With more than 18,000 attendees, this year’s ISTELive 23 in Philadelphia had a little something for everyone, from AI and esports to security solutions and engaging visual displays.
Here’s a look at some of the top edtech the eSchool News editors saw at ISTELive 23:
Acer America and the Network of Academic and Scholastic Esports Federations (NASEF) announced their alliance to help schools launch or expand their student esports program. Through this alliance, NASEF and Acer America will provide the training, coaching modules and course certification for schools to structure, implement and maintain an esports program. Plus, Acer America, the premier hardware provider for NASEF, is paying the $499 esports coaching certification fee for eligible K-12 schools and universities initiating programs in the 2023-24 school year. The coaching certification for the award-winning NASEF platform prepares teams to participate in the program; having Acer America pay this fee could potentially save a school district thousands of dollars.
Airtame, creator of the hardware-enabled SaaS platform that allows seamless collaboration in schools, demonstrated its award-winning Airtame 2 and all-new collaboration features, which provide a seamless collaboration experience for educational institutions. Airtame also spotlighted its new partnership with Rise Vision, which enables standardized emergency alerts to be sent to entire school systems to streamline communication, response time, and safety.
Autodesk’s Tinkercad platform recently released a new feature called Sim Lab that allows students to experiment with their 3D designs in a simulated space—similar to a video game. Students can simulate the effects of gravity on their 3D model, add materials (like rubber, wood, plastic) to an object, and even build simple machines. Educators can also copy and tinker with more complex, pre-made designs so they don’t have to start from scratch. Sim Lab draws inspiration from children’s favorite video games, bringing the excitement of gaming into the design experience.
Avantis Education, provider of virtual reality technology for K-12 schools, has partnered with the Washington-based EdGate to align its 400+ immersive, virtual reality lessons to U.S. state standards in science, social studies and English Language Arts. Avantis Education’s lessons are housed in the Eduverse, Avantis’ award-winning, built-for-education online platform. The Eduverse is accessible on any device, and is also the content hub for schools using ClassVR, Avantis Education’s award-winning all-in-one VR headsets. In addition to the more than 400 full lessons, the Eduverse provides access to thousands of pieces of immersive, educational VR and AR content to supplement instruction, all in a secure, teacher-controlled virtual environment.
BenQ, a provider of visual display solutions, demonstrated the award-winning BenQ Boards in action with live demonstrations done by teachers who are users. Also at the booth were BenQ’s new LH730 LED and LH820ST laser projectors, InstaShow WDC20E wireless presentation system (WPS), as well as its latest integration partnerships.
Capstone, an innovative learning company merging children’s content with easy-to-use edtech tools for K-5 classrooms, libraries and homes, discussed its licensing agreement with ISTE, which includes plans to publish a collection of children’s books promoting digital citizenship awareness and the positive and creative use of technology and digital tools. The first title debuting in the ISTE Young Innovators collection, Sonia’s Digital World (pub 8/1/23), is written by award-winning librarian Shannon McClintock Miller, an ISTE Making IT Happen Award recipient, Future Ready Librarians spokesperson, Follett thought leader, and AASL Leadership Luminary social media superstar. The picture book follows the characters on a virtual trail as they chat, create and play together, and make discoveries and connections with digital tools. Preview an advance copy of the book at bit.ly/SoniasDigitalWorldARC. The license includes world rights for print and digital books, with ISTE providing supplemental resources supported by the ISTE Standards, a framework for using technology to support learning.
ClassIn, a provider of hybrid, blended, and remote learning solutions, promoted the recent launch of its platform in the United States. The ClassIn platform has been purpose-built for education and based on nearly a decade of research, development, and in-market experience. Through its software and hardware solutions, ClassIn provides the digital infrastructure for the hybrid future of education by building classrooms in both the virtual and physical worlds. ClassIn is the only end-to-end education platform with a full suite of innovative tools and features, all designed with hybrid-first pedagogy at its core. It supports active learning, student flexibility, and various teaching and learning methods.
Laura Ascione is the Editorial Director at eSchool Media. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland’s prestigious Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
Source: https://www.eschoolnews.com/innovative-teaching/2023/07/07/top-edtech-at-istelive-23/
