It's time to dust down those innovative ideas for a Dragons' Den for teachers
How many teachers and educators have an idea for an education product or service that could take them out of the classroom and into the boardroom? A lot more than you might think – a walk around the BETT 2012 educational technology show in London's Olympia will reveal many entrepreneurial teachers.
But how do they get their ideas to market. This weekend (November 25-27), Startup Weekend Edu London aims to take educators through a 54-hour process that focuses on building an education application which "could form the basis of a credible business".
It's the first ever UK Startup Weekend – which has already reached 35,000 people – to focus on education. And it's supported by serious players like The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Nesta (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts), Promethean, Microsoft, Virgin, Pearson, TechSmith, 02 Learn and Ariadne Capital.
Startup Weekend Edu London is hosted by the Education Games Network, an education technology start-up that is building a network of games-based learning tools to support teachers, engage students and to help parents support their children’s learning (see also Edward Baker's "Why innovative teachers need a 'Startup Edu'").
The weekend activities, at the Free Word Centre, London, start with a "pitch-fire round" where participants each get one minute to put forward their ideas. Then, working in teams supporting the most popular ideas, they have to turn those ideas into persuasive business plans, prototypes or proofs of concept. The event builds up to the final pitch where each team gets to pitch its business idea to a panel of judges before a winner is declared.
The judges have been selected from education organisations and they include Julie Meyer, CEO and founder of Ariadne Capital, Stephen Fahey (Pearson), Ian Curtis (Promethean) and Henry Warren (GEMS Education and founder of the Gemin-i education charity). And an impressive set of mentors includes innovators from education companies, organisations and schools.
'Education is a critical industry... primed for technological innovation'
Startup Weekend judge Stephen Fahey, learning technologies director with Pearson Education, says: “The UK has made a real commitment to the use of technology in education, which is already embedded in many schools and colleges. We believe that technology has the power to transform education – in and out of the classroom – and there are real opportunities for creative and disruptive ideas to make a lasting impact on learning outcomes.”
Fellow judge Julie Meyer is one of the BBC's Online Dragons in the award-winning Dragon's Den Online and in 2011 was asked to be on the Secretary of State's Entrepreneurs Panel and the Secretary of Health's Innovation Panel. She says, “The transformative impact of software on teaching and learning practices is mirroring the revolutionary effects it has had on the way we consume books, news and music. Education is a critical industry and one that is primed for technological innovation.
"Ariadne Capital is pleased to be attending the Startup Weekend event where we will have the opportunity to meet and support some of the brightest software-centric entrepreneurs who are leading developments in this field.”
Startup Edu London is not just about winning. The purpose of the event is to immerse educators in the process that turns an idea into a real, effective product and business. According to the organisers, "It provides a platform to build new digital applications, products and services designed to make every aspect of education better. It brings together teachers, developers, marketers, entrepreneurs and pupils to develop new solutions and innovations for education."
More information
Startup Weekend Edu London, November 25-27, Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3GA.
Startup Weekend is a US not-for-profit organisation that creates 54-hour weekend events during which groups of developers, business managers, startup enthusiasts, marketing gurus, graphic artists and more pitch ideas for new startup companies, form teams around those ideas, and work to develop a working prototype, demo or presentation by Sunday evening. Over three years Startup Weekend has organised more than 300 events spanning 150 cities and 90 countries.
