Conferences That Count: Choosing What Truly Shapes Educators

The word Conference finds its roots from the Latin words ‘conferre’ where con means together, and ferre means to bring or carry; to bring together people for a discussion or a debate. The idea however predates the coinage of the word itself, and extends to most species in the animal kingdom. While dolphins form pods to communicate hunting strategies or social interactions, ants hold colony meetings to discuss foraging, nest-building and defense. Yet, man was the only species who surpassed the others of the fauna, evolving as a creation, intellectual to convene not for sustenance but to exchange ideas under different streams of interests. From salsa to astrophysics, humans have found a way to convene and share their interests, innovations and ideologies.

Plato’s Academy

Ancient Greece is often credited with laying the intellectual foundations with Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum. Discussions in Plato’s Academy were semi-public, and the beauty of these conventions lay in his perspective of education; one that wasn’t prescriptive but that which was open to discussing diverse and alternative views. The proof lies in Aristotle’s presence in the academy, who during his time as a student questioned Plato’s views and vociferously debated with his master. Plato cared not for doctrines but for a community of educators and philosophers, dedicated to enquiry and research.

The Roman Forum

While Greece focussed on philosophy, Roman intellectual discourses whirled around practical

subjects like law, politics and governance. The Roman Forum was a public place where

debates and discussions, both political and legislative, attracted a large and diverse crowd. A

passive intellectual forum in Rome were the libraries; a repository of knowledge encompassing

religion, myth, legend, philosophy, literature amongst others. Libraries turned into power places

serving as a venue for meetings and social gatherings.

Nalanda Mahavihara’s Academic Influence

Nalanda Mahavihara emerged as one of the first centers of higher learning in the world. It was

a monastic and scholastic institution that encouraged a vibrant and highly structured culture of

debate and arguments in multidisciplinary knowledge like the Vedas, Ayurveda, astronomy,

mathematics amongst others. Debates were built on the foundation of ‘reductio ad absurdum’,

a method where absurd methods and logical reasoning and consequences were questioned

and called out in an opponent’s argument. This method was adopted to exercise and enhance

their physical thinking capacities.

Modern Day Conferences

Modern day conventions serve as more than just debating spaces. They are platforms where

educators from across diverse geographical areas can network and learn from one another.

Though an exact number of workshops cannot be arrived at, they are fast growing to help

professional development of K-12 educators. With the pace of the world leaping into faster

gears by each passing day, today’s knowledge might become redundant tomorrow. Workshops

and seminars that help build the bridge between educators and the latest trends have become

paramount to hone skills, pick new ones and ensure that the learning passes on to students.

Conferences like these not only bring about a change in classroom dynamics, but also open

doors to advocacy, critical thinking, while introducing them to global pedagogical

breakthroughs.

But how much is too much?

While conferences, workshops and seminars can be enriching, how many should an educator

attend? Experts suggest that relevance of a conference should be prioritised over the quantity

as well as the subject matter in which the educator aims to get an expertise in. 2 to 4 well

spaced conferences, especially the ones where educators can get an exposure towards

international voices, diverse opinions and cross-border collaborations would benefit them.

TAISI

Right from Plato to Nalanda, conversations, conventions, conferences and dialogues were held

to expand one’s knowledge, and to soar beyond their perceptions and perspectives.

TAISI is an international platform that bridges global dialogue, actionable insights and real-

world impact, and the TAISI 2025 Conference invites educators this year to reset thoughts

about education and urges to reimagine the system with a renewed purpose. Leading global

voices in education will share their experiences and expertise so that the conference enriches

educators to expand their horizons, and reconnect with the soul of education.

The true power of conferences lies not in the tally of events, but in the rare spaces—like

TAISI—where global voices converge to shape the future of education.