Education related IT-spend in the region could reach $150 billion in the next five years, said the event organisers of the upcoming GESS Dubai, the region’s premier exhibition for educational supplies and solutions, quoting experts.

Leading global technology firms will showcase the latest advances in the education sector during the ninth edition of Global Educational Supplies and Solutions (GESS) Dubai running at the Dubai World Trade Centre from March 1 to 3.

Benq, Bosch, Brother, Casio, Edutech, Epson, Google, Hitachi, Intel Education, LEGO Education, LG, MacGraw-Hill, Microsoft, Panasonic, Pearson, Promethean, Samsung, Sharp Middle East, SMART Technologies, Sony and VEX Robotics are among those that have confirmed participation in the exhibition and conference.

“In gathering the world’s technology superpowers and connecting them with teachers and school decision-makers in the GCC, we hope we can contribute to the advancement of the education sector in this part of the world, and raise quality standards to a level that is at par with the best in the world,” said Matt Thompson, project director, F&E Group, organisers of GESS Dubai.

“Our theme this year is Shaping the Future of Education, and we have a distinct opportunity to do that by helping schools adopt the technologies that will make them effective learning hubs of the future.”

The Gulf region is at the forefront of technology-driven education initiatives in the Middle East with such programmes as the UAE’s Smart Learning Initiative, which aims to provide personal tablets to all K-12 government schools by 2017; and Qatar’s Supreme Education Council’s e-Bag project, which provides students and teachers with tablets to enhance learning and reduce school bag weight.

More than 90 per cent of GCC educational institutions use laptops and tablets, while 60 per cent have Bring Your Own Device policies for students, according to IDC.

New technologies for advanced learning

Google’s head of Education in the EMEA Region, Liz Sproat will share the company’s vision of what technology in learning could look like, and how to encourage innovation in teaching and learning practices.

Microsoft will be showcasing digital notebooks for teachers and students which can substitute the presence of physical notebooks while serving as an ‘anytime anywhere’ content repository of all class notes, content, homework and assignments.

LG’s participation at GESS will revolve on the theme of showcasing the ‘Future Classroom’ along with the innovative ‘Cloud Collaboration’ solutions that will enable to change the way students and teachers interact and collaborate in a classroom.

Edutech Middle East, a founding sponsor of GESS, will showcase a mini D&T workshop space where participants can attend hands-on workshops and learn how to convert ideas into prototypes.

Robert Speed, head of Middle East Region, Promethean said, “GESS Dubai is the only event in the Middle East region which gives us the opportunity to showcase our most innovative teaching technologies whilst enabling educators to experience how Promethean solutions create a Modern Classroom environment.

“As part of the Promethean Modern Classroom, we are expecting the ActivPanel to attract significant attention. This interactive flat panel is already widely adopted by Middle East regional and UK schools and is proving its worth as a highly effective and collaborative front-of-class solution.”

Meanwhile, LEGO Education will launch their latest innovation in science and coding for primary schools – LEGO Education WeDo 2.0!

In addition to cutting-edge showcase of educational products and solutions, GESS Dubai has also gathered some of the world’s leading education experts on technology and digital education.

The event also includes an extensive, world-class educational, CPD certified programme to help teachers, educators and academics of all levels develop their skills and gain insight from international experts. – TradeArabia News Service