Artificial intelligence is increasingly influencing the landscape of education, presenting both opportunities and challenges. As AI and other advanced digital technologies become more integrated into our learning environments, it is important to develop a dialogue that is inclusive, ethical, and forward-thinking. For researchers, educators, and policymakers in the field of vocational education and training (VET), two recently announced calls for papers offer a chance to contribute to this important conversation and shape the future of AI in education.

AI in Vocational Education and Training (VET)

Cedefop, the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, has launched a call for papers for a special Working Paper series. This series will explore the application of AI and advanced digital technologies within VET, with a particular focus on promoting inclusion, resilience, and sustainable transitions in the context of Industry 5.0. The initiative aims to address the existing research gaps on the use of AI in VET to promote inclusion, thereby strengthening the evidence base for creating inclusive and future-oriented VET systems.

The call for papers seeks to gather empirical evidence on the use of AI and digital technologies in VET, examine the dimensions of inclusion, equity, and intersectionality in AI-enabled VET practices, and identify the conditions necessary for the effectiveness, scalability, and sustainability of these technologies. Authors are also encouraged to critically engage with the ethical, governance, and regulatory implications of integrating AI into VET. Submissions should focus on European Union Member States, Iceland, and Norway.

Reframing AI Ethics in Education

A parallel opportunity for contribution comes in the form of a special issue on the theme of "Reframing AI ethics in education: From individual responsibilisation to shared responsibility." Edited by Juliana Elisa Raffaghelli, Pablo Rivera Vargas, and Magdalena Maria Claro-Tagle, this special issue invites contributions that move beyond the narrative of "responsible use" and advocate for ethics as a collective, situated, and future-oriented practice in the context of AI in education. The central question posed is what it would mean to embed AI ethics within shared—institutional, infrastructural, and collective—responsibility frameworks in education.

Submissions are invited to examine AI ethics across three interconnected domains: normative and technological structures, institutional practices and governance, and pedagogical practice and educators’ professional agency. This call for papers represents a significant opportunity to contribute to a more nuanced and holistic understanding of AI ethics in education. Abstracts are due on the 10th of July.

These two calls for papers represent opportunities for the VET community and beyond to engage with the critical issues at the intersection of AI and education. By contributing to these collections, researchers and practitioners can help to ensure that the development and implementation of AI in educational settings are guided by principles of inclusivity, equity, and shared responsibility.

About the Image

A network diagram of diverse emojis and symbols to represent structured databases. The artwork reflects how AI processes vast information and emotional signals based on definable and relational attributes of the data. Machine learning algorithms can analyse structured data to extract patterns and classify information based on inferences from the data. Created in Inkscape, it explores the complexity of knowledge representation. The emojis used are from OpenMoji, which is the first open source and independent emoji system to date