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PL Summit 2018: 3 Days of Shaping the Future of Education

PL Summit 2018: 3 Days of Shaping the Future of Education

Professional Development  |  EE Summit

It is hard to make something better each year and yet, somehow, as I reflect on the Education Elements Personalized Learning Summit 2018, it feels like we have done it. It’s five days since the Summit ended and I am still energized by the energy and passion of every one of the 750 people who attended. I am still excited about the ideas I heard and looking forward to talking more to the people I met. I am still amazed that we pulled it off.  750 people is a lot of people for a conference that four years ago had less than 150!

We started the PL Summit by sharing  a few guiding principles and told participants that it would be:

  • Inclusive: wide range of people and ideas shaping the future
  • Interactive: all sessions are fully engaging for participants
  • Personalized: authentic choice in how and what you learn

We also asked everyone to set an intention for the Summit, write it down and remember it, and to shout it out as a way to publicly hold themselves accountable for doing it.  My sincere hope is that as a team Ed Elements was successful in designing an event that was inline with those principles, and that we helped each attendee achieve their intention

Forty-eight hours later, I closed out the PL Summit with a few reflections on what we accomplished in the time we spent together, and I wanted to share those here:

  • We went on 16 tech tours to companies like Google, Twitter, IDEO, Stitchfix, Twitch, and Lyft where we saw what the future of the world and work will look like

    Lyft tour picture-031701-edited
  • We listened to keynotes by George Couros and Sarah Jones where we were inspired to approach the work of shaping the future

    George by @GreenwichpsCIPL-286289-edited
  • We went on runs and participated in a HIIT class where we made sure we’d be around for the future

    PLS Run-411969-edited
  • We played with giant Legos and LiteBrites, for some nostalgia and a blast from the past

    Screen Shot 2018-05-08 at 3.59.46 PM-292697-edited
  • We dressed up in costumes and danced and forgot that in the future we had to get up for breakfast and sessions

    PLS18_0037-862714-edited
  • We had a book signing where people bought Anthony Kim’s new book, The NEW School Rules which would hopefully change how they approach their work in the future

    NSR Book Signing-732430-edited
  • We participated in workshops, breakouts, roundtables, design challenges, simulations and coaching sessions where we mapped out a new future for educators and learners

    Screen Shot 2018-05-03 at 5.13.38 PM-1-814187-edited

My biggest hope coming out of the Summit is that even though the event is over officially, the discussions, learning, and collaboration continue. I hope that everyone who attended and took home ideas begins to implement them. I hope that everyone who made a new connection or friend sends that email or text, and keeps it going. I hope that the promises we made to students are ones that we keep, and that we stay strong on our commitment to work together, with each other, and with the students we serve, to shape the future.

Didn’t get a chance to attend? Join our mailing list for the Personalized Learning Summit 2019, and stay informed about registration!

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About Amy Jenkins - Guest Author

Amy Jenkins was the chief operating officer of Education Elements.

Public Relations Today