As technology advances at a rapid pace, generative AI is being adopted across an ever-expanding range of applications. Many schools have begun experimenting with these new tools to enhance teaching and learning. Recognising this trend, the Chief Executive’s 2024 Policy Address outlined measures to further strengthen the promotion of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics) education in primary and secondary schools. To support this effort, the government established the Steering Committee on Strategic Development of Digital Education (the Committee), ensuring Hong Kong's education system is equipped to drive innovation, adopt new technologies, and meet future challenges.
Upon its establishment, the Committee emphasised that advancing digital education requires not only academic sector participation but also sustained engagement with all stakeholders. Through collaborative brainstorming and thorough monitoring of school implementation progress, the Committee will conduct regular reviews to refine policies based on accumulated experience. Hong Kong Education City (EdCity), a long-standing partner of the Education Bureau (EDB), will play a pivotal role as a ‘super-connector’, driving cross-sector collaboration and launching a series of innovative initiatives to equip teachers and students with essential digital skills.
Embracing Global Trends: AI-Assisted Teaching as the Future Focus
According to 2024 global statistics, around 44% of children actively use generative AI, with over half (54%) applying it to schoolwork. Meanwhile, 60% of teachers report integrating AI into their teaching practices, with educational games (51%) being the most common AI tool.
Hong Kong already has a strong foundation in digital education, with eLearning widely adopted across schools. Resources have been allocated to hardware, teacher training, and pedagogical applications. During the pandemic, despite prolonged class suspensions, schools effectively utilized remote learning tools and hybrid teaching models to ensure uninterrupted education—truly achieving ‘suspending classes without suspending learning’.
Building on this solid eLearning infrastructure, the Committee has identified three key areas for advancing digital education: learning, teaching, and assessment, with a focus on leveraging AI-assisted teaching.
EdCity and EDB Join Forces to Promote Equity and Resource Sharing
To drive digital education forward, the Committee will focus on four key initiatives:
- To enhance students' digital literacy and skills so that they can use digital technologies effectively and ethically, becoming responsible citizens and lifelong learners;
- To strengthen professional training in digital education for teachers and encourage schools to use innovative technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, to assist teaching, encourage teaching innovation and enhance learning and teaching effectiveness;
- To optimise digital education ancillary infrastructure and create an intelligent learning environment, including smart education platforms, to ensure equal opportunities for all students to use digital technologies for learning, promote personalised learning, and facilitate resource sharing; and
- To strengthen ties between local, Mainland or international innovation and technology institutions, tertiary institutions, and relevant sectors to enhance synergy and promote high-quality development of digital education.
In particular, EdCity will support the development of smart learning environments, working with the EDB to ensure all students have equitable access to digital learning tools, fostering personalised education and high-quality resource sharing.
Building an AI Education Ecosystem to Nurture Innovation in Schools
Since its establishment in 2000, EdCity through its IRIS framework (Information, Resource, Interaction, Service), it has partnered with over 150 organizations to provide diverse learning resources for Hong Kong’s primary and secondary schools. In recent years, EdCity has introduced AI and computational thinking courses to enhance students’ digital competencies while supporting teacher training.
As a key partner of the EDB, EdCity is committed to fostering an environment where innovation thrives in schools. By serving as a 'super-connector', it will link the government, tech industries, educators, and research institutions to establish an AI Education Ecosystem, cultivating a new generation with national pride, global vision, and a sense of responsibility.
On 14 March 2025, EdCity signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with four strategic partners: The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, The Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, The Smart City Consortium. These partnerships will not only provide internship opportunities and professional development training for pre-service teachers and educators, but also offer innovative educational technology solutions—including artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR), and gamified learning experiences—to both teachers and students.
(At the Hong Kong Education City 25th Anniversary Launch Ceremony, Mr Lee Hon Cheung, Chairman of EdCity's Board of Directors (second from right), stated that EdCity will serve as a 'super connector' to actively develop an AI Education Ecosystem.)
EdCity will soon launch several new projects, including the inaugural Digital Education Week, which will integrate the annual Learning & Teaching Expo (LTE) and the International Summit on the Use of AI in Learning and Teaching Languages and Other Subjects & Post-Summit Workshop Series (AIinLT). These events will help teachers master AI-assisted teaching while fostering global dialogue among educators and industry experts on emerging technologies.