On July 21, the “2021 National Primary and Secondary School Artificial Intelligence Education Conference” sponsored by the Chinese Association for Artificial Intelligence, organized by the CAAI Primary and Secondary School Working Committee and the High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China, and co-organized by Future Gene, iFLYTEK and Walnut Programming, was held in Beijing successfully. The two-day conference was held with the theme of “Cultivating Youth Innovative Talents in the Intelligent Era”. It was co-chaired by Academician Li Deyi, Honorary Chairman of CAAI, and Principal Liu Xiaohui, Deputy Director of CAAI Primary and Secondary School Working Committee. It was held in a combination of online and offline methods and the cumulative number of people watching live broadcasts on multiple platforms exceeded 1.5 million.

Cultivating top artificial intelligence talents must start from primary and secondary schools

The opening ceremony of the conference was presided over by Yang Lianming, Executive Vice President of the General School of the High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China. Academician Dai Qionghai, Counselor of the State Council and Chairman of CAAI, pointed out in his opening speech, “The training of top artificial intelligence talents should start from primary and secondary schools to consolidate China’s artificial intelligence strategic reserve of talents". Li Youyi, director of the CAAI Middle and Elementary School Working Committee, said in his speech that artificial intelligence education at the primary and secondary level is still in its infancy and exploratory stage.

Speech by Academician Dai Qionghai, Chairman of CAAI

At the opening ceremony, the appointment ceremony of the additional members and deputy secretary-general of the Primary and Secondary School Working Committee of CAAI was also held.

In-depth discussion on the training of young creative talents in the intelligent age

Four forums were set up at this conference. Academicians and experts at the “Frontier Forum” brought cutting-edge research, analyzed innovation trends, and provided direction guidance; on the “Principal Forum”, more than 10 primary and secondary school principals shared their school’s layout and practice of intelligent education; the “Dean Forum” lineup covers leaders of research institutes established by universities, primary and secondary schools, media, industry, and educational institutions. They shared their research and practice results and discussed path for the cultivation of innovative talents in the artificial intelligence field; many teachers and experts on the “Artificial Intelligence Education and Research Pioneer Forum” shared their experience, thoughts and insights on the implementation of artificial intelligence education in primary and secondary schools and curriculum development and implementation.

In addition, the conference also set up three themes for discussion. The principals, deans, outstanding teachers, and faculty members participating in the conference discussed in-depth and exchanged views on “the Training of Young Innovative Talents in the Age of Intelligence” from multiple angles, and achieved fruitful results. The 2021 National Artificial Intelligence Education and Teaching Achievements Exhibition for Primary and Secondary schools was also held simultaneously during the conference,

Topic discussion 1: Cultivation of Young Innovative Talents in the Age of Intelligence

Topic discussion 2: Exploration of Building High-quality AI Teachers

Topic discussion 3: Exploration of Regional Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Education in Primary and Secondary Schools

The layout and promotion of artificial intelligence education in primary and secondary schools is a major issue related to China's development level and stamina in the era of artificial intelligence, and has attracted widespread attention from academicians to industry and educators. The “2021 Artificial Intelligence Education Conference for Primary and Secondary Schools " from the macro to the micro, from planning to design, from blueprint to teaching, multiple forums formed a complementary level, and made an in-depth discussion of the training of young innovative talents in the intelligent era.

This article is contributed by CAAI Primary

and Secondary School Working Committee