Welcome to ISTE 2015!
Every year, ISTE brings together tens of thousands of educators in a dynamic city to discuss trends and best practices in the education space. After weeks of preparation, CB&A unveiled BuzzHub, our new visibility event at ISTE 2015. After the big event, Charlene sat down to reflect on it:
C. Blohm & Associates (CB&A): What was something you found interesting at ISTE 2015?
Charlene Blohm (CB): “The focus groups we conducted with educators were particularly insightful. It was interesting to hear their feedback to our questions and give them a space where they could have a free exchange of opinions on all sorts of education topics. During this time, we learned about how and why certain things are done from a number of educators’ perspectives. We even had the chance to learn about small details like how to avoid being buried in email, and on a larger scale, the new, cool tools and apps teachers are using in the classroom. This was one of the highlights of the conference because we got to spend such invaluable time with educators.”
CB&A: What surprised you most at ISTE 2015?
Snapshot of Speed Meetings
CB: “ISTE has always been a packed few days, but I was surprised at how busy, active and positive the experience was. I was really pleased with how many vendors took the time to schedule meetings with educators. In addition to that, CB&A’s own scheduled media events such as the Speed Meetings afforded a great opportunity to six young startups to be introduced to the media. This connection between young companies and the media is a critical.”
CB&A: After attending ISTE, where do you see the next year in education going?
CB: “I think we will see an increase in blended learning and a spark of creativity and creative thinking in the classroom.”
CB&A: As a supplemental question to the one we just asked, where do special needs education fit into this?
CB: “The focus groups CB&A conducted reinforced the notion that educators teach students of all skills and physical abilities. This is continuing to help us understand what educators are doing to embrace adaptive learning technologies to be inclusive of all their students.”
CB&A: How did ISTE 2015 compare to ISTE 2014?
CB: “With nearly 21,000 registered attendees, this year ISTE was bigger. There were more activities in and around the trade show, and Philadelphia was a great host. The city was more than accommodating and the transportation was reliable.”
Folks mingling during #PurelySocial
CB&A: What was your favorite moment from ISTE 2015?
CB: “The ability to introduce friends to others at the #PurelySocial reception was really fun, as well as the opportunity to see old and new faces.”
CB&A: Was there anything you wish you had more time to do at ISTE?
CB: “There wasn’t nearly enough time spent on the trade show floor.”
CB&A: Any additional thoughts on ISTE 2015?
CB: “One of the things I really liked this year was having the meetings collocated. We hosted the SETDA Emerging Technologies Forum, ISTE Unplugged events and educators from state to local departments all in one place. This allowed the city to come alive by amplifying an already buzzing city in really exciting ways.”
We look forward to seeing everyone at ISTE 2016.