More than 7 thousand people took part in the UC 2025 International Education Summit

The number of participants at the event has increased year after year, which is “very positive, because we are trying to have an impact not only in Chile, but in the region,” said Daniela Véliz, vice dean of Education at UC, organizer of one of the Summit sessions. 

The rector Ignacio Sánchez defined the fourteenth version of the UC International Education Summit, which took place on January 13, 14 and 15 and brought together more than 7 people, as a unique opportunity to connect global leaders and educators. 

The meeting, which included prominent international speakers and attendees from different countries, included two days: Higher Education Management, led by academic and vice dean of Education at UC Daniela Véliz, and School Management and Leadership, led by academic of Education at UC Paulo Volante.

Both sessions provided a space for dialogue and reflection on key issues such as innovation, leadership, management and networks, both in higher and school education, addressing the main current challenges and trends in education. 

Higher Education, School Management and Leadership

On January 13 and 14, the Higher Education Management Conference was held, led by the vice dean and academic of Education at UC, Daniela Véliz. Aimed at leaders, managers and academics in the university field, this conference addressed key topics on the management of higher education institutions, including innovation, leadership and good practices.

Then, on January 14 and 15, the School Management and Leadership Conference took place, which focused on educational leadership and sought to strengthen school management through understanding, measuring and sharing good practices. It was led by UC Education academic Paulo Volante.

“We have increased the number of participants year after year, which is good news, and every year we have more Latin American representation at our events. This has been very positive because it is what we are looking for, to try to have an impact not only in Chile, but in the region, which is why we have been diversifying our audience,” said Daniela Véliz. 

Both conferences are very coherent in their discourse, their purposes and their practices, said Paulo Volante. “We think that this coherence can be a good contribution to the Chilean school system and that of other countries. And we realize that when a system and a school organization share purposes, identify key practices, and are able to ensure that these practices impact the performance of teachers and students, it is very likely that we will have coherent systems with much healthier work environments and satisfactory results.” 

One of the future challenges, Véliz points out, is to continue expanding and diversifying the audience in the region. Today, he points out, “the countries where we have the most registered people are Argentina, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. The goal is to continue diversifying that audience, in order to reach more people.”

Another innovation that was introduced this year at the International Summit on Education is the Educational Innovation Fair organized by the Center for Teacher Development (CDDOC) and the Faculty of Education, where distinguished UC professors shared experiences of innovations in the classroom.

“That was highly appreciated. Different people, both Summit attendees and other audiences, were able to come to the fair and learn about these innovations. We would like to continue this collaboration with the Center for Teaching Development, so that, from the university, we can show what we have,” says Daniela Véliz. 

“This event leaves us with a very pleasant feeling, a revitalized conviction and commitment to improving teaching practices and learning in the school system. We are very surprised by the number of participants and also grateful to the leading international researchers in their discipline who agreed to participate in person and virtually. We look to 2025 with optimism, commitment and also to show the result of our efforts during this academic period,” concluded Paulo Volante.