Australia’s Premier Education Event Highlights AI Innovation
EduTECH 2024 in Melbourne drew over 10,000 attendees and featured keynotes on AI’s role in education from Sal Khan and James Curran. Before moving to Sydney next year, many hailed it as the event’s most successful edition.
More than 10,000 people came to EduTECH last week. It is Australia’s biggest conference and exhibition for teachers and EdTech providers.
More than 350 speakers, 250 exhibitors, and 40 start-ups came to the event at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre from August 13th to 14th.
Teachers and leaders gained more than 150 hours of professional development. The main speaker was Sal Khan, who started Khan Academy, a non-profit group whose goal is to give everyone, everywhere, a free, world-class education.
During his opening speech, Khan discussed the impact of AI on learning, the ongoing research on adaptive learning environments, and the potential of AI to personalize learning for both students and teachers. He also talked about the biggest problems that come with using AI in schools.
Another well-known speaker at the event was James Curran, who is the CEO and director of Grok Academy. He explained how AI works and what it means for students, teachers, and leaders. Dr. Curran’s interactive talk made it easier for people to understand the main ideas behind GenAI systems like ChatGPT. This will help teachers and their students deal with the fast-changing AI opportunities in work, school, and life.
EduTECH’s Success in Melbourne
Terrapinn Australia hosts the event every year, and Rita Nehme, the marketing director, said that the large number of attendees, speakers, and exhibitors made it the most successful EduTECH in a while. “This win was a nice way to say goodbye to Melbourne before we move to Sydney next year,” Nehme told The Educator. “People who came, sponsored, and exhibited have given us great feedback, and they’ve already signed up for next year.”
Nehme said that EduTECH has a positive effect on the large group of teachers and leaders who attend, no matter what city hosts it. She said, “We want to build a strong community for educators and leaders in this space and bring them all together under one roof to learn about the people, programs, and tools that are on the cutting edge of education.” They say “EduTECH is ‘one big festival for all of education,'” honestly.
According to Nehme, the event brings teachers and school leaders together with people who can help them in very important ways at a time when Australian schools are facing many difficult problems. She said, “Attendees can learn with classmates from their school or connect with classmates from other schools who may be going through the same problems but have unique solutions you haven’t seen yet.”
It’s a great place to learn about the newest technology and ways to solve problems. Nehme stated that leaders and teachers must understand the use of new digital tools, particularly those powered by AI, to make a positive impact in the classroom. Teachers and leaders should bring questions to the event to learn answers because digital technology is the future.