16,000 educators and industry members expected at ISTELive

Microsoft’s ISTELive 21 is running 26–30 June 2021, with over 16,000 educators, leaders and other industry members expected to attend. The virtual event features hundreds of presentations from members of the education sector and beyond, sharing inspiring stories about how innovation can change lives and improve student learning.

The event will be hosted on a custom-built dynamic platform that the company says will make it easy to ask questions, share ideas and make connections. Hundreds of sessions and learning experiences will be archived for attendees to reference for six months post the event.

Here’s some of the content that participants can expect to access:

Listening, learning, rebooting: Reimagining student well-being

The stressors introduced by COVID-19 affected the emotional and physical well-being of students worldwide, but research shows that the human brain can ‘reboot’ to acclimate to new circumstances. In a conversation with scientists and education experts, this session will explore how educators can address challenges, increase student well-being and stimulate positive change. Hosted by Barbara Holzapfel, Vice President of Education, Microsoft.

Empowering students to be future-ready

As we inspire students with STEM and computer science, it’s important to empower them to connect their passions and skills to the world around them. Join this session to explore bringing technology like coding and AI to every student and enable them to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges. Hosted by Anthony Salcito, Vice President – Worldwide Education, Microsoft.

The power of community

Empowered communities can change the world. Join Flipgrid Head of Educator Innovation Jornea Armant as she shines a spotlight on educators doing extraordinary things to engage and inspire communities around the world. Hosted by Jornea Armant, Head of Educator Innovation at Flipgrid, Microsoft.

Creating accessible, inclusive classrooms engaging diverse learning needs

Inclusive classrooms that create universal design learning environments (UDL) enable teachers to remove barriers to learning and give all students, including students with disabilities, opportunities to succeed. Providing learning opportunities in online, hybrid and in-person is challenging, yet creating inclusive classrooms has never been more important. This session will discuss accessibility, inclusion and modern education with Damien Lawrence, who has been an educator for over 20 years. Hosted by Megan Lawrence, Sr. Accessibility Technical Evangelist at Microsoft.

Leading change in challenging times

Reverberations from the pandemic and its disruptions on education were felt far beyond remote classrooms and impacted every level within school and district organisations. In this session, you’ll hear from Kate Johnson, President of Microsoft US, on leading change through challenging times, and you will learn strategies from other school leaders on retaining talented teachers and leaders, maintaining continuity and shaping the education workforce of tomorrow.

It’s not too late to register — click here for more details including the full five-day agenda.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Sikov