didacta 2018: The future of education, close at hand

2018-1-30

didacta - the world's biggest education expo and Germany's No. 1 event for the entire education sector - will once again bring together teachers, trainers and representatives from government, business and the research community. Taking place as a veritable education summit every three years, the Hannover edition of didacta showcases all the key developments involving socialization, education and qualification.

The upcoming event will be staged in a new location, in exhibition halls 11 to 13, and major emphasis will be placed on the opportunities and challenges of digitization as highlighted by a new showcase called "didacta DIGITAL".

With its four overarching themes of "Early Education", "Schools and Universities", "Career Education / Qualification" and "didacta DIGITAL", the Hannover-based edition of didacta will address every facet of lifelong learning. A range of innovative offerings there will help shape the future of the education sector. Didacta in Hannover will serve as an indispensable networking hub for the sector, particularly due to its extensive program of more than 1,500 further education events covering all the relevant topics. The event's non-commercial co-sponsors are the Didacta Association and the German Educational Media Association.

Early Education - The cradle for later development, participation and promotion opportunities
Current studies and experience gathered over the past several years clearly show that children are most likely to benefit from development, participation and promotion opportunities later in life if major emphasis is placed on education early on.

Children have several important rights, and the right to education is paramount among them. Children innately have an enormous desire to discover new things and shape their environments. The boundless curiosity and capabilities of young children are a veritable treasure, and Didacta will raise awareness for this key asset and show the most promising ways of nurturing it.

Thanks to a new site layout that puts major emphasis on "lifelong learning", companies and associations participating in the "Early Education" part of the show when find themselves ideally placed in Hall 11 - a hall known for its contemporary flair. There they will find the ideal conditions for highlighting the latest trends and illuminating key aspects of early education.

Schools and Universities - Where teaching and learning click
In halls 11, 12 and 13, didacta 2018 will be demonstrating ways of making knowledge usable for students so they can create new knowledge in turn - ensuring a lifetime passion for learning and discovering new things.

While schoolchildren essentially require social settings in which they feel safe enough to unleash their potential, college students require institutions which stack up well against the international competition.

Our society is faced with a set of major challenges. The sweeping trend towards digitization is calling for totally new approaches. More than ever, schools and universities are finding it hard to decide just what knowledge and skills are going to be the most relevant in the years and decades ahead. Didacta 2018 will provide a viable roadmap for the future.

Career Education / Qualification - Fulfilling careers as a key source of societal benefit
The new hall layout of didacta Hannover features the "Career Education / Qualification" display sector in all its facets for the first time in Hall 13. The focus will be on initial career education and further education and training.

Both types of education are of extremely relevant for society, as career qualification is not only the basis for economic success, but also represents a core component of individual fulfillment.

In an ever more dynamic work environment in which entire professions are faced with substantial change and totally new jobs are cropping up, didacta 2018 will provide valuable information on certified training programs, trailblazing education concepts, new strategies for HR work and numerous other orientation aids.

didacta DIGITAL - Digital technologies poised to revolutionize education
As in virtually every other sphere of society, digitization is spawning radically new approaches in education. All of the relevant aspects will be featured at didacta 2018 - at the "didacta DIGITAL" display in Hall 13, where new teaching aids will star in a series of live demos.

In Hannover visitors will be able to see first-hand how digital technologies make it easier for students to take control of their education. This is crucial as a way of reforming and reshaping the rigid educational structures of yesteryear by enabling students - e.g. by means of artificial intelligence (AI) - in a position to choose what, how and where they learn.

The spotlight will be on the interface between pedagogics and technology. New technologies are not a guarantee of improved education quality. Education in the digital sphere can only be successful if the technology is used to support educational strategy. Content and technology need to enter into a symbiosis to create added value for educational processes.