Conference

Context Matters: Contextualising Smart Technologies and STEM Outreach in Technical and Vocational Education

In debates on smart technologies and education, context is often invoked but rarely unpacked. This keynote presentation will argue that the way in which we conceptualise and design 'context' is fundamental to fostering interest, deep understanding, and professional identity in technical and vocational education, as well as to establishing sustainable STEM pathways from school to university and into the workplace.

Drawing on research and design-based development in technical education, I will first distinguish between the various layers of context, including authentic work and life situations in smart and sustainable industries; disciplinary and technological structures in engineering and vocational domains; and institutional contexts, such as curricula, outreach structures, and university teaching formats. I will then demonstrate how these layers can be deliberately connected through contextualisation in learning environments across educational stages.

Empirical examples will include STEM outreach activities in school laboratories and student research centres. These environments make smart technologies and engineering visible and tangible from an early stage, thereby supporting informed study and career choices in STEM and technical vocational fields.

Drawing on different university projects, I will derive design principles for contextualised learning in technical education, such as aligning present learning with plausible future work, integrating outreach with formal curricula and co-constructing meaningful contexts with learners, teachers, and industry and STEM ecosystem partners.

Finally, I will outline open research questions on how contextualisation can be theorised, operationalised, and assessed in the era of smart technologies.

The speaker

Professor Dr Katrin Temmen is a professor of the Didactics of Technology at Paderborn University, where she has led the Department of Didactics of Technology since 2010. Since 2023, she has also served as Dean of the Faculty of Computer Science, Electrical Engineering and Mathematics. From 2027 onwards, she will take over as chair of the German Faculty Council for Electrical Engineering and Information Technology (Fakultätentag Elektrotechnik und Informationstechnik).

Temmen studied electrical engineering at TU Dortmund, where she completed her doctorate in high-voltage engineering and worked as a research assistant and senior engineer for several years.

At Paderborn, she plays a central role in STEM outreach and recruitment. Her department runs the coolMINT.paderborn school laboratory and the coolMINT.forscht student research centre, where pupils can explore engineering and technology through hands-on experiments. She also heads the long-standing “Frauen gestalten die Informationsgesellschaft” project (“Women Shaping the Information Society”), which offers mentoring, taster courses, and “Spring” and “Autumn University” programmes to encourage girls to consider STEM subjects at university.

Temmen has received multiple teaching awards at both TU Dortmund and Paderborn University. In 2025, she and her colleague Mesut Alptekin received first place in the GOLC Online Laboratory Award (Virtual and Augmented Reality Experiments category) for PEARL (Paderborn Electrical Engineering AR Laboratory), an augmented-reality learning environment that prepares students for practical electrical engineering lab work.

The research focus of her group lies at the intersection of technical education, digitalisation, and STEM outreach. Key themes in her numerous externally funded projects include contextualised learning in engineering and technical teacher education; designing and evaluating innovative learning environments, such as lecture-hall and online/AR laboratories; using digital tools to support self-regulated learning in engineering; and developing learning concepts for universities, schools, and out-of-school learning venues using innovative media.

Reconciling Generative AI with Academic Ethics in Classrooms: Conflict or Collaboration?

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) has profoundly reshaped academia. With students increasingly engaging with these technologies, upholding academic integrity has become a growing concern. The talk examines the tension and potential harmony between student use of GenAI and the principles of academic ethics. It explores whether these technologies compromise genuine learning and honest authorship, or whether they can be ethically integrated to support creativity, critical thinking, and academic growth. The discussion offers practical guidelines for responsible and meaningful student use of GenAI while maximising its educational advantages. The talk argues that harmonising generative AI with academic ethics is crucial to fostering both integrity and innovation in student scholarship.

The speaker

Oscar Karnalim is an associate professor and the dean of the Faculty of Smart Technology and Engineering, Maranatha Christian University, Indonesia. He completed his PhD at the University of Newcastle, Australia. He serves as Editor in Chief of Sage’s Journal of Educational Technology Systems and as an editorial board member of four Scopus-indexed journals. His research interests include software engineering, learning technologies, and artificial intelligence. He is continuously developing automated technologies to maintain academic integrity. Oscar has published over 120 academic papers, with more than 1,400 citations. His Google Scholar H-Index is 21, while his Scopus H-Index is 16.

Oscar has been involved in many international research and community service collaborations. His collaborators are from Australia, Canada, the USA, the Netherlands, and the UK. He received several awards, including the Michael E. Auer Young Scientists Award (IETI, 2025) and the Best Dissertation Award in the Field of Engineering Education (IEEE Education Society, 2024). He is also an IEEE senior member and a fellow of the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia.

The engineering education for intelligent society

We are going to next type of society where everything will be connected, based on the IoT and IIoT we have to create a hyperconnected society where physical objects (machines) and humans will be included into collaborative groups as intelligent agents.

The engineers must develop new artefacts with incorporated intelligence able to communicate and solve even cognitive tasks. The classical learning systems must adapt to these challenges increasing the capacity to solve complex problems by critical thinking.

We present a model of learning systems based on problems solving with the support of generative artificial intelligence.

The speaker

Ioan Dumitrache is an Emeritus Professor of the University ”Politehnica” of Bucharest. He is professor of Control Engineering and Intelligence Control Systems in this University having a large experience in education of many generations of students.

In this capacity he served as a Dean of Faculty and Rector of the University.

In 2012 he founded the Coalition for Engineering Education (CREDING) and he organized many debates on the engineering education.

Now he is member of the Romanian Academy and the Secretary General of the institution.

Learning-Brain- Neurotechnology: Enhancements in Remote and Hybrid Engineering Education

Remote and hybrid engineering education faces persistent challenges in capturing and optimizing high-level cognitive processes. This paper brings results of a series of studies introducing a multimodal experimental framework combining immersive projection-based virtual reality with high-resolution neurophysiological measures (EEG, eye tracking, autonomic signals, and motion capture) to investigate the neural mechanisms underlying complex engineering learning, with a focus on the conditions that optimize learning. Together, these findings support brain-aware educational design and highlight the potential of adaptive, neurophysiologically informed platforms to enhance learning outcomes in remote and hybrid engineering education.

The speaker

Prof. Miriam Reiner started and directed the VR & NeuroCognition lab at the Technion. She studies perceptual and neural correlates of enhanced learning and developed neurotechnologies for optimal learning in Virtual and hybrid environments. She uses neural and physiological sensors, and behavioral measures to model learning.

Resilience by Design in Critical Infrastructure: Implementing Automation Engineering and Cybersecurity in the National Power Grid

The modern energy sector is undergoing a profound paradigm shift, moving beyond traditional electrical engineering to embrace advanced methodologies from industrial automation and Information Technology (IT). This presentation explores the convergence of these disciplines, demonstrating how cross-industry innovation is redefining the stability and management of National Power Systems.

Using the recently implemented Automatic Operational Limitation (ALO) system in Romania as a case study, the session highlights the indispensable role of advanced automation. As renewable energy sources introduce volatility, the grid can no longer rely solely on physical infrastructure reinforcement; it requires the "nervous system" provided by intelligent, high-speed automation. The presentation details how concepts typically found in mission-critical IT—such as "Resilience by Design" and full architectural redundancy—were successfully adapted to solve complex energy transmission challenges.

Furthermore, the discussion addresses the critical imperative of cybersecurity in this evolving landscape. As operational technology (OT) becomes increasingly digitized and interconnected, the attack surface widens. The presentation argues that cybersecurity can no longer be an afterthought but must be integrated into the core engineering phase. Attendees will gain insights into how the fusion of energy expertise, robust automation, and proactive cyber-defense is building the next generation of resilient critical infrastructure.

The speaker

Cristian Andronic is a distinguished academic and engineer with expertise spanning environmental science, chemistry, and industrial automation. He serves as a professor and doctoral advisor at Politehnica University of Bucharest.

His research covers wastewater treatment, environmental chemistry, and the conservation of river mouth ecosystems, alongside smart manufacturing and control systems. Combining academic depth with practical experience, he also works as an automation engineer and project manager in the private sector. Professor Andronic actively contributes to the development of intelligent automation solutions and renewable energy technologies.

He bridges theoretical research with applied engineering, fostering interdisciplinary innovation. He is a published author and a committed member of professional organizations such as IEEE. Through his teaching, research, and industry engagement, he supports the advancement of sustainable technologies and modern engineering education.