17 things happening at EC17.
Not your average education event.

You’ve booked the ticket, you’re sharing the excitement with your friends, you’re even considering levelling up your ticket to an Access All Events pass for every event across Educhange Week. We know, we share the thrill!
But what can you expect when you walk into the Royal Exhibition Building on September 27th & 28th for EC17? Lots of things, but here are 17 of them…
- Coffee.
Yep. Coffee. Or tea, hot chocolate, whatever is your jam. We started in 2014 with unlimited free coffee delivered to your table. EC17 kind of got huge, so we are offering your first 2 on us. The coffees are barista made and super cheap too… $3 each. EC kicks in the rest.
2. Music
And lots of it. From Aaron’s Spotify mix to beats made by Dr Elliot Gann and Today’s Future Sound and the brilliant work of the students of Music Industry College (They are already signed artists, and still at school). The room is vibrant, upbeat (all puns intended) just like any EC workshop or event.
3. Food.
There are snacks and you can help yourself to those. We’ll also have pop up surprises from our partners, or cool things for you to purchase. Think a 90 minute gelato cart, $2 cupcakes, or grab a drink from the bar. We have food trucks outside across the two days, so the rule is that you know your tummy, so go fill it when you need to. The learning is on us, we’ve brought the trucks to you, and we reckon if you set aside $20 for your lunch each day, you’ll have a Melbourne feast worthy of being instagrammed.
4. You’ll make new friends.
EC17 is renowned for striking some pretty radical and deep collaborations across schools and systems. Even amazing edu-bestie relationships. Asking the right questions and approaching the whole event and people at it with an open mind means your curiosity will lead you to the potential of meeting new team members, bringing new resources into your projects, or even starting the design of new ideas. We’ve been told we are one of the best events for introverts to safely and authentically connect too.
5. You’ll feel like an expert.
Speakers are instructed to ask for your opinion and ideas. You are smart, you are professional and your experience matters to all of us. Don’t be passive and wait for answers. Everyone is an expert, everyone is a learner at Educhange.
6. Post it notes.
And other stuff to write on. Pretty much every space has writable components, so if you have an idea, write it down and share it with whoever needs to have it! The breakout booths are all writable. Some of the furniture included whiteboard desks. Share what’s going on inside that big brain of yours and leave your mark.
7. A distinct lack of stuff.
We’ll give you; a water bottle, a pen and a stack of post it notes. And you can take a snazzy EC bag if you’d like to. But no brochures and crap that you don’t want. Now that’s not to say that our partners won’t have some snazzy stuff for you, but like the learning you can choose your own stuff to take home. There’s nothing worse than a bag full of stuff you don’t need or want. Waste is so 1997. Which leads us to point 8…
8. A sustainable event.
As a BCorp, we are always challenged to be not only the best in the world at what we do, but also the best for the world. We’ve challenged ourselves in 2017 to be way more sustainable than ever. We invite you to help us out by refilling your snazzy water bottle at the water station, bringing along a keep cup and only taking what you need. We’ve done our part by working with Fold Theory on designing some incredible new exhibitor and breakout spaces using their recycled cardboard designs and sourcing fancy organic enviro cups for other harder beverages.
9. Heaps of fun and weirdness.
Challenge your new bestie to a game of giant connect four or get your own snapchat filter battle going on. It’s all about how you sink into the vibe and let yourself have a great time. Learning is serious business, but it also shouldn’t be a boring drag. You can have fun, get your work done and enjoy the company of incredible people at the same time.
10. Registration will be one of the best parts of your experience.
What? Huh? Yep. A few years ago, we looked at everything we hate about the ways things have always been done, and event registration was a huge one. So we wondered if we could work to make the lamest part of an event, the best. Trust the process, be guided by the EC team and don’t stress about finding your name on a list and getting it ticked off.
11. Speakers are really awesome.
We search the world for epic speakers. Honestly. We invite people who are cool, fun, nice and clever to grab the microphone. No diva attitudes allowed. Most you probably haven’t heard of. That’s because we find really cool people just getting on with good work and usually have to beg and plead for them to leave their work to share their story. These aren’t agency-book, business class flying, seasoned-circuit speakers. These are real changemakers like you with a cool story to tell. Also related, see point 4.
12. It will feel like a family BBQ.
Well, hopefully sans Drunk Uncle Barry. But EC17 is designed to have a family, relaxed vibe. It’s less neon signs and bow ties, and more backyard cricket and good, hearty chats. Will it be a totally slick operation? Hey, it’s going to be incredibly impressive, but it’s more about the learning than the size of the muffins, eh?
13. Authenticity.
It’s got heart and soul. It’s an event for educators, by educators. It’s just how we go things. EC loves the teaching profession and this is our yearly celebration of the changemakers. Feel the love.
14. You’ll miss out.
Across 6 sessions in two days, you’ll have to make lots of choices. You won’t be able to go to everything. In fact, we’ve got over 50 stories, workshops and projects to immerse in during our Activate sessions. Speakers expect you to vote with your feet. Check out who is speaking via the ever evolving SCHED app and start to map out what you might like to check out. Things are subject to change, so be flexi. But the reality is, you won’t get to see it all. There’s literally too much awesome for you to handle.
15. Awards
The Logies of the Australian Education Scene, The Collective Genius Awards will be presented at EC17. Another way we are recognising, supporting and amplifying teacher-led innovation in Aussie Schools. No need to dress fancy, but know that this is the inaugural ceremony and 2018 is going to be HUGE.
16. Exhibitors are your friends
And damn clever people of their own accord. We do the whole exhibitor thing VERY differently. So many of our smart teacher buddies are now working for some big (and small) education companies. We see them at conferences stuck behind desks flogging squishy stress balls or pens to people who reluctantly take them. A total waste of their smarts. It’s a weird exchange and nobody wins. Exhibitors are partners in our event. They have invested in the learning of participants. They are also going to use their space to share what they are working on and also use their space to host teacher speakers and workshops. They aren’t doing any sort of hard sell on you, apart from how you could work together to make your great ideas even better. It’s collaboration of the Collective Genius at its best.
17. Stealthiness.
It’s a word. Stories are held on high at EC17. That’s not to say that the research isn’t important, it’s just not a delivery of white papers or regurgitation of thesis documents. Our own design is heavily underpinned by seriously rigorous research, and our own team has 15 degrees between us (cough cough NERDS), meaning we actually love the stuff. But like mum’s lasagne which she somehow manages to hide all the veggies and makes it super delicious, you can rest assured that we’ve got the research and the AITSL standards covered.
So there you have it. Seventeen things you can expect at EC17. Avoid FOMO. Grab your free ticket to the best event for educators this country has ever seen. See you in September. | #Educhange
