#WomenEd Hungary - Our First Unconference!

Organiser Perspective - Charlotte

On 27th April, after a year of hosting termly events of a few hours, #WomenEd Hungary held their first full-day event! 

Discussions started in Nov/Dec and planning for the day really got underway in January. Once the International School of Budapest confirmed we could host the event in their building our excitement began to intensify, we just needed to find some speakers.

After advertising for speakers online, within our schools and education communities we were lucky to receive a wide array of proposals on a variety of topics. We were pleased to give people the opportunity to speak at a conference for the first time and to include some #HeForShe speakers on our schedule. As someone who has attended a bunch of education conferences in the past I know how important it is to get the balance of sessions right and it is something we tried hard to do.

On the day, it was a hectic rush to get everything sorted before people started arriving: last minute schedule changes, setting up rooms, preparing the refreshment stand, sorting cash boxes, checking tech etc. Our student volunteers did a fantastic job throughout the day of looking after our speakers and attendees. My biggest fear was that no one would show up so it was a big relief when 0930 arrived and people began to arrive!

The day flew by! 

Every room I went into was buzzing with conversation and enthusiasm for learning. And, it was fantastic to see the discussions and connections continuing over lunch and in the following days on social media. Thanks must go to Britannica International School for providing pens for our attendees and sponsoring lunch so we could feed our speakers.

None of this would have been possible without the speakers who volunteered their time & expertise; the attendees who got involved & engaged in the sessions; the student volunteers who kept everyone fed & caffeinated; and the #WomenEd Hungary Team and supporters who, in summary, got everything set up, printed posters, decorated the venue, did IKEA & Lidl shopping trips, stayed positive and pulled off a great event.

Now we can't wait to do it all again next year! See you there and bring a friend!

Student Volunteer Perspective - Sofia

Today I attended the #WomenEd Hungary Unconference as a volunteer. 

I found out about this organisation from my teacher Ms Mona and was very eager to help out. 

Teachers from all over the world gathered at ISB to participate in #WomenEd Hungary's first unconference. 

There were speakers from England, Egypt, Germany, Hungary and many other countries all of whom came to share their experiences and knowledge with other teachers. The student volunteers helped out with setting up the venue, serving drinks and food, helping set up tech and many other things. I was in charge of press. I took photos and videos. We also created #WomenEd Hungary's instagram account. Students also got a chance to participate in this conference as speakers, students from Britannica, BBIS and ISB participated in the Student voice and talked about pressing matters for students like: women in Stem, role models, AI, sex education. 

This was an unforgettable experience. I met many amazing people and got a chance to participate and help out in this organisation that does such an incredible job of inspiring women not only in Hungary but all around the world!

Speaker Perspective - Nicholas

I currently live and teach in Germany, so you might be wondering why on Earth would I be at a conference in Budapest? Two countries away! 

I found out about the event from a colleague who was a friend of one of the brilliant women in charge of organizing the event, and said yes! To say yes to these kinds of things means to put yourself into an exciting and scary place outside of the comfort zone. Therefore, if you are reading this I suggest, strongly, that you participate next year.

After arriving in the beautiful city of Budapest on Friday, April 26th to explore the sights and tastes of the town, I found the excitement for the day of speaking that would follow begin to grow. 

The following day was a bright and sunny day, with blue skies and the typical Saturday morning bustle beginning to start as I made the journey towards ISB. I was greeted by a number of welcoming personalities; from student volunteers, dogs on leashes, and school representatives to other guest speakers, including PhD candidates, teachers at the school and other guests from places all over the world. 

The event was extremely well organized! There was a seating area that promoted conversation amongst most if not all of the participants, an area for writing name tags, getting coffee and treats, writing our ideas that could promote others to make one another "10% braver", and a hall for introductions.

The program for the day's events were spread throughout the hall, in a friendly color-coded manner with a range of different topics that would be presented. Amongst them were a variety that (some mentioned by Sofia above) had to do with integrating inquiry based learning, identifying multicultural strategies for promoting equity, teaching language skills, getting Gen Z invested in school, and a wide range of other topics. 

My own presentation promoted phenomenon based learning in the science classroom and while it was somewhat of a niche topic, I found several people joined the presentation I had to offer. I enjoyed the participation amongst the guests and had them thinking about how to change their approach in the science classroom from presenting facts to promoting critical thinking about puzzling topics. As we were given hour-long sessions, there were opportunities to present one's expertise, host discussions, field questions, and share contacts with the other participants to keep the conversation going beyond the classroom. Student leaders met in a forum where they discussed many different topics in the realm and education, life and experience in school. The students led the discussion and posed thoughtful ideas and concepts that had the participants in the session interested in a new perspective from the voice of the majority in education.

I thought that the discussions about how education could be shaped to meet the needs of a changing culture of students was robust and most of the people at the sessions were willing to ask questions, participate, and challenge one another to promote a learning that goes against the status quo. 

Following the sessions, there was a palpable sense of unity and accomplishment where those who joined celebrated a successful event!

Attendee perspective - Rohini

I currently teach Secondary English in North west London, England and am in the fourth year of my teaching career. I had the pleasure of being acquainted with Charlotte over a few coaching calls related to our journeys in Education and as soon as she mentioned the event I knew I had to attend!

Being my first ever #WomenEd conference, I attended with an open mind - and #WomenEd Hungary did not disappoint. The day was wholesome and filled with great conversations and discussions unafraid to get to the depths of international education.

Each talk was led by someone who provided a diverse perspective of education regardless of their years in teaching or outside. As someone who came in wanting to broaden my perspective of international education and teaching, I left feeling enthused and ready to take the next steps in my educational career. Not only did the team at #WomenEd Hungary gather a range of expertise in terms of speakers, but even having a safe space to engage with other members within the field of education was a fantastic opportunity.

I couldn't have asked for a better welcome into the world of international teaching - #WomenEd Hungary thank you and looking forward to the next one!