Bett Educar, Latin America’s largest education event, is committed to serving as a platform for content and networking in the fields of education and technology. To this end, it continually incorporates new topics and discussions into its program to ensure that its events remain relevant and enriching. To support this effort, Bett relies on its Advisory Board. The Board offers opinions, makes suggestions, helps select topics and content, and participates in event planning. This year, the Board welcomed new members and held its first meeting via videoconference on July 24, during which it presented the plans for the meetings to be held later in 2020 and for the 2021 event.

Claudia Valério, General Director of Bett Educar, presented figures and strategies for Bett Brasil for 2020 and 2021. Maria Alice Carraturi, Director of Content, emphasized the role of the Council and its members and highlighted the new features of the Bett Blog, which now provides a platform for Council members interested in contributing content—whether in video, text, or podcast format. The Bett Blog will be completely revamped, featuring contributions from Cláudia Costin, Lilian Bacich, and Betina von Staa, as well as a video by Romero Tori and an interview with Marcelo Knobel, president of Unicamp.

The meeting, attended by the board members, addressed potential topics for upcoming Bett Educar events.

Celso Niskier, CEO of ABMES, highlighted two relevant topics to be included in the event schedule: technology and student support. A complementary proposal was highlighted by Maria Helena Guimarães de Castro, a member of the CNE. She commented on the pandemic’s impact on basic education, citing curriculum redesign and the revision of assessment metrics—issues that deserve attention both now and in the post-pandemic era. Maria Helena noted that the OECD and other non-member countries are already rethinking these new metrics. For Brazil, which has not yet set out to debate this urgent issue, the proposal is to organize a panel discussion on the subject at the Bett Educar events in collaboration with the Brazilian Association for Educational Assessment (ABAVE).

CONSED President Maria Cecília Motta highlighted inequalities in connectivity and access to equipment and networks, as well as the sudden changes in the format of remote learning, for which teachers were unprepared. Maria Cecília and Luiz Curi, President of the CNE, indicated that these issues could be discussed at a roundtable focused on public policy.

According to Domingos Machado, director of innovation at Tiradentes University (UNIT), BETT serves as a barometer of educational trends. He proposed that future events incorporate accounts of successful experiences, with examples of what is being done at educational institutions in Brazil that can inspire other educators.

Laura Langaná, superintendent of the Paula Souza Center, spoke about vocational education, which currently faces one of its greatest challenges in providing hands-on training through remote learning, and would like to explore solutions to this issue

Romero Tori and Luciano Meira discussed the concept of “social distancing.” Meira believes it should simply be called “stay-at-home orders,” since social distancing carries other meanings. Tori states that when classes resume, physical distancing will still be in place—which is not the same as stay-at-home orders—so he will record a podcast for the Bett Blog to clarify this term.

With the suspension of in-person classes and the shift to remote learning, one of the biggest challenges has been engaging children and keeping them focused. Miguel Thompson, academic director of the Santillana Foundation, pointed out that it is not enough to simply move classes online; we must go further and pay attention to the digital language of entertainment, such as games and videos. To address this issue, he will moderate a panel at Bett in September.

Luciano Meira emphasizes the importance of innovation—not only through technology, but also through transformative ideas—which can be enriched by the participation of people from other fields, such as designers, design thinking experts, and civil society organizations, including Doutores da Alegria, among others.

Also participating in the meeting was Rossieli Soares, Ambassador for Bett Educar and Secretary of State for Education of São Paulo. Rossieli noted that another major challenge at this time is knowing how to capitalize on what educators, students, schools, and education systems are learning in the current context of social isolation, class suspensions, and online learning, and to incorporate these experiences into the programming for Bett Educar events in 2020 and 2021. He also stated that Bett Brasil could become the world’s largest event, given the significance of the topics and people it has brought together.

The Bett Educar Advisory Board will meet again in the coming months to discuss specific topics related to higher education and basic education, which are expected to be included in the agenda for upcoming events.

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