by Caroline Gilpin

Dwight Global Online School educators shared their expertise and led presentations at this year’s International Society for Technology in Education Conference held in Denver, Colorado from June 24-26. The conference is one of the biggest technology conferences for educators, who attend annually from all over the world. This year, more than 16,500 participants attended the conference live.

Dwight Global faculty and school leadership attended special sessions and also led presentations over the three-day event. Dwight Global Head of Middle School Sara Crucet and Director of Curriculum and Instruction Renata Nikolayev were in attendance.

“Not only were the sessions informative and exciting, but the conference also featured a large expo, where major and startup EdTech services, apps, and platforms showcased their products,” said Nikolayev.

“We were able to connect in person with some of our current providers as well as learn about and consider new partnerships to continue to innovate our instruction online,” she continued. “Regardless of how established a platform is, there were many advancements and upgrades to learn about that help us to improve our student experience with companies such as CidiLabs, Instructure, Kahoot, Edpuzzle, Padlet, Canva, SchoolAI, and Book Creator.”

Dwight Global faculty presentations included “Poe and Pendulums–an Interdisciplinary and Collaborative Approach to Problem-Based Learning” by Felicia Chen, Katy Moye, and Dustin Purdy; “Better Than Async: Putting UNITY Into Online Learning Community” by Paul Roncone and Jennifer Jones; “Creative Clips — Ignite Inquiry and Visualize Learning” by Stephanie Castle; “Fostering Science Practical Skills Through Virtual Reality” by Chen and Castle; and “Decoding the DNA of a Thriving Interactive Virtual Lesson” by Purdy and Laura Thul. ​

Crucet presented “Flipping the Classroom: Tips for Creating Effective & Engaging Video Lessons,” a session about the research and science behind creating compelling video content for asynchronous lessons.

“The conference is always a wonderful opportunity to exchange ideas, reinvigorate our approach to lesson design, and expand our knowledge about educational technology,” said Crucet. “It is always an honor to present, and always inspiring to attend other presenter’s sessions, which deliver engaging and practical strategies for the classroom and provide us with the latest learning strategies and EdTech trends.”