Focused on the themes of Innovation, Wellbeing, Empowering Teaching & Learning, Future Tech & Trends, Skills & Inclusion (Social Mobility & SEND), Bett Show 2020 kicks off tomorrow and the industry’s abuzz.
Designed to inspire thought-provoking discussion around the six key themes, the event brings together 800 leading companies, 103 exciting new edtech startups and over 34,000 attendees. Here, we provide a snapshot of some of the speakers, awards and exhibitors ahead of doors opening at 10am tomorrow.
The speaker programme
Bett promises something for everyone this year, with more than 380 speakers taking the stage in the four-day event – a significant year-on-year increase in education speakers. Taking the helm in the Arena is the UK’s favourite experimental physicist, Professor Brian Cox OBE, who will deliver his keynote speech on Exploring the Universe at 4.30pm on 22 January. Big brands will also take to the Arena stage, with keynotes on Hybrid Intelligences: Amplifying Human Potential from Microsoft (1.25pm Wednesday 22 January), and the Importance of Creativity from Apple (2.50pm Wednesday 22 January).
Click here to review the full speaker programme for Bett 2020.
Exhibitor showcase
With over 40,000 square feet of floor space, there’s so much to explore at the Bett Show this year. Worldwide Partner Microsoft will host a range of activities and highlight their joint venture with jp.ik – their community learning centre. On top of this, Lego Education will celebrate their 40th anniversary in education with their very own on-stand museum.
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Bett’s Aspiration Partner, KidZania, will provide an engaging and interactive experience for attendees to enjoy. Committed to ‘learning by doing’, KidZania will broaden horizons with an aspiration trail, designed to introduce immersive and experiential learning to educators. Dr Ger Graus OBE, global director of education for KidZania, will take to the stage to discuss the need to connect teaching with ‘learning by doing’ at 12.30pm on 23 January.
On top of this, Bett is set to showcase the best of Google, SMART, Promethean, Spotify, HP, BBC Learning, Sparx and Amazon Web Services (AWS), while startup village Bett Futures will spotlight some of the sector’s most innovative startups.
Supporting wellbeing
It’s not all about observing and learning for teachers visiting Bett; they will also take part in EduFootyAid – a charity football tournament developed in partnership with Mind UK, kicking off at 11am on 25 January. In light of growing teacher workloads and increasing social pressure on students, Bett hopes to promote the invaluable work Mind conducts in this field – hence the event’s key theme of wellbeing.
Achievements in edtech
The four-day exhibition will also see two sets of awards that recognise the best of the edtech sector.
The Bett Awards, in association with Besa, celebrate creativity and innovation. An integral part of the event, winners will be announced at a ceremony on Wednesday 22 January. Presenting 20 awards that recognise everything from innovation, to collaborations with schools, and edtech devices, the shortlist features a range of established players and breakthrough brands.
The Global Edtech Startup Awards (GESAwards) will identify, showcase and recognise this year’s most promising edtech startups. After filtering through 3,000 entries, a panel of judges will sit through pitches from 15 finalists at Bett at 5.15pm on Thursday.
These are just a few of the highlights of Bett 2020, the world’s biggest gathering of education professionals and businesses. For full details of the show visit www.bettshow.com