CVEinAI Upskilling Masterclass: building a common ground for Critical Virtual Exchange in AI

The CVEinAI Upskilling Masterclass, organised by UNICollaboration, has come to a successful close, marking a milestone in the project’s mission to foster Critical Virtual Exchange (CVE) as a distinctive approach to teaching and learning Artificial Intelligence through intercultural and social justice lenses.

A distinctive approach: CVE beyond VE

Unlike traditional Virtual Exchange (VE), CVE in CVEinAI is designed to go beyond intercultural dialogue, embedding equity, inclusion, and critical AI literacy at its core. The Masterclass, held last June and July, was not a technical course on AI, but rather an experiential journey that allowed educators, doctoral candidates, and staff from partner universities to co-create a shared basis of content and practice. This groundwork will serve as a “ready-made” model, to be iterated five times in the coming academic year.

What has been done so far

The Masterclass was offered in two formats:

Track 1 from June 30 to July 21 (asynchronous with short synchronous sessions over 4 weeks)
Track 2 from June 16 to June 27 (intensive synchronous sessions over 2 weeks)

In total, 108 participants registered and 87 engaged in the training, exceeding the initial target of 50. Among them, 66 participants successfully completed the course, earning open badges certifying their new competences.

Participants explored the fundamentals of VE, engaged in collaborative activities, and critically examined AI through a social justice lens. They gained practical insights into integrating CVE into university curricula, either as a stand-alone course or embedded within existing courses, while also confronting institutional challenges such as infrastructure and time constraints.

Feedback highlighted the value of international collaboration, intercultural dialogue, and teamwork fostered by the Masterclass. Participants especially appreciated the opportunity to exchange perspectives on AI across Europe and Africa, with many seeing this as a pathway for future academic and research collaborations.

What’s next?

The work does not stop here. The next steps in the CVEinAI journey include:

15 October 2025 – an Awareness Webinar will introduce the pedagogical value of CVE and the importance of facilitation.
3 November 2025 – start of the Facilitation Training

Looking ahead, the project will roll out five iterations of the CVEinAI units starting in the next academic year, bringing the “ready-made” approach into practice across partner institutions.