Edtech’s Hottest Topics for 2023

What’s new in education? What’s happening in classrooms around the world? What exciting ideas are making waves among educators?

We learn a lot each year from the educators who submit proposals to present at the annual ISTE conference. The topics they choose to focus on reveal volumes about what’s at the top of teachers’ minds as they continue to explore and experiment with technology in their classrooms.

As you might expect, the COVID-19 pandemic played a big role in shaping the hottest trends in edtech over the past few years. But now that online school is largely in the rearview mirror for many educators, things are starting to shift again. Topics such as social-emotional learning and distance learning, which surged in prominence during the most intense years of the pandemic, are now taking a backseat (although their importance hasn’t diminished) as other areas of interest rise to the forefront.

You’ll find these eight hottest topics well-represented in the ISTELive 23 program:

8. Equity and inclusion

Not only did the pandemic expose the inequities that continue to exist within public education, but it also created new ones as some students struggled more than others with remote learning. School districts responded with a variety of innovative solutions — to varying degrees of success.

Although the sudden shift to online learning prompted a surge in effort and awareness around equity and inclusion, the problems are still far from being solved. That’s why equity and inclusion will be an important topic at ISTElive 23 as passionate educators continue to advocate for disadvantaged and underserved student populations who are still being left behind.

“I think we’re just still struggling with making sure that our education is equitable and inclusive and diverse,” says Camilla Gagliolo, a longtime educator and ISTE’s senior director of event content.