5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

Despite its importance in the context of global crises and the challenges of adapting education and skills to societal expectations, social innovation in education remains under-researched topic. Research highlights the need for new perspectives on innovation in education, including the participation of civil society and non-governmental organisations in educational settings. Social innovation in education (SIE) thus refers to new social practices, methods of collaboration and networking, and ways of organising educational institutions to respond to changing public demands. Such innovation deeply affects the operation of educational organisations, roles within the educational system and society at large. Resulting from this, higher education institutions are increasingly expected to be economically productive and socially responsible and to foster inclusive, engaged and sustainable education with a community focus. Consequently, engaging non-educational actors in social innovation is essential for systemic change in education. This panel will explore sociological perspectives on social innovation in higher education, including transformative education. Also, it will cover theoretical and practical frameworks for innovative and transformative universities.

Some potential topics in this panel are:

• Social innovation in higher education
• Transformative Education, Transformative Universities
• Innovation in education with non-educational actors (e.g. communities, NGOs)
• New learning processes in educational organisations
• Case studies of innovation in education
• Theoretical frameworks for innovation in education (e.g. citizen science, global south perspectives

Further topics are welcome!