;)
The following article was supplied by ICT Direct, who advertise on this website. It’s interesting how you can make use of inexpensive hardware, including refurbished kit, to enhance a school’s ICT offering.
ICT thinker, lecturer and writer Steve Wheeler talks about being at the BETT Show for the first time this year, and the things people are discussing in the world of ICT.
Quadblogging founder David Mitchell talks about what he saw at the BETT Show this year, and quadblogging.
Edtech guru Andy Black talks about what wasn't at the BETT Show this year, and some of the trends he spotted.
E-safety guru Simon Finch talks about why pupils should be allowed to use social media, why teachers should use it, e-safety and identity management.
In this video, Yolanda Halston, of the Educational Apps Store, talks about pupils collaborating and other matters.
The BETT Show is, I’m reliably informed, the biggest education technology show in the world. It takes place in London, England, every January. This year it was slightly later, but I’ll come to that in a moment. The first thing I’ll say is that even if you didn’t attend you may find this article interesting, as I suspect that several comments will apply to any education technology conference.
BETT, BETT 2013, BETT Show in News & views, Professional development Eleven years ago I wrote an 8-point guide to BETT, in my newsletter, and have reproduced it below. I think the points still stack up, especially the one about having a good breakfast! I hope you enjoy reading this blast from the past (9th January 2001 to be exact). And when you have done so, why not download the up-to-date bumper edition – 125 stupendous tips, and completely free? The URL is at the end of the article.
At the time this was written, the web was still relatively new to a lot of teachers, and Google had been on the scene for about three years. At that time it was still only a search engine. The newsletter was sent in text format from my own email address using my personal email client, which at that time was Eudora. Ah, such days of innocence!
Er, excuse me. Um, I just wondered…, er could I just squeeze past…, oops, sorry…
How many times have you found yourself stuck behind a couple of people walking at such a snail-like pace that one suspects they started out the day before? That’s just one of the problems experienced at BETT at Olympia: so much squeezed into a space which has long been too small, resulting in aisles that are far too narrow for the volume of traffic and a stand numbering systems which seems to owe more to random number generation than logic. Well, hopefully this is all now a thing of the past, a soon-to-be distant memory of a venue we can reminisce about but not miss.
BETT, BETT 2012, BETT 2013, BETT Show in News & views, Professional development 
There is always a danger that no matter how good an event is, it will turn out to have very little impact in the longer term, as you forget what you saw and more pressing concerns vie for your attention. Here are 7 suggestions for preventing that from happening.
#BETT2010 Oscar Wilde once said that good advice is something to be passed on to others, as it is never any good to oneself. Fortunately, the Australian chap I met at BETT recently didn't take Wilde's advice. Here's what happened.
At the end of my 'Amazing Web 2.0 Projects' seminar presentation, several people wanted to talk to me. One of them was an Australian man.
Australian man: Hi, Terry, I'm from Australia.
Me: Really? I'd never have guessed.
AM: I emailed you a couple of months ago.
Me: Oh, and I didn't reply?
AM: Yes, you did. I told you I'd won a bursary, and asked your advice for which international conference I should attend, paid for by that money.
Me: Oh yes, I remember now.
AM: And you advised me to come to BETT.
Me: Ah. And now you want me to give you your money back?
AM: No, on the contrary. I've been walking around with my mouth open. This has been a fantastic experience, so I just wanted to thank you for your excellent advice.
I think that proves several things. Firstly, it shows that although some Brits might have become a bit jaded over the past 26 years of the BETT Show, it's probably a case of familiarity breeding contempt. It's still as vibrant and as important as it always has been, perhaps more so.
Secondly, it shows that when I give advice, I know what I'm talking about. There are are lots of conferences I could have recommended, but (a) I don't know what AM was really interested in and (b) none of the others are on anything like the same scale as the BETT Show. I felt he would be completely bowled over with excitement by it.
But lastly, it shows that I am a lousy businessman: I should have charged him!
BETT, BETT 2010, BETT Highlights, BETT Show, BETT2010 in Diary, Leading & Managing ICT
