Over the last 15 years, Realityworks has actively participated in the annual conference of the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), known as the CareerTech VISION conference. This year, the conference brought together over 5,000 educators, counselors, and administrators to the exciting city of Phoenix, Arizona — and our predominantly Wisconsin-based staff, despite being accustomed to cooler climates, embraced the warm and sunny weather! But looking beyond the delightful weather, the conference and its associated events proved to be truly outstanding. Let’s explore our key conference takeaways.
1. Educator and Administrator Energy
From the halls of the conference center and exhibitor booths to the conference sessions, we were embraced by a powerful wave of positive energy. The CareerTech VISION conference atmosphere was filled with enthusiastic conversations and a shared commitment to give students a fantastic career-focused education.
While at the conference, we saw and met with some of our top social influencers in the education space. Having contacts that we can “follow” digitally to hear about what is happening in their education space is so insightful!
Looking to follow some top Career & Technical Education (CTE) educators? We recommend:
FCS Instructor Susan Turgeson (@susanturgeson), who presented at our Child Care Experience™ Launch Event (more below).
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Harnett County Schools in North Carolina (@harnettcountyschools). Shout-out to CTE Director Lindsey Hardee, who helped spearhead the development of a trades trailer to promote CTE within the Harnett County School District.
Virginia’s NOVA Community College (@novacommunitycollege). Shout-out to NOVA Instructor JoAnna Collins, who has incorporated several Realityworks simulators to help her nurse aid students develop empathy.
2. Partnerships
Our conference experience was enhanced by connecting further through partnerships at the National Association of Agricultural Educators (NAAE) Business Reception, the ACTE Family and Consumer Sciences Education Division Breakfast, and the Health Science Education Division Lunch.
These collaborative events featured giveaways, presentations, and dynamic networking opportunities, adding excitement and fostering connections in the realms of agricultural education, family and consumer sciences, and health science.
Our partnerships with each pathway division and each individual educator is part of what makes Realityworks work! Our products are engineered by innovative teams at Realityworks, but so many of our ideas come from educators themselves. Meeting with hundreds of attendees in-person created an environment of idea collaboration for future products and partnerships.
Do have ideas for new products? Contact our team via email: information@realityworks.com
3. Child Care Experience™ Program Launch
Over the last three years we have been working on a brand new “experience” for our educators and their students: the Child Care Experience (CCE) program. This one-of-a-kind product brings a daycare setting to the classroom to teach real-life child care skills. It uses simulation, software, occupational tools of the trade, and curriculum to give students true-to-life, in-class experience caring for multiple infants simultaneously. Not only do students clock in for their shift, but they get to care for infants of varying ages throughout their “workday.”
Ready to learn more? Explore our CCE program implementation resources.
While at the conference, we had the opportunity to bring FCS educators and CTE administrators together to learn more about this program and hear firsthand from peers who have used it in their programs already. The best feedback we received was, “If you have Perkins Funding – spend it on this to get more kids interested in childcare careers!”
4. Presentations
Each year we apply for concurrent sessions where we bring to life concepts we hear about in the field. We showcase our products, but we also offer FREE resources to help educators create engaging, interactive classrooms.
This year Realityworks team members presented on two topics:
Teaching Math in Your Culinary Program
Our presenter, Denise DuBois, gave tips for teaching basic math skills and ideas for integrating foundational math concepts into your culinary lessons.
Missed her presentation? Catch up by watching a recent recording.
CTE & STEM: It’s Time for a Take-Over!
Presenter Jamey McIntosh covered creating a concept map to use in your own classrooms to connect your pathway with STEM concepts.
Missed the presentation? Catch up by watching a recent recording.
5. The Exhibit Hall
Realityworks Booth #823 was buzzing even before the show floor opened! We were met by attendees enthusiastic to hear what was new, grab a catalog for wish list building, and interact with our dozens of simulators and trainers.
Missed our booth? Download our Fall 2023 CTE Program Catalogs to see all the products we exhibited, plus more!
While the week in Phoenix has undoubtedly left us feeling inspired and deeply connected to our customers, this brief list captures the essence of why we make it a point to attend this conference every year.
