As part of our work to equitably advance the future of digital teaching and innovation, Teachers College has teamed up with leading technology firm StartEd to welcome more than X attendees to Ed Tech Week 2024 – an innovative conference connecting key players from the classroom to the boardroom. in search of solutions to the biggest challenges facing students and educators today.

“Let’s collectively ensure that children’s learning and well-being remain at the forefront of ed tech design and implementation. This focus is not just our responsibility; it’s our opportunity to shape a brighter, more inclusive future through technology,” said President Thomas Bailey during his speech at the College’s Smith Learning Theater on Oct. 17. “Today we are issuing a call to action to our partners, developers and technology implementers. …The future of educational technology is in our hands. Let’s design it wisely, with intention, creativity and always with the best interest of our young people at heart.”

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Lalitha Vasudevan, College Vice Dean for Digital Innovation and DFI Managing Director. (Photo courtesy of DFI)

Jonathan Harber, founder of StartEd; Charles Lang, Senior Executive Director of DFI; Edward Metz, program manager of the Institute of Education Sciences; Erin Higgins, program manager of the Institute of Education Sciences; Ash Kaluarachchi, CEO of StartEd. (Photo: DFI)

College experts Institute for the Digital Future led TC’s involvement in the exhibition—the latest milestone in their dual mandate of service and scholarship since its launch in 2020.

“Our partnership with StartEd on this week’s festivities is the latest chapter in our shared commitment to advancing technology’s potential to benefit education,” said Lalitha Vasudevanvice dean of the college for digital innovation and director general of DFI. “From advising on the critical and ethical engagement of AI in the classroom to helping educators develop multimodal pedagogy, TC’s Digital Futures Institute has focused on tangible impact since our inception – and we look forward to continuing this important work with our colleagues in the field. .”

Explore some of our favorite moments from Ed Tech Week 2024 below.

Representatives of the Digital Futures Institute, Pop and Play podcastThe Games Research Lab, Transformative Learning Technologies Lab (TLTL) and Snow Day Learning Lab showcased the exciting innovative work being done at TC. DFI’s Lucius Von Joo and Chris Moffett demonstrated an automated, 3D-printed replica of a centuries-old Czech puppet, making connections between the ancient art form, modern technologies and, of course, education.

In addition to demonstrating their work, TC’s Paulo Blikstein and Nathan Holbert presented some of the projects created at TLTL and the Snow Day Learning Lab, such as GoGo Boardan open-source learning platform that provides low-cost entry into robotics and scientific detection, as well as jewelry and plaques created from biomaterials like mycelium. TC’s Joey Lee also teamed up with Harlem CoLab’s Dennis Morgan to demonstrate innovative examples in educational games.

Later, technology experts, school leaders and others traveled to the city on Thursday, October 17, to continue the festivities at the Teachers College.

The day began with the EdTech Week Talent Fair, during which Teachers College students connected with industry leaders and potential employers in the Everett Lounge. More than nine companies presented their opportunities in this opportunity – co-hosted with TC NEXT — while students networked and received complimentary headshots.

The festivities continued with the exclusive lunch and learn session, “Can You Tell Me How to Get on Sesame Street? Designing EdTech for Impact,” during which attendees created their own muppets while hearing from industry leaders while engaging in their own hands-on learning.

Vasudevan led the conversation with experts in experiential learning, including Emily Reardon, Director of User Experience at Sesame workshop. In his work, Reardon develops innovative technologies for game-based learning, navigating the complexities that make an effective learning tool.

“Design is always an expression of values… The design principles that I think about and a lot of people at Sesame think about are these ideas of agency, engagement, growth and social connection,” explains Reardon, who moved from working on Sesame’s television projects to more digital learning. “For the TV show, the story is very linear. For digital, you can think of them as recipe ingredients. So how much point of view do we need? How much character do we need? What do we think of the tone? And just add and subtract.”

In addition to developing their own science-based learning materials for children, Sesame researchers like Michael Preston (Ph.D. ’10, Cognitive studies in education) are working to make best practices for child-centered technology design more widely available. CEO of Sesame’s Joan Ganz Cooney Centera research and innovation lab, Preston sees these efforts as critical to the development of technology that helps children develop.

“How do we take this very careful, long-term, expensive, rigorous process that we use to make media more accessible?” explained Preston, who also spoken at the launch of the DFI Play & Wellbeing initiative last winter. “If you feel very mission-driven and want to achieve some kind of positive outcome for children, that’s a good sign to us that you’re willing to go down the potentially harder but more rewarding path.”

The game-based learning expertise continued with the panelist Azadeh Jamalian (Ph.D. ’14, Cognitive Studies in Education), CEO and founder of GIANT room — a creative co-design center for children, families and educators.

“For us, AI was an opportunity to encourage kids to express their ideas and build their visions,” explains Jamalian, for whom empowerment is a core component of the success of the GIANT room and other learning experiences. tool that gives children control over what they want to do and learn. It’s a tool that puts students in the seat of power.”

A networking reception in the Smith Learning Lab was fittingly close to the events at TC, bringing together industry leaders and edtech innovators, as well as representatives from the William T. Grant Foundation, the Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES) USA, Bill. & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Tool Contest for an afternoon of relationship-building and opportunity-seeking.

The reception at the network reflected the potential created when StartEd partnered with TC for EdTech Week. “Partnerships like these are a force multiplier for innovation,” explained Charles Lang, DFI’s senior executive director, who served as a key leader in the joint effort and sees collaboration as critical to progress in the field.

Vasudevan and George Kledaras, a TC Board Member, welcomed the eager audience and introduced Charles Elliot, CTO of Research and Education at Google. “AI does not level the playing field. A new one is being created,” said Elliot, whose presentation highlighted Google’s LearnLM, a suite of generative AI tools designed specifically for learning and teaching.

After the formal program was over, participants were invited to network with each other in areas of focus The Public Good: sustainability, teacher education, artificial intelligence and public health.

Learn more about Institute for the Digital Future and digital innovation the work carried out at the College of Teachers.

— Sherri Gardner and Morgan Gilbard