From high performance to well-being, Bett UK showcases technologies that support education

The first day of the Bett Show in London highlighted trends and demonstrated how technology can support schools and teachers by being put to work in the service of learning. The effects of the pandemic are still being felt, but there is a global effort to ensure that students continue to thrive.

Capitalizing on young people’s interest in esports has been a strategy adopted by some British schools. Recognizing that many more students began playing online during the pandemic, Queen Mary School decided to create a course on the subject. “It’s not about spending five hours a week gaming—much to the disappointment of many of my students. It’s about understanding the business and the industry, and preparing students for careers in technology—but using something they’re passionate about,” explained James Murison, the school’s Director of Learning and Esports, who set up a special classroom for the course in partnership with Lenovo. Lenovo is one of the exhibitors in London that will also be present at Bett Brasil.

According to Murison, one-third of the school’s students have chosen educational paths involving STEM (an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Often, institutions also include the Arts in this acronym, thus creating the STEAM approach. Kate Swanborg, vice president of communications and strategy at DreamWorks. In a talk in the event’s largest auditorium, she explained that technology itself is secondary and that people can learn it over time. “When I started working, I used a pager,” she recalled. 

Preparing for the world of Steam is more about the desire to try to solve a challenge and see the results of your actions. “When people ask me what software I need to know to work at DreamWorks, I answer: what matters most is passion.” 

Sometimes, however, in addition to fostering students’ interests, it is necessary to help them catch up on what they’ve missed. After periods of lockdown and time away from school, students’ engagement with reading has declined, noted teacher Harriet Croydon, who is also assistant principal at Colchester School, a private school in England. To help teachers advance students’ learning, she has adopted a Microsoft tool that uses artificial intelligence. “The system identifies mispronunciations. It highlights not only individual issues but also problems common to the class. This takes a huge workload off teachers’ shoulders,” she said during a lecture. 

All the children have to do is read a text aloud, and Reading Progress analyzes their reading and provides a report to the teachers. The teacher can then determine how to intervene and develop specific strategies. For Harriete, in addition to improving learning, the technology boosts self-esteem: “Some students didn’t have the confidence to read aloud in front of the class, but now they raise their hands,” she says. Anyone interested in the solution—which is also available in Portuguese—can learn more at the Microsoft booth at Bett Brasil. 

 

Brazil in the Spotlight

Among the day’s speakers, Vitor de Angelo, president of Consed (National Council of State Secretaries of Education) and secretary of education for Espírito Santo, represented Brazil. He spoke about the infrastructure challenges the country faced when the pandemic began. “Internet access in households was on the rise, but among Class D households, it was still below 40%. “These people were excluded,” he said. 

Despite the difficulties, Angelo sees the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity for greater equity in Brazil today. “We need to increasingly incorporate technology on a large scale. The fact is that the pandemic, by creating a need, has pushed us in that direction,” he said. 

In addition to Angelo, who came to give a presentation, Brazil has a delegation of nearly 100 participants at Bett UK. They are representatives from companies, private schools, and the public school system, all with the goal of bringing the best to Brazilian education. “The trend I see at Bett this year is using technology as a support tool—for teachers, administrators, families, and students. Technology is no longer the star of the show: it works behind the scenes to help put students in the spotlight,” commented André Guadalupe, principal of Planck School in São José dos Campos, who is attending a Bett event in London for the second time. 

"This content is brought to you by Red Balloon In School in partnership with Bett Brasil. Registration for the conference and accreditation to visit Bett Brasil 2022 are now open. More updates will be shared leading up to the event and will be announced on the website brasil.bettshow.com and the official social media accounts @bettbrasil."