WISE succeeded in putting education on global agenda

The eighth World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) with the largest number of participants is set to convene in Doha today and designed to spark debate around education challenges and solutions.
WISE, an initiative of Qatar Foundation (QF), has positively influenced the global education sector over the years by giving innovative solutions and will gather more than 3,000 delegates during the latest summit, said Stavros N Yiannouka , Chief Executive Officer of WISE, in an interview with The Peninsula.
The record number of delegates with a considerable participation from Qatar are expected to attend the biennial global summit, which will be held under the theme ‘Co-Exist, Co-Create: Learning to Live and Work Together,’ over three days.
Discussions during the summit will be on the role of education in a post-truth world, with sessions focusing on media literacy, artificial intelligence and virtual reality, social entrepreneurship, design thinking and direction for best education choices, among others.
“We feel the theme is very timely and appropriate given the situation around the world. Seems there is a retreat in international collaboration around the world. We think we need to re-assert the importance of collaboration and speak about the role that education paves the way in fostering collaboration. It’s an important theme. More important this year than in the previous editions,” said Yiannouka.
WISE 2017 will see more than 1,200 participants from over 100 countries in addition to around 1,100 local delegates. Also 700 secondary school students will be benefitting from four learning labs set to give innovative education experience. While, another few hundreds of high schools students delegates will be attending the summit to learn about issues related to education.
“This will be the largest summit ever to be held, it is commendable in the given situation,” says Yiannouka.
Qatar Foundation, under the leadership of Chairperson, H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, established WISE, an international, multi-sectoral platform for creative thinking, debate and purposeful action in 2009. WISE has established itself as a global reference in new approaches to education.
A highlight of the summit will be the announcement of the 2017 WISE Prize for Education Laureate tomorrow duirng the opening ceremony. The WISE Prize for Education is the first distinction of its kind to recognize an individual or a team of up to six people for an outstanding, world-class contribution to education. Sheikha Moza will present the WISE Prize for Education to the Laureate during the opening plenary session on Wednesday. The Laureate will receive the WISE Prize for Education gold medal and $500,000.
Since 2011, five outstanding educationalists have been presented and honoured with the WISE Prize. While, each year, the WISE Awards recognize and promote six successful innovative projects that are addressing global educational challenges. Since 2009, 54 projects have been awarded, from a wide variety of sectors and locations for their innovative character, their positive contribution and their potential for scalability and adaptability.
Through both the biennial Summit and a range of ongoing programmes, WISE is promoting innovation and building the future of education through collaboration.
“Our most significant achievement has been that we succeeded in putting education on the global agenda. That was very much part of Her Highness’s vision and she established WISE in 2009. She didn’t want education to be forgotten as the global community has begun discussing the development agenda. There we have many development goals and Her Highness was one of the strongest advocates for including education within that agenda. And now education is very much succeeded in development goals,” said Yiannouka.
“I think WISE has succeeded in putting education on the global agenda. And the evidence for this is the fact that WISE has been imitated now around the world. WISE has pioneered a number of programs, we pioneered a dedicated program on education , the idea of noble prize for education,” he added.
He cited Yidan Prize for Education Research and Yidan Prize for Education Development initiated by Hong Kong as a sample of initiatives by other countries introduced in the field of education, following the WISE Prize.
Referring to the success and impact WISE has made Yiannouka said, “We have focused on solutions. Traditionally, they tend to focus on challenges, we are very much solution oriented.” WISE is a response to the necessity of revitalizing education and providing a global platform for the development of new ideas and solutions.
“WISE is a global platform and think tank that promotes innovation in education and we do that primarily through three avenues. Through research where we collaborate with renowned institutions around the world and we produce, policy relevant research wide range of educational topics. Second way we promote innovation in education is through our program, we have programs that recognize innovation in education and we have programmes that actively facilitate innovation in education. We promote innovation in education through our advocacy go and participate in different forums around the world. We have a strong social media and traditional media program where we promote our ideas on innovation education,” said Yiannouka.
The 2017 WISE Summit provides an opportunity to meet the people behind pioneering international projects championed by WISE initiatives all year round. These include the WISE Awards for proven, high-impact education solutions; the WISE Accelerator program, which supports promising edtech projects in education; the WISE Learners’ Voice, a mentorship program for young leaders in education; and the WISE Research series of reports, authored by experts with leading international institutions. Also there were events held ahead of the summit.
Among the activities, Empowering Leaders of Learning (ELL) of WISE program is designed to support school leaders in improving student outcomes.
“The objective is to support the participating school leaders with strategies and tools to improve teaching practices and student learning outcomes. The program encourages educators to pursue an evidence-informed focus and to apply research on effective teaching,” says Dr Asmaa Alfadala, Director of Research and Content Development, WISE.
ELL which aims at covering all schools across the country held a workshop for 40 participants from public and private schools on yesterday. They were the third cohort of participants of the programme.
Also WISE has released 13 research reports, including three new research reports that focus on issues with direct impact on the development of education in Qatar, including school leadership, early childhood, and education for people with autism.
The three reports are especially relevant to Qatar and are available on the WISE website in both English and Arabic. The new reports from part of a larger series to be launched at the upcoming 2017 WISE Summit.
“The idea of releasing these reports is to help policy makers and we want to share the content with them. We have partnered with international universities in making the reports and worked with local partners in collecting data,” said Alfadala.
Making a reference to the report on autism she said, “We looked at how we can support families and people with autism. Several organizations, and ministries are providing services, but the problem is either people are unaware about the services or they cannot decide. So I think this report will help people with autism to get access to best services.”
WISE is also hosting Qatar’s inaugural education festival, ‘Doha Learning Week’ until November 16 across Doha. “Doha Learning Week, the flagship education festival of WISE, is intended to celebrate as well as raise awareness of the various education and learning resources and initiatives in Doha,” says Ameena A. Hussain, Director, Program and Community Development , WISE.
Held in collaboration with the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy and other local partners, the event features a series of workshops, movie screenings, exhibitions, lectures, performances, tours, and hack-a-thons.
The event is being as a pilot project this year and expected to be adopted into the WISE calendar.
While, the WISE Accelerator is designed to support the development of innovative education initiatives with high potential for scalability and positive impact. Selected projects receive the guidance and expertise of qualified mentors and partners who provide effective strategies and practical support for their further development.
“Four to five projects are selected annually to join the one-year program. Throughout the year they benefit from mentorships to address specific needs. The WISE Accelerator assists the selected projects to connect with an international network, and create opportunities to share knowledge and find support among potential donors and investors,” said Hussain.
Also the WISE Learners’ Voice Programme brings the perspectives of around 20 young people to the challenge of rethinking education each year and equips them with skills to take on leading roles in their fields and in the world of education. The Learners participate in the global biennial summit and in two intensive residential sessions delivered by expert faculty.
Although the WISE summit is being held as a biennial event, this year three smaller meetings were held in Tunisia, Beijing and Madrid each within a gap of six months.  The three new cities for meetings to be held in next 18 months will be announced during the closing of WISE 2017 summit.