Five Must-Attend K-12 Education Conferences

Must-Attend K-12 Education Conferences

• SXSWedu
• International Literacy Association
• Building Learning Communities
• ASEE Workshop
• Shift in Edu

Educators who care about their professional development will attend a conference or two per year depending on their interest in the topics being discussed. It'll also depend on where the conference is located. Each year might feature a new location. Along with listening to keynotes in particular areas of interest, conferences are a fantastic way to stay current on a variety of topics regarding education and network with other educators. Vendors with valuable products and services are always available at these conferences too.

SXSWedu

This annual conference lasts over 4 days with dozens of events within the main conference. It's also considered a festival with a variety of topics that would interest educators. Each focus area is organized into tracks like Early Learning, ESL/ELL or Special Needs. There are summits, sessions and workshops as well as keynotes by education leaders. Along with structured events, there are focused meet ups to encourage networking as well as The Playground, which is a learning space for educators that covers STEM, virtual learning and the arts.

International Literacy Association

This is another 4-day conference that features numerous events that are both structured and unstructured. There are sessions and workshops throughout the entire 4 days with author meet ups and speakers presenting too. Each day, there'll be a lunch event where educators can network and hear from speakers about literacy topics. While some events require a ticket, access to the main hall with vendors does not require one. This event is geared specifically to educators in grades K through 12.

Building Learning Communities

Hundreds of participants from around the world attend the conference each year. Along with the conference itself, there are over 100 pre-conference master classes lead by other educators with special knowledge. The classes cover topics like learning skills and strategies to build a learning culture in the classroom through the year. At the conference, there will be orientation sessions, keynote speakers and workshops. This conference is held in Boston every year, so it incorporates other venues within the city for events like global speed networking.

ASEE Workshop

The American Society for Engineering Education focuses on providing PreK to grade 12 engineering professional development to those who teach pre-college children. This is an interactive, hands-on learning experience for the educators involve in the event each year. They provide teachers with the tools to educate children in engineering including free takeaways for the classroom. In previous years, they had breakout sessions and displays from schools like Stanford University titled "Engineering Clean Water: Figuring Out Filtration" and Tufts University, which was titled "Novel Engineering: An Integrated Approach to Teaching Engineering and Literacy."

Shift in Edu

Previously known as Miami Device, this conference is about engaging students with passionate educators who want to master the art of connecting with their classroom. These educators are practicing and exploring a variety of ways to engage their students and learning from each other. Topics of the conference include 21st century skills, common core standards, game based learning along with the support of mobile devices and classroom flipping.

The conference you attend each year might vary depending on your interests and the location of the event. Each event is packed with informative workshops, interactive displays and lunches where educators can connect with others in their field.

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