Friday 20th October - Sharing expertise for school improvement

1. Positive Feedback:

   • Many attendees found the content to be of high quality, relevant, interesting, and empowering.
   • Artificial Intelligence (AI) was a standout topic, with numerous attendees praising its presentations and expressing their inspiration and excitement about it.
   • Inclusion and diversity sessions were highlighted as thought-provoking with positive messages. Some attendees mentioned that these sessions were very relevant to the current educational landscape.
   • Several attendees appreciated the collaborative activities, interactive discussions, and opportunities for school visits.
   • The keynote speakers were generally well-received, with some specifically praising their engaging nature.
   • Some attendees felt invigorated and inspired, even experiencing personal and professional breakthroughs.

2. Constructive Feedback:

   • A few attendees felt that some of the content or speakers were not up to the mark or not relevant to the audience.
   • There were mentions of certain presentations, such as those by exhibitors, being boring.
   • Some feedback indicated that while the AI content was appreciated, it became repetitive. On the other hand, the inclusion content was seen as repetitive by some because it was similar to previous years.
   • There was a desire for more content on neurodiversity and including children with special educational needs.
   • A few attendees noted that while the individual conference strands were interesting, they weren't necessarily integrated or drawn together clearly.

3. Areas for Improvement:

   • Some attendees expressed a desire for more personalized training or sessions.
   • There were mentions of wanting more variety in the content.
   • A suggestion was made to explore new topics and not revisit the same ones repeatedly in consecutive years.

Overall, the content of the conference was well-received, with AI and Inclusion being the central themes that garnered attention. However, there were areas where improvements could be made to enhance the experience further.

1. Food:

   • Reduce the amount of food offered during breaks.
   • Some attendees appreciated the food quantity.

2. Student Involvement:

   • Increase student participation and have more student panels.
   • Encourage students to speak up more.

3. Keynotes:

   • Reconsider the number of keynote sessions.
   • Have only one keynote followed by a discussion.
   • Ensure keynote speakers are present in person and not virtually.

4. Organization and Duration:

   • Some attendees found the conference well-organized while others suggested minor changes.
   • Consider shortening the conference, possibly making it a 3-day event instead of 4 to prevent a decline in attendees on the last day.
   • Perhaps include Saturday to minimize interference with school days.
   • Some attendees felt the days were too long and suggested shorter days.

5. Activities and Sessions:

   • Allocate time to interact with exhibitors.
   • Organize an optional afternoon to explore the city.
   • Incorporate more hands-on workshops and breakout sessions, possibly in school settings with educators.
   • Increase the number of breakout sessions or extend their duration.
   • Create breakouts led by school heads to discuss emerging issues.
   • Maintain theme-based days as in the past.
   • Provide resources such as articles and readings in advance.
   • Make sessions more interactive with activities and movement.
   • Consider outdoor sessions or sessions with natural lighting.
   • Offer opportunities to visit more schools.
   • Host the conference in a school or multiple schools to cut costs.

6. Content Depth:

   • Delve deeper into specific topics like inclusion.
   • Ask speakers to assess attendees before their session to tailor content.

7. Environment and Logistics:

   • Organize an evening activity/dinner outside the hotel.
   • Consider hosting in schools to make it more practical and reduce costs.
   • Attendees felt cramped and suggested more space between sessions.
   • Consider the dress code.
   • Avoid presenters merely reading their content; they should engage with the audience.

8. General Feedback:

   • Some attendees felt the format was satisfactory and wouldn't suggest major changes.
   • A few attendees expressed that they felt overwhelmed by the end and would appreciate a slightly less packed schedule.

1. AI (Artificial Intelligence) - Mentioned 6 times
2. Inclusion - Mentioned 4 times
3. Wellbeing - Mentioned 3 times
4. Diversity - Mentioned 3 times
5. Safeguarding - Mentioned 2 times
6. Resilience - Mentioned 2 times
7. Deep Learning - Mentioned 2 times
8. Learning Communities - Mentioned 2 times

The following themes were each mentioned once:

• Special Needs
• Conflict managing
• Co Learning
• Mental health
• Learning strategies
• Communication
• Talent acquisition
• International collaboration
• UDL
• Leadership
• Cultural change
• Bilingualism
• Coaching models
• Social emotional learning
• Language Development
• Emotional development
• Augmented reality
• Assessments with AI
• Building better learning communities
• Outdoor Education
• Community Building
• Raising/Sharing voice
• Reflection
• Socioemotional education
• Adaptation
• DEI
• Building character
• Creative assessment
• Expats
• Learning difficulties
• IEPs
• Universal design
• Strategic Planning
• Global Citizenship
• Academic excellence
• Teaching and learning through coaching
• Vision and mission
• Future of learning
• Language acquisition
• Skill development
• Environmental sustainability
• Intercultural competence