이송주, 강정은. (2026). The Smart City Era, Direction of Urban Planning Education: Changing Roles, Ethical Attitudes, and Considerations for the Curriculum. 2026 Western Regional Science Association. (2026. 02. 11. - 2026. 02. 14.)  

[Abstract] 

  The rapid digital transformation of cities is reshaping not only urban governance but also the professional roles and educational foundations of urban planners. As smart cities increasingly rely on data-driven systems, algorithmic decision-making, and platform-based governance, planning education faces growing pressure to move beyond traditional, technically oriented curricula. While recent scholarship emphasizes the need for planners to engage critically with the ethical, social, and political implications of digital technologies, it remains unclear how these competencies are reflected in current planning education. This study examines how urban planning programs are responding to the challenges of smart city development through a comparative document analysis of smart city?related curricula in leading international planning programs. Guided by the five-dimensional educational framework proposed by Clayton et al. (2024) analytic, ethical, critical, collaborative, and creative capacities the analysis evaluates how digital competencies are framed, prioritized, and integrated across programs. The findings reveal systematic mismatches between emerging global trends in smart city planning education and prevailing curricular orientations. While analytic and data-oriented skills are increasingly emphasized, ethical reasoning, critical digital literacy, and collaborative capacities are unevenly incorporated and often treated as supplementary rather than core competencies. This imbalance suggests a persistent tendency to privilege technical proficiency over integrative, justice-oriented planning education. Based on these findings, the paper proposes an integrated educational model for urban planners that aligns digital competence with social justice, public accountability, and democratic governance. By reframing smart city education as a socio-technical and ethical endeavor, this study contributes to ongoing debates on how planning education can better prepare professionals to navigate the complexities and inequalities of digitally mediated urban futures.. 

사사 : 연구재단(폭염대응)