In planning two education-focused conferences this summer for SIIA, I was struck by similarities – and of course the differences – in the two events. This week we host, “Innovate to Educate: A symposium on [Re]Design for Personalized Education.” After returning to DC, we go full steam ahead planning the 2010 Ed Tech Business Forum, which will focus on “Re-Inventing Business Models.”
First, the obvious differences: The former conference is our first major component of SIIA’s new initiative on Personalized Learning and is being held in collaboration with ASCD and CCSSO. Two-thirds of the invited attendees represent leadership within the K-12 education sector – school districts, state agencies, professional associations, the federal government and education foundations. Attendees will focus on the policies, practices and technologies needed to enable the redesign of our education system from an industrial-age structure to one that is student-centered to meet each student’s personalized learning needs.
The Ed Tech Business Forum will be 10th annual and has become part of “Education Week” in New York, taking place each year the first week after Thanksgiving. Attendees are primarily from the industry, and represent ed tech platform companies, publishers, and financial firms. They’re there to learn and share information about the shifts they see in their business models.
The similarities: Some of SIIA members will be attending both conferences. While the purpose of the Symposium is to look at system re-design, the Forum will be looking to re-design their business. There’s a cause and effect, and hopefully, they’ll happen in tandem with each other. Our members do react to customer needs … and Personalized Learning is a major one right now. By working with industry colleagues at the Forum, they will gain major insights to Re-Inventing their business models.
Posted by Karen Billings, Vice President, SIIA Education Division