üChina: The State Council issued the 15th Five-Year Plan for Education Development, setting the goal to basically establish a high-quality education system by 2030. Focusing on five strategic tasks, the plan emphasizes optimizing regional layout and deepening reform to better support Chinese modernization.
üSouth Sudan:In South Sudan, where crises, distance and limited infrastructure make teacher training difficult, a new mobile learning initiative from UNESCO and UNESCO-IICBA, supported by Japanese Government, was officially launched in June 2026. The programme aims to deliver sustained professional development to educators in remote areas through a "master trainer" cascade model, leveraging low-bandwidth and offline-friendly mobile technology.
üUnited States:Massachusetts has released theReimagining High School: Redefining Readinessreport, which calls for students to complete the MassCore curriculum, statewide end-of-course assessments, a My Career and Academic Plan (MyCAP), and a Performance Demonstration such as a capstone project or portfolio. The report also emphasizes work-based learning, civic readiness, financial literacy, and AI and digital literacy, with the goal of ensuring that all students graduate prepared for college, careers, and civic life.
üInternational Organization: At the Africa-Europe Higher Education Forum in Bled, Slovenia, the Association of African Universitieschampioned a new cross-continental strategic framework centered on equity, asserting that transformative Africa-Europe academic cooperation can only be achieved through proactively building balanced mechanisms for voice and benefit-sharing.
China: The State Council Issued the 15th Five-Year Plan for Education Development, Setting the Goal to Basically Establish a High-Quality Education System by 2030
To accelerate the building of a leading country in education, China has formulated the 15th Five-Year Plan for Education Development. The plan specifies that by 2030, a high-quality education system will be basically established, and significant results will be achieved.
The plan focuses on five strategic tasks: first, shaping a new pattern of fostering virtue through education, promoting the construction of healthy schools, and advancing AI education across all educational stages; second, strengthening education’s support for science, technology, and talent, advancing the “Double First-Class” initiative and vocational education development, and independently cultivating top-notch innovative talents; third, enhancing public education services, promoting high-quality, inclusive, and balanced development from preschool to high school, and exploring the extension of compulsory education years; fourth, cultivating a high-level teaching workforce; and fifth, expanding high-level opening up of education.
In addition, the plan requires optimizing the regional education layout nationwide and in key areas such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and the Yangtze River Delta to adapt to changes in the school-age population. It also calls for deepening education evaluation reform and digital-intelligent transformation, strengthening legal safeguards and organizational implementation, and ensuring the completion of various tasks.
Source: The Ministry of Education of China
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/83PfysKBsCZEuseRZqFvQw
Compiler:HE Yale, UNESCO-TEC
South Sudan: UNESCO and Partners Launch Mobile Learning Initiative to Boost Teacher Professional Development in South Sudan
As South Sudan works to improve teaching and learning outcomes across the country, expanding access to continuous professional development for teachers is a priority, which is a challenge made more acute by recurrent crises, geographic isolation, and weak infrastructure. In response, UNESCO and its IICBA, with funding from the Government of Japan, rolled out a new mobile-based teacher professional development initiative in June 2026.
From June 17 to 19, officials from South Sudan's Ministry of General Education and Instruction, along with teacher educators from universities and training institutions, gathered in the capital, Juba, for a project inception workshop. The initiative's learning platform is specifically designed for low-data and offline environments, allowing teachers to access self-paced courses and peer-learning networks regardless of location. During the workshop, organisers handed over 40 tablets to participants and established a "master trainer" mechanism, through which trained personnel will gradually expand national coverage.
Source:UNESCO
https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/unesco-and-partners-launch-mobile-learning-initiative-strengthen-teachers-professional-development?hub=701
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/gbXXLCI8MxlQUcGO-sP2dg
Compilers:ZHENG Rouyu, RIICE, Shanghai Normal University;XIA Yuxuan, UNESCO-TEC
United States:Massachusetts Releases Final Report on High School Reform, "Reimagining High School: Redefining Readiness"
In June 2026, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll released the statewide graduation framework final report, Reimagining High School: Redefining Readiness. The report was developed by the Massachusetts K-12 Statewide Graduation Council over a period of more than 18 months through extensive consultation with students, families, educators, employers, community members, and academic experts.
The report proposes four core graduation requirements. First, students must complete the MassCore curriculum, a rigorous program of study aligned with college admission expectations. Second, students are required to complete statewide end-of-course assessments. These assessments will be developed and scored by the state, with results included in students' academic records and used as part of graduation eligibility. Third, every student must complete a My Career and Academic Plan (MyCAP), which includes age-appropriate milestones in financial literacy, artificial intelligence (AI) and digital literacy, work-based learning, and completion of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or the Massachusetts Application for State Financial Aid (MASFA). Fourth, students must complete a Performance Demonstration by choosing either a capstone project or a portfolio, both of which will be evaluated by local school districts using a statewide rubric.
In addition, the report identifies several priority areas for student learning. Work-based learning, including apprenticeships and internships, will continue to expand with investment from the Governor. To strengthen civic readiness, the state will launch the Civic Empowerment Teaching and Learning educator training initiative. Financial literacy has been incorporated into the state's curriculum frameworks, and students may earn a recognized credential or badge. Likewise, AI and digital literacy have been incorporated as milestones within MyCAP, with opportunities for students to earn specialized credentials. Local school districts will retain flexibility in determining how these requirements are implemented. The report aims to ensure that every graduate is fully prepared for postsecondary education, the workforce, and active civic participation.
Source:Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Compilers:FANG Fan, RIICE, Shanghai Normal University;FENGJiamiao, UNESCO-TEC
International Organization: The Association of African Universities Champions Equitable Higher Education at Africa-Europe Forum in Bled
The Association of African Universities (AAU) took a leading role at the recent Africa-Europe Forum in Bled, Slovenia, steering the development of a new framework for cross-continental higher education collaboration built on the principle of equity.
As a pivotal institution in African higher education, the AAU strongly underscored the imperative of African universities' agency in shaping the global knowledge landscape. In a keynote address, AAU Secretary-General Professor Olusola Oyewole unequivocally stated that equity is not an idealistic add-on but a strategic necessity for ensuring the long-term vitality of partnerships. He emphasized that for cooperation to achieve transformative impact, partnership structures must be proactively designed and precisely constructed to guarantee all parties an equal stake in discourse, benefit distribution, and outcome-shaping.
This forum served as a follow-up and deepening of the initial meeting held in Berlin in 2025, with a strong focus on translating principles into practice. The gathering culminated in the adoption of a joint strategic document centered on equitable cooperation, establishing institutionalized norms for the long-term development of Africa-Europe higher education relations.
Source: Association of African Universities
Compilers:SUN Zhihua, RIICE, Shanghai Normal University; XIA Yuxuan, UNESCO-TEC
