The initiative is of „EdTech Bulgaria“ and the Ministry of Education and Science and was announced during the EdTech Innovators Forum 2024
Competition for edtech innovators will encourage innovation in education. The initiative is of EdTech Bulgaria and the Ministry of Education and Science and is expected to start very soon. It was announced during the first EdTech Innovators Forum 2024, which took place on October 24 in „Sofia Tech Park“.
„We want to encourage those people in the education system, those teachers, those leaders who work in areas related to digital skills,“ said Natalia Miteva, Deputy Minister of Education and Science, during the official opening of the event. „In the world we live in, we cannot raise and educate active, knowledgeable, capable, and successful future citizens without them having a key set of digital skills,“ she explained.
The competition, whose concept is already ready, will focus on digital skills, the use of artificial intelligence, green technologies, and sustainability. Teachers, principals, students, business representatives, etc. will be honored, with a key focus on lifelong learning. Innovations that solve current problems, that make system-level changes, or that solve general issues related to system weaknesses will be evaluated.
Movement of EdTEch Innovators
„Today we celebrate innovation and knowledge. We have the support of the Ministry of Education and Science to create this movement of edtech innovators and to distinguish people who want to change the environment through technology,“ said Albena Spasova, Chairperson of the Board of EdTech Bulgaria.
EdTech Innovators Forum 2024
The event brought together teachers, principals, representatives of institutions, and businesses working in education, who discussed and gave examples of how technology can support education.
„Education has always been important to us – education of the most modern nature and with the most modern tools,“ said Todor Mladenov, Executive Director of Sofia Tech Park.
Eng. Ognyan Atanasov, Mayor of the city of Kyustendil, gave interesting examples of public-private partnerships and active participation of local authorities in education.
„A huge part of the schools are municipal and the municipality sets the direction in which they should move, and if a mayor does not think in this direction, it would hardly be possible for something to happen,“ he said.
The event is organized by the National School of Management, Social Innovators Bulgaria, EdTech Bulgaria, and Sofia Tech Park. The forum’s program also included two practical seminars, during which lecturers from leading universities and companies from Portugal, Romania, and Sweden shared how education can be transformed through virtual reality and artificial intelligence, and how young talents can be supported through innovative entrepreneurship models.
The forum is organized with the support of the EU, through the VR4LEARNING and AIM projects, and the international partners MG Sustainable (Sweden), the University of Havle (Sweden), the University of Évora (Portugal), the University of Craiova (Romania), and BEST Institut (Austria).
The media partner of the event is the Zone4Tech.bg platform and the podcasts „Their Stories“ and „TECHnologically Speaking“. Communication partner – Craft Content.
The Projects
VR4Learning (Virtual Reality for Digital Learning) is a project co-funded by the Erasmus+ program of the EU, aimed at increasing knowledge about the environment and sustainable development through virtual and augmented reality. Project partners, including organisations from Sweden, Portugal, Romania and Bulgaria, are developing interactive courses that are available in several languages. The main highlights are the use of innovative technologies to simulate real situations in the field of green energy and promote cooperation between European organizations.
AIM (Advancing Inclusive Mentorship Programs for Higher Education) is a project co-funded by the Erasmus+ program of the EU, which develops an innovative model for inclusive entrepreneurial mentoring in universities. The aim of the project is to support students in the realization of their entrepreneurial ideas through mentoring programs, internships and practical trainings, promoting social inclusion and equal chance for all.
