
Tiina Kasuk is an Early-Stage Researcher and PhD candidate at Tallinn University of Technology, specialising in educational technology, hybrid learning, and telepresence robotics. With a background in computer science, multimedia, and pedagogy, she has over two decades of experience in digital learning and instructional design. Her research focuses on integrating telepresence robotics into education and supporting learning through digital tools. She has held leadership roles in educational technology at Tallinn University of Technology, contributed to EU-funded projects, and is an active member of the Estonian Association of Educational Technologists.
Dr. Nicole Law
Dr. Nicole Law, Ph.D., is a Researcher at Instructure, where she supports EdTech providers in developing research evidence. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Oxford and has an extensive background in child development and literacy research. By bridging her academic research background with her work in the EdTech sector, she emphasizes the need for consistent, rigorous research that is directly applicable to the decision-makers and students it serves.
Dr. Janika Leoste
Dr. Janika Leoste is Associate Professor of Artificial Intelligence Didactics at Tallinn University and Assistant Professor at Tallinn University of Technology. Her research focuses on AI in education, educational robotics, telepresence robots, hybrid learning, and digital innovation in teaching and learning. She is the Principal Investigator of the EdTech Talents project.
Julie Lüpkes
photo: © Universität Oldenburg / Matthias Knust
Julie Lüpkes
Prof. Dr. Luis Pastor
Dr. Luis Pastor is full Professor at the School of Computer Science & Engineering in the Rey Juan Carlos University (Madrid, Spain). His research interests include the use of technology in areas such as Education, Health and Training. Latest work includes using computer imaging, games and transmedia-like approaches for children with mild neurodevelopmental disorders.
Balázs Pethő
Balázs Pethő is an education expert, researcher, and manager with over two decades of experience in digital education, e-learning, and educational technology. He began his career in educational R&D at Eötvös Loránd University Budapest, where he worked as an assistant professor focusing on e-learning, ICT in education, and teacher training Throughout his career, he has led and contributed to numerous large-scale digital education projects, including the development of e-learning content, digital assessment systems, and innovative curricula used internationally. As founder of I-EDU Kft. he managed complex EU-funded education initiatives, supporting the integration of digital tools and methodologies in public and vocational education. He has been involved in creating STEAM courses, promoting robotics and AI.
Since early 2026, he has been working as a Digital Education Expert at Education:NEXT, supporting the organization’s professional activities. Education:NEXT is a leading Hungarian EdTech association that connects key actors of the educational ecosystem, promotes innovation based on international best practices, and supports the development and global market entry of educational technology solutions. His work focuses on bridging pedagogy and technology, supporting educators and institutions in adopting innovative, learner-centered digital solutions.
Cristina Popescu
Prof. Dr. Tobias Röhl
Dr. Tobias Röhl is Professor at the Zurich University of Teacher Education (PH Zürich), working at the intersection of education and digital transformation. His research examines how schooling is changing in the age of artificial intelligence, with a particular focus on pedagogical professionalism, accountability, and the use of data-driven tools in education. He is a member of the Swiss Centre for Responsible AI, which develops responsible and ethically sound AI applications, and he also contributed to the European Commission’s expert group on artificial intelligence and data in education and training, whose work informed guidance on the responsible use of AI and data in schools. In a current project he investigates how the use of digital tools differentiated instruction contributes to (in)equity in education.
Dr. Eva Ulbrich
Eva Ulbrich is an educational scientist working at the intersection of STEAM education, digital fabrication, and teacher education. Her work focuses on integrating technologies such as 3D modelling and 3D printing (3DMP) into learning environments and developing frameworks that support teachers in adopting complex technologies in the classroom. She is involved in several European projects on STEM and STEAM education and collaborates with international partners on the design of experimental learning activities and teacher training formats.
Sebastian Schwaebe
Liis Siiroja
Liis Siiroja
As CEO of EdTech Estonia and a board member since 2023, I lead a passionate community driving the future of education. Our mission is bold: to establish Estonia as the world’s leading EdTech nation. We connect, represent, and empower Estonian Ed Tech companies through collaboration, advocacy, and international partnerships- fostering a learner-first ecosystem that inspires global innovation.
In addition, I’m the co-founder and CEO of KideoCall, an Ed Tech supporting expat families in maintaining their children’s native language(s) and cultural ties through online playgroups. As a parent to multicultural children, I deeply relate to the joys and complexities of raising kids in multilingual, cross-cultural environments.
Though my professional roots are in communications, education has always been my passion. I previously led communications for Tagasi Kooli (Back to School), helping bridge the gap between students and the working world. I’m also active in the Estonian Montessori Association, championing interest-led learning and self-directed education. My journey in education began hands-on-as a camp counselor, kindergarten assistant, and substitute teacher.
Dr. Davide Taibi
Davide Taibi is a senior researcher at the Institute for Education Technology of the National Research Council of Italy. Since 2001 he has been working in the Educational Technology research area and his main interests concern pedagogical applications to smart environments, learning analytics, enriched reality, social media, and artificial intelligence in education. He coordinated EU-funded projects in the field of AI and Data Literacy. He is also a contract professor at the Computer Science department of the University of Palermo.
Dr. Giedrė Tamoliūnė
Dr. Giedrė Tamoliūnė is an associate professor at Education Academy and senior specialist at the Institute for Study Innovations at Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania. She is involved in European and national scientific and applied R&D projects focusing on technology-enhanced teaching and learning, which is also the core of her research. Her interests further include digital didactics, AI in education, digitally competent educators and organisations, and adult education. She has been a Deputy Chair of Steering Committee of the EDEN Network of Academics and Professionals (NAP) since 2023.
Prof. Dr. Piedad Tolmos Rodríguez-Piñero
Piedad Tolmos is a Professor at Universidad Rey Juan Carlos (Madrid, Spain), where she combines her academic activity with departmental leadership as Director of Department. Her research focuses on Mathematics Education, mathematics teacher training, and the application of digital technologies and artificial intelligence to enhance teaching and learning processes in higher education. She has published extensively in these fields and actively leads and participates in international and local research projects, and educational innovation initiatives.
Prof. Dr. Michał Wieczorek
Michał Wieczorek
