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The role of education technology (ed-tech) is becoming increasingly pivotal in schools as they look to ensure students are equipped to be ‘future-ready.’
That’s not to say that apps, technology and devices will ever replace great teachers but when these tools are combined with a sound pedagogical approach, many educators believe it creates powerful opportunities that make learning authentic and relevant.
After the success of an event last year, St Christopher’s School will be welcoming guests from a wide range of backgrounds - schools, universities and other training professionals - back to a Google Apps for Education Summit on April 7-8.
“It is not uncommon to find teachers who fear technology or struggle to see how they can adopt this within their practice,” a spokesman for the organisers said. “All good teachers have the desire to improve but they need time and guidance from fellow educators so they can start to engage with this new and exciting ed-tech era.”
The summit involves presentations by keynote speakers – Jay Atwood, Tracy Prudy, James Sanders and Molly Schroeder, alongside master of ceremonies Mark Hammons – personalised hands-on ‘breakout sessions’ and demonstrations aimed at empowering teachers and leaders in the digital age.
The organisers are keen to emphasise that the event will be led by educators, not by sales people, who will be willing to share ‘pedagogical practice, supported by technology’. Delegates can choose from sessions featuring G-Suite for Education (Drive, Docs, Slides, Sheets, Drawings, YouTube, Classroom, Maps and more) as well as sessions that go beyond the tools that feature ‘best practices in educational technology and great teaching’.
Most of the presentations will be conducted by Google-certified teachers, education trainers and innovators. “They’ll share their passion and expertise on topics like Project Based Learning (PBL), Digital Literacy, Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), Maths, Digital Citizenship, Assistive Technology and much more!”
The spokesman added. This event is open to educators from across the region and will cover a wide variety of tools which can be adapted depending on the learning environment. One day pre-summit workshops will be held on April 6.
Course prices and further details can be found at https://bh.gafesummit. com/2017#register
