Get ready for a K-12 mega-conference: The International Society for Technology in Education, or ISTE, and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, or ASCD, will be hosting their conferences together, beginning next year in San Antonio, Texas.
ISTE, a nonprofit that helps K-12 teachers make the most of digital tools, and ASCD, one of the oldest and largest K-12 professional development associations, announced plans to merge in 2022.
Bringing the two conferences into the same space is a huge step for the combined organization鈥攚hich still doesn鈥檛 have an official name. The move is meant to help serve school districts better, since it will allow a district鈥檚 education technology team to travel with their colleagues who focus on professional development and curriculum, said Richard Culatta, the CEO of ISTE/ASCD.
鈥淧art of the reason we did this merger in the first place is that we believe [in] bringing teams together to help create experiences in schools,鈥� Culatta said. 鈥淲e are creating an opportunity where teams can actually come together and learn together.鈥�
Having will also be a boon for the many district leaders鈥攑articularly in smaller systems鈥攚ho might oversee technology alongside another department, such as curriculum and instruction, Culatta added.
鈥淚f you wear multiple hats, you can switch your hat and go to different parts of the event, all in one place,鈥� Culatta said.
While attendees will have to register for one conference or the other, they鈥檒l be able to attend sessions at both, Culatta said. And while each organization鈥檚 event will have its own identity, there will be some shared programming, he added.
鈥淭here will be some moments that we are intentionally designing to have some connections happening,鈥� Culatta said. That might include some mainstage sessions, shared themes, and events that will be listed in both programs.
How will people navigate the bigger event?
ISTE usually attracts about 15,000 to 20,000 people, already making it one of the largest K-12 conferences. In fact, when the conference was held in Philadelphia in 2019, the Panera Bread across from the street from the event space ran out of food, according to an Education Week reporter who attended the conference. ISTE鈥檚 conference has typically offered about 1,000 sessions.
Adding ASCD鈥檚 usual conference attendance鈥攁bout 3,000 to 5,000 people鈥攚ill obviously make the event even bigger. ASCD鈥檚 conference typically offers somewhere between 250 and 300 sessions.
How will people be able to navigate an event that size? The combined organization has done a lot of thinking about that, Culatta said.
鈥淭he biggest thing that we have been working on is how to make sure that it doesn鈥檛 feel overwhelming,鈥� Culatta said.
One example: The event will give attendees who have something in common鈥攕ay, similar roles in their school or district鈥攁 physical space to connect. And the event will offer a 鈥渄esign desk鈥� staffed with people who can offer advice on which sessions to attend, based on what an educator wants to get out of the conference.
ISTE/ASCD will be looking for feedback on how the co-located event works for attendees, and make adjustments if needed.
鈥淚f people say, 鈥榤an, we love this. This is a great model.鈥� We鈥檒l run with it,鈥� Culatta said. 鈥淚f people say 鈥榳e wish there was more overlap,鈥� we will adjust those dials. And if people say 鈥榳e wish there was less overlap,鈥� we can adjust those dials.鈥�
