Your Guide to the ASU+GSV Summit

Are you and your team heading down to Sunny San Diego next month to soak in the ASU+GSV Summit? Known as one of the most impactful convenings of leaders in education and skills, ASU+GSV is the place to dream about what’s possible, discover new ideas and build your network.

There are over 5,200 attendees from over 130 countries this year, and the highest number of K-12 and higher ed leaders than ever before. The Getting Smart team has been attending ASU+GSV since its early days, when it was just a couple hundred people taking over a small hotel in Phoenix. Over the years we have made lasting connections and gleaned the following tips for attending:

1. Use the App! There are hundreds of sessions, events and opportunities to network at ASU+GSV. Most days there is programming from 7am-7pm so there can certainly be a feeling of overwhelm if you’re not prepared. Download the ASU+GSV App and start building your schedule now. You can favorite sessions, then view your day to see when you have openings for other sessions or meetings. You can also find out who’s attending and start connecting with speakers within the App.
2. Be timely. Sessions fill up fast so you’ll want to get there a few minutes early to get a good seat. We also recommend the breakfast and lunch keynotes. The programming is always great, as well as the meals!
3. Network network network. Take advantage of the happy hours, opening party, hallway conversations and break tims to build your network and learn from others. The Expo hall is also a great place to do this and learn about new tools, programs and leaders.
4. Reflect. Take time in the afternoon or evening to reflect on what you learned, what your takeaways are, where you’re learning fits within your team’s strategic goals and start creating mini action plans. This will help the information stay fresh and actionable, so you can imagine what’s possible when you’re back in your community.
5. Rest and recharge. There is a lot happening every day at the summit. Be sure you take time to step outside, take a walk on the marina and soak in some sunshine. Your brain and body will thank you!

Here are a few trends our team is predicting at the conference…

Equity & Access. As organizations, leaders, educators and other education stakeholders continue to focus in on the critical importance of designing for equity and access, we know this will be a distinct theme and hope to see it as a thread throughout every session.

Unbundling. We recently published an Unbundled Learning white paper and we think this will be a theme worth looking for at ASU+GSV. Unbundling is making everything count within an ecosystem of learning. This means work-based learning, entrepreneurship, partnership, internships, apprenticeships and a learn everywhere model will be a theme during many sessions.

Credentialing & Portrait of a Graduate (PoG). Look out for PoG and associated competencies, badging and credentialing beyond CTE, learning and employment records, what is stored, where it’s stored and how it’s shared. We’re excited to learn more about progress in this area.

Workforce: Skills Matching & Alignment. We hope to hear sessions talking about better skills matching with highered or employment, lifelong learning (and how we teach those skills in K-12) and badging professional learning.

User Generated Content. You’ve probably heard that user generated content is the future. We’re looking forward to diving deeper into Web3, what the next generation of read, write, and own content will mean for learning, decentralized learning, self sovereignty and connecting learners and teachers without intermediaries.

Embracing AI. We think AI is here to stay, and instead of rejecting it, it’s time we embrace it to better serve learners. We are looking for ways that AI can help advance outcomes for all learners (and ways to address the challenges AI presents).

Permissionless Education. We are watching for innovations in K-12 that both push new school models through different funding approaches and how these are influencing change in districts who are facing school enrollment declines. How can microschools, partnerships to personalize and other new models support the future of education? One that is permissionless, personalized and customizable for every learner – as well as accessible to every learner.  

Health and Wellbeing. It’s no secret that our educators and students are facing enormous mental health challenges. Mental health is directly correlated to all outcomes and we know that trauma-informed leadership/supports, SEL and effective structures to support struggling learners and educators will be a focus of the summit.

If you’re headed to ASU+GSV like we are, keep an eye out for Caroline, Tom, Rebecca, Shawnee, Nate or myself! We’ll all be there and can’t wait to meet you.

Also, add a few of our sessions to your agenda (in the app of course):

• Pods and Microschools: From Crisis Response to Enduring Education
• Scaling Local Partnerships to Accelerate College Attainment
• Communicating Competence: How Mastery Systems, Digital Credentials, and LRs Tell Learners’ Stories
• Shifting Power Dynamics in Education to Learn With and From Youth
• Blended Pathways for the Next Generation
• Mobilizing Diverse Learners as Chief Architects of Our Future