GRIFE Finnish Education and Global Perspectives Seminar Series XXI

We are delighted to invite you to the upcoming GRIFE Seminar Series XXI, titled " AI Readiness in Teacher Education: Global Patterns, Cultural Perspectives, and Lessons from Finland ”.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming educational systems, compelling teacher education programmes worldwide to rethink how future teachers develop the competencies, ethical awareness, and critical literacy required for AI-mediated learning environments. While AI brings new possibilities for personalisation, creativity, and assessment, teacher adoption is shaped by complex factors, including self-efficacy, pedagogical orientations, institutional conditions, and culturally embedded understandings of technology. 

This presentation investigates emerging global patterns of teacher AI readiness by drawing on comparative insights from recent international studies. Across diverse regions, consistent challenges appear, such as limited ethical preparedness, uncertainty about pedagogical integration, and uneven access to training and infrastructure. At the same time, cultural differences influence how teachers frame AI: some contexts emphasise innovation and productivity, while others prioritise caution, reflection, and the preservation of human-centred pedagogy. These contrasts highlight that AI readiness is not merely a matter of digital competence, but a socio-cultural and pedagogical construct. 

Finland offers a particularly illustrative case for understanding these dynamics. Situated in the Arctic region and known for its strong teacher autonomy, equality-driven system, and emphasis on reflective practice, Finnish teacher education is beginning to embed AI literacy alongside media, digital, and critical literacies. This evolving ecosystem provides concrete examples of why and how teacher education can cultivate intercultural competence, ethical grounding, and professional agency as AI technologies evolve at speed. 

The presentation argues for building bridges across educational cultures to co-develop a shared, ethically informed vision of AI-ready teacher education. Such a vision should prepare teachers not only to use AI tools, but to shape inclusive, sustainable, and globally connected practices that centre human values in an increasingly automated world. 

Please register from the following link for online and onsite participation!