As Asia’s largest education conference and exhibition, EDUtech Asia spotlights trailblazers in sustainability, innovation in artificial intelligence, EdTech implementation, STEAM education, industry-academia collaboration, and educator excellence. This year, from nearly 400 global entries, Dr Julia Chen, Director of the Educational Development Centre at PolyU, stood out for her remarkable achievements, winning the Outstanding Educator Award (Higher Education) at the EDUtech Asia 2025 Awards.

With extensive teaching experience, Dr Chen’s outstanding contributions include the integration of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) into learning and teaching, the transformation of course-based assessment, and the pioneering use of learning analytics in language education.

In addition, a collaborative project led by Dr Chen and Dr Pauli Lai, Senior Lecturer at PolyU’s Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, was also shortlisted for the Best AI Innovation Strategy Award (Higher Education). This project developed two platforms, AIReAS and NinjOrAItor, which leverage hybrid (human and artificial) intelligence to enhance students’ English productive skills.

The EDUtech Asia 2025 Awards, presented during the two-day conference and exhibition in Singapore, celebrated institutions and educators who are leading transformation across Asia through impactful ideas, thoughtful programmes, and quality technology adoption. The winners demonstrate the diversity, creativity, and resilience of Asia’s education sector – from pioneering AI models and sustainable campus initiatives to groundbreaking industry partnerships and exemplary leadership in the classroom.

PolyU is committed to advancing learning and teaching across disciplines by integrating leading-edge educational technologies, especially GenAI. Under Dr Chen’s leadership, the Educational Development Centre offers workshops, webinars, consultations, and research on GenAI to support assessment redesign and promote academic integrity, all while enhancing learning outcomes. PolyU’s dedication to educational excellence continues to earn international recognition; for example, the project, “Engage, Empower, Excel: PolyU’s Smart Campus Innovation”, received both a Gold Award and the Global Education Award at the QS Reimagine Education Awards 2024.