Co-Chairs

David C. Gibson

Professor David Gibson, is the UNESCO Co-Chair on Data Science in Higher Education Learning and Teaching at Curtin University in Perth Australia. He received his doctorate in Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Vermont in 1999 based on a study of complex systems modeling of educational change. His study demonstrated the feasibility of bridging from qualitative information to quantifiable dynamic relationships in complex models that verify trajectories of organizational change. He provides thought leadership as a researcher, professor, learning scientist and innovator. He is creator of simSchool, a classroom flight simulator for preparing educators and provides vision and sponsorship for Curtin University’s Challenge, a mobile, game-based learning platform. His research has extended from learning analytics, complex systems analysis and modeling of education to application of complexity via games and simulations in teacher education, web applications and the future of learning.  Dr. Gibson has also advanced the use of technology to personalize education via cognitive modeling, design and implementation.

Dirk Ifenthaler

Dirk Ifenthaler is a Professor and Chair of Learning, Design and Technology at the University of Mannheim, Germany, and UNESCO Co-Chair on Data Science in Higher Education Learning and Teaching at Curtin University, Australia. Dirk’s research focuses on the intersection of cognitive psychology, educational technology, data analytics, and organisational learning.

He received an honorary doctorate in educational science (doctor honoris causa) from the University of Eastern Finland in 2024. His previous roles include Professor and Director, Centre for Research in Digital Learning at Deakin University, Australia, Manager of Applied Research and Learning Analytics at Open Universities, Australia, and Professor for Applied Teaching and Learning Research at the University of Potsdam, Germany. He was a 2012 Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at the Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education, at the University of Oklahoma, USA. At the University of Latvia, Latvia, he was involved in the Faculty of Education, Psychology and Art as a Visiting Senior Researcher. In 2023, Dirk was a Visiting Professor in the Dipartimento di Pedagogia, Psicologia, Filosofia at the University of Cagliari, Italy.

His research outcomes include numerous co-authored books, book series, book chapters, journal articles, and international conference papers, as well as successful grant funding in Australia, Germany, and the USA.

Dirk Ifenthaler is the Editor-in-Chief of the Technology, Knowledge and Learning and Editor-in-Chief of Educational Technology & Society.

GoogleScholar:
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=FUwrOc8AAAAJ&hl=de&oi=ao

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dirk-ifenthaler-9a628519/

Email:
dirk.ifenthaler@curtin.edu.au