Balance. It’s something that educators need to master throughout the school year. Balancing reviewing old material with introducing new concepts. Balancing assisting students who are behind with challenging advanced pupils. Balancing all the different modes and channels of learning with one another.
This summer, be sure to flex those balancing muscles in your own life away from the classroom. These few months offer the perfect opportunity to pursue professional development opportunities as well as to take some much needed downtime for relaxation and rejuvenation before the academic year begins once again. Although many summer conferences offer a wealth of learning opportunities, be sure to prioritize just a few and hold time on your calendar for personal and family commitments that are just as important.
Teacher Summer Conferences
Whether you’re looking to learn more about how to deal with school-specific challenges or shore up your area of subject expertise, many teacher conferences are available around the country. Here are just a few to consider.
• Innovative Schools Submit. This organization holds four conferences throughout the year with two remaining for this summer. The first addresses learning loss, transforming school climate and addressing marginalized students and will be held in Atlanta between June 20-24. The second will be in Las Vegas from July 5-9 and will also address learning loss along with teaching SEL competencies and supportive discipline.
• The Online Teaching Conference. This conference will focus on curriculum, pedagogy, and technology to improve online instruction, learning, and student success. It provides a great opportunity for you to network with colleagues, share knowledge, impart and receive best practices, and develop professionally. It will be held June 21-23 in Long Beach, California.
• Visible Learning Conference. For those concerned about student growth and achievement post-pandemic, this conference will help you make better decisions about what content, ideas, and skills you want students to know, understand, and do. During these conference sessions, you will embark on the elements of Visible Learning: teaching, leading, learning, and equity. Held in Orlando, this conference is July 10-13.
EdTech Learning Conferences
Technology is not going away, and continuous learning is key to staying on top of not only the latest advancements but the best applications of technology in our classrooms. Here are some top summer EdTech learning opportunities.
• ISTE Live. The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) conference will be held between June 25-28 in Philadelphia and is one of the world’s most comprehensive edtech events, attended by a global contingent of education leaders, teachers, coaches, librarians/media specialists and more. For those attending, we hope to see you at the MAXCases booth #1257 – we’ll have some fun giveaways to compete for and a tech raffle to enter, along with our latest products to help Keep Kids Learning on display.
• Anthology Together. This conference brings together educators and institutions from around the world to reveal and share meaningful EdTech insights and innovations. Join industry thought leaders, education professionals, and learners from all backgrounds and experiences to listen to keynotes by industry insiders, participate in peer-driven discussions, learn best practices, and join a variety of networking opportunities.
• Education 2.0. Planned for July 10-12, this conference will be in Las Vegas and give you the chance to meet and collaborate with the experts while learning about K-12 digital education, teachers’ training and management, education and entrepreneurship, data security and management, scam/spam prevention measures against different types of education fraud, and various other industry challenges.
K12 Administrator Conferences
For school administrators, summer is the perfect time to network with other like-minded leaders to learn from one another and share success stories. Here are a few of the best summer conferences for K12 administrators.
• Ignite23. Sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals, this summer conference will be held between July 12-15 in Denver. From peer learning opportunities to interactive experiences, you will focus on building leadership capacity, school climate and culture, whole school wellness, and student engagement.
• National Conference on Student Assessment. Scheduled for June 26-28, this conference will be in New Orleans and will bring together top experts and speakers from around the country. Learn the essential foundation for conversations on assessment, accountability, repairing current state systems, and strategizing to meet the needs of your students.
• Model School Conference. At the Model Schools Conference, to be held June 25-28 in Orlando, presented by the International Center for Leadership in Education, you’ll learn from districts, schools, and educators who have achieved success and how to replicate similar results.
Other learning opportunities may be available in your local community or online as well. Take the time to explore a few professional development conferences and be selective about the ones you choose. Many are held in prime vacation spots around the country, so consider pairing some rest and relaxation immediately following your selected conferences to be sure you get the downtime you deserve this summer.
