8:00 PM

Suddenly, seemingly every nation, region and town seems to be aware that learning will be a key differentiator between economies, cultures and possible futures. Whether developed or developing, young or ancient, large or small nation, education clearly matters. Indeed the 21st century is shaping up to be a Learning Age, rather than the Information Age of the late 20th century. All this translates into some mighty commitments to spending and to political support. For example in the UK a brand new school opens every four days for the entire next decade. But faced with 360 degrees of possible direction, new educational investment and change are not pursuing the same route into the future. There are big choices and technology has played a central role in opening up the portfolio of possibilities, worldwide. This plenary explores where education should be, could be, and sometimes is, going. You will not be surprised to hear that libraries lie at the heart of some of the most fertile possible directions!

Sponsored by Saunders Book Company

STEPHEN HEPPELL
Stephen Heppell, according to Microsoft is Europe’s leading on-line education expert. He has spent a quarter of a century building Ultralab, a world-leading learning-technology research centre with an enviable global reputation for creativity, innovation and common sense. His projects include building a Learning Metric to help governments measure what improves when they innovate in education, a Global Learning Survey to map out emerging trends in teaching and learning, work on the design of a radical new "Useum" home for William Blake's work, hosting the annual "Be Very Afraid" DfES / BAFTA event showcasing children's digital ingenuity. His ideas spark all levels of education and across diverse sectors from health, sport and architecture to policy and finance.

STEPHEN HEPPELL is Speaker-in-Residence. Book your conversation at Membership Services in the Registration lobby.

9:30 PM

Music, prizes, hors d'oeuvres, meeting friends and newcomers.
Super Conference 2008 is underway!

Sponsored by Whitehots Inc and Carr McLean Ltd.