BETT 2007
10-13 January 2007, Olympia, London

Key Futurelab events

* Wed 10 Jan, 16:15. Seminar W17 – Mobile learning: breaking down the barriers (Lyndsay Grant and Tash Lee)
* Thurs 11 Jan, 11:00. Keynote T3 – Education in the digital age: transformation and social justice (Keri Facer)
* Fri 12 Jan, 14:00. Seminar F14 – Games for learning: cutting through the hype (Tim Rudd and Mary Ulicsak)
* Sat 13 Jan, 12:00. Presentation at the Partnerships for Schools (BSF) stand D62 – Re-imagining learning spaces (Dan Sutch)

Futurelab stand – J6 (National Hall ground floor)

Visitors to the Futurelab stand at BETT 2007 will be motivated to make learning inspiring, enjoyable and, above all, an engaging experience. With a range of innovative educational resources and research on display, including a number of publications to support games for learning, Futurelab will be illustrating its pioneering approach to transforming the way people learn. Personalised learning, learning spaces and social and collaborative learning will all be given the Futurelab treatment at this year’s BETT…

Personalised learning

What does personalisation mean in practice? Futurelab’s innovative work offers both inspiration and practical guidance. Collect a copy of our new ‘Learner Voice’ handbook which draws on examples, case studies and research to provide ideas for promoting the voices of learners and considering the role that technology could play.

Visitors to stand J6 can obtain an update on Enquiring Minds (www.enquiringminds.org.uk), Futurelab’s programme to pioneer personalised learning in practice. Now in its second year, the project works at Key Stage 3 with schools across the UK to develop and trial a curriculum which will equip young people with the skills and tools required for the 21st century.

Also on display will be Fizzees, a prototype technology that motivates young people to manage and monitor their own health by caring for a ‘digital pet’. Only by eating healthily and taking exercise, will students be able to nurture their pet and encourage it to grow.

Transforming learning spaces

Building Schools for the Future is providing an opportunity to re-imagine the spaces in which we learn and to examine what we want our schools to be in the future. We need to ensure that new buildings and infrastructure fulfil learners’ needs now and in the future by using new technologies and innovative practices to engage learners.

Innovative projects from Futurelab on display include:

* Create-A-Scape. Many young people love to be outdoors, to learn through experience and to use state-of-the-art mobile technology. This free resource brings all of these elements together to enable them to learn while exploring their surroundings. The Create-A-Scape website (www.createascape.org.uk) contains free software and other supporting resources which enables learners and teachers to create their own learning ‘experiences’.
* Fountaineers. An interactive water fountain which is being co-designed by pupils and staff in a primary school in Bristol. As people pass by, the intelligent fountain will respond to their behaviour in different ways using programs created by the children. In both its design and use, the fountain will enable children and adults to engage with, and learn from, their environment.

Also discover Futurelab’s new report on taking a unique approach to transforming learning spaces called ‘What if…? Re-imagining Learning Spaces’ and collect your own copy of the recently published handbook on learning with handheld technologies.

Social and collaborative learning

Learners derive enormous benefit from working with others. The emergence of social software such as internet discussion forums, online games, blogs and wikis can enable new approaches to communication and collaboration in education. Futurelab’s recent report on ‘Social Software and Learning’ explores the relationship between social software and the personalisation of education.

Prototypes to encourage social and collaborative learning on display at the Futurelab stand include:

* World Power League. A website that helps young learners to reflect on what is meant by the concepts of citizenship and politics by enabling students to vote for people they wished had more power. Because the World Power League can contain people from all walks of life – including the students themselves – it shows that politics is not just about governments, but the relationships between people in their daily lives.
* MobiMissions. An innovative mobile phone game, played while out and about in your local community, which supports collaboration.

This year at BETT, we encourage you to become more social and collaborative, with the launch of FLUX – a blog, hosted by Futurelab, which offers the space to discuss and debate the latest in innovation and education.

More information about BETT 2007

BETT is the world’s leading educational information and communications technologies (ICT) event, attracting 600 educational suppliers and over 28,000 visitors, and bringing together the global teaching and learning community for four days of innovations and inspirations. Go to www.bettshow.co.uk for full details and to register online (free).