On 7 February 2025, a meeting of the Council of the Centre for Education and Scientific Excellence of the Polish Union of Education was held with the participation of the PUE Supervisory Board and Management. During the meeting, the statements from which the following conclusions can be drawn stood out:     

THE THREAT OF MARGINALIZATION OF ACADEMIC VALUES

1) The challenge for the contemporary university is the marginalization of academic values – the search for truth and shaping the human being in public life.
2) Usability has become the primary mission of the university. The entrepreneurial university is a response to the challenges of the changing expectations of the economy. It is a model of the university in which rectors have become managers, students – clients, and teaching – an educational service. The entrepreneurial university model is a sign of the times, but universities should restore the importance of the pursuit of truth.
3) Parallel to the above changes, pathological phenomena have intensified in the higher education system, e.g. in the evaluation of scientific activity the so-called paper mills (especially in technical and medical sciences) or the sale of diplomas. 
4) CONCLUSION: PUE should strive to organize a nationwide conference of rectors that would strengthen the ethical values of universities. In addition, it should recommend to its member institutions the adoption of a code of ethical conduct, a tool for verifying honesty in science (such as anti-plagiarism in teaching). Such a code would be a model for the entire academic community.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN TEACHING AND LEARNING

1) The acceleration of the adoption of artificial intelligence has presented universities with challenges that they have never faced before. Universities need to find an answer to the changes resulting from AI as an innovation, the consequences of which cannot yet be predicted.
2) AI carries risks, but they should not be demonized. AI should be tamed by universities, and legal standards will play a key role in this process. In the case of AI, regulations enter with a delay, which is typical in the case of disruptive socio-technological changes. However, detailed indicators and guidelines should not be created, and ministerial bodies should not over-regulate teaching at individual universities in connection with the implementation of AI.
3) CONCLUSION: PUE as an organization already conducts and will continue to lead or patronize initiatives developing the competences of academic staff in the area of modern technologies. In addition, PUE will recommend to member universities the implementation of internal legal regulations sanctioning the rules for the use of AI at the university.

MODERNIZING CURRICULA

1) Generational differences create a competence gap: current students adapt to the digital world and the world of BANI faster and more efficiently than academic staff ("the student has surpassed the master"). Nevertheless, academic teachers must take care of the development of students' competence to critically evaluate information downloaded from the Internet.   
2) The Rector of the Academy of Special Education, for example, in an interview for the Education Zone platform, states that the current standards for teacher education were developed and implemented in 2019, She says that five years have passed, and during this time the world has changed significantly. We have had all sorts of crises, as well as the rapid development of new technologies. Despite these changes, the standards have not been updated. This shows how important it is to monitor and adapt educational programs to the dynamically changing world, and at the same time neglected. People who start their studies today will graduate in five years, and the world in 2029 will look different than it does today.
3) The Asea Brown Boveri report shows that only forty percent of engineering students in Poland acquire basic knowledge of artificial intelligence at their universities, and basic knowledge about it is not enough, you need to be able to integrate this technology into the broadly understood economic and social context.  
4) CONCLUSION: PUE will promote the adaptation of curricula, but also teaching methods, to current and anticipated needs. It will follow the practices used in this respect by leading universities and schools, and indicate (as it has done so far) the relevant literature and initiate the organization of methodological forums.

CONTINUITY OF EDUCATION BETWEEN SECONDARY SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY   

1) The current generations of school and University students have a different approach and expectations from the teaching process in universities and secondary schools than previous generations. Pupils and students have a weakened cognitive curiosity directed towards traditional sources of knowledge, hence the main challenge for teachers is to attract their attention and use interactive teaching methods.
2) Teachers, both in secondary schools and universities, should be more "psychologists" or mentors, understanding the needs and problems of the young generation, and not only didactics who pass on knowledge.
3) A prerequisite for the success of these efforts is a new approach by school and university teachers and an understanding across the boundaries of education and higher education systems.
4) CONCLUSION: The idea of continuity of education between secondary schools and universities has been and will be the subject of conferences and other popularization activities organized by PUE in the future.