MANILA – The EdVision Summit that gathers leaders in the education technology industry, such as Lenovo and its partner Microsoft, along with members of the academe in the region to discuss best practices for the modern classroom, was successfully held on March 24th. Twenty-four speakers from seven markets, including the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and the United States, joined the Summit and expressed their thoughts on the future of education. It was attended by over 1,200 educators and stakeholders in the region with almost 700 coming from the Philippines.
This year’s Lenovo EdVision Summit focuses on the need for change in the quickly-evolving educational landscape, calling on educators and technology leaders to improve learning pedagogies and technologies based on the evolving reality of the classroom and the workplace.
“Evolving approaches to teaching and learning are critical to ensuring that our students are ready for the rapidly changing world they will graduate into,” said Delia DeCourcy, Senior Global Education Solutions Manager, Lenovo United States.
Following the plenary discussion by DeCourcy, there were five panel discussions and two workshop sessions for educators to fully immerse themselves and understand the learnings shared by EdTech leaders and members of the academic community.
Beyond providing smart devices for educational use, learning pedagogies and education solutions need to evolve alongside the changing classroom and the eventual work environment that students will later join.
Launched in 2020, the Lenovo EdVision program was launched to hone the digital literacy and skills among students and provide resources and support to teachers to enable them to build their skills and capabilities in digital teaching. The program offers distance learning solutions with technology such as Microsoft Teams and Microsoft 365 Education, for schools and industry partners to promote digital transformation of education.
The program was recently updated to provide a more seamless hybrid classroom experience that offers the next level Lenovo Smart Education solutions. Hybrid learning is not just about taking classes online. Students need powerful, innovative technologies that empower them to learn more effectively, collaborate better, without compromising on security. With a focus on M365 platform, the updated iteration of the program delivers students a more engaging learning experience. It also builds a community for educators to exchange their insights and strategies to navigate hybrid classrooms.
Micheal Ngan, General Manager, Lenovo Philippines stressed the importance of the collaboration between hardware and software in addressing the challenges of online learning. “We work with Microsoft to certify our educators in the Philippines to raise their digital skills. So far, we’ve trained and certified almost 500 educators and that’s something we plan to carry on,” Ngan said.
To resolve the expertise gap in hybrid learning, Ngan explains that the solution must go beyond hardware and presents the Lenovo EdVision program as a way for hardware and software to work together and enhance the current learning experience. Furthermore, Lenovo underlines the importance of working with educators to design products that meet the rigors of e-learning.
“We are committed to being a trusted partner for educational institutions as they continue on their digital transformation journey, especially with the demand and necessity for online learning. We’ve learned a lot from two years of distance learning and we’re applying what we’ve learned into the solutions and services we offer in order to better serve our partners in delivering quality education,” Ngan adds.