The conference and exhibition is organised by E2BN, the East of England region’s broadband consortium. It will include speeches, talks and workshops by experts in the field – and demonstrations by local schoolchildren using IT in various ways to enhance their education.
The What Has Technology Ever Done For Us? conference targets teachers, school governors and others involved in education, enabling them to keep abreast of the latest innovations in learning technology and how they can be applied in the classroom.
Its main speakers include technology presenter and blogger Maggie Philbin, presenter of the BBC programmes Bang Goes The Theory and Tomorrow’s World. It takes place at Wyboston Lakes Executive Centre in Bedfordshire on June 25-26.
E2BN is one of the ten Regional Broadband Consortia set up to raise standards in teaching and learning through the use of modern technology, harnessing the full potential of ICT and broadband connectivity.
It is formed from a group of local authorities that work together with the aim of achieving better provision, value for money and performance for schools than could be achieved individually.
The local authorities that form E2BN are Central Bedfordshire, Bedford Borough, Cambridgeshire, Luton, Milton Keynes, Norfolk, Peterborough, Southend on Sea, Suffolk and Thurrock.
The two-day event includes 28 workshops, keynote speakers, and an exhibition featuring more than 70 companies operating in the field of IT based education. There will also be a series of ‘Litebytes’ short focussed presentations from specialists, teachers and pupils which will demonstrate the impact that new technology is having in the classroom.
The schools include Henlow Church of England Academy in Bedfordshire, whose pupils will be giving a Litebyte presentation on using audio in the classroom to improve learning.
One of its teachers, Caroline Coster, is also giving a workshop demonstration on how the E2BN resource Victorian Crime and Punishment can be used across a range of cross-curricular activities.
Other contributors include Ousedale School in Newport Pagnell, whose head of computing will be talking about intermediate programming for beginners, Olney Infant Academy, Olney Middle School, Royden Primary School and the Mount Grace School.
The keynote speakers include renowned figures in the field of digital development. Former Minister of State for Education Lord Jim Knight will open the conference and will be joined by speakers from organisations supporting ICT in schools and leading researchers in the field from the University of Nottingham and FutureLab.
E2BN is confident that this year’s conference will be of real benefit to those attending the two-day conference and therefore to learners.
Chief executive Chris Kastel said: “Technology impacts directly and indirectly on every aspect of our lives, and to an even greater extent, on the lives of the younger generation.”
Maggie Philbin’s speech will close the conference. She says that today’s children will benefit from educators involving themselves with new technology
She added: “The vast majority of jobs, even in the near future, will be applications of science, technology, engineering and maths.”.
Places can be reserved on www.conference.e2bn.org or through a brochure that is being distributed to the region’s schools by the consortium. The first two delegates per school from those local authorities which form E2BN are free of charge, with additional delegates costing £50 per day or a discounted rate of £70 for both days. The charge for delegates from schools in other local authorities is £85 per day.
