The survey, carried out annually by Pearson Phoenix at the BETT Show revealed that 45% of respondents felt interoperability between applications was a top priority, with 37% choosing reporting and just 18% putting administration at the top of the list.

The results indicate that schools are favouring software and applications that can be ‘joined-up’ reducing the need to duplicate admin tasks and for additional data entry.

Headway has been made by Becta to standardise interoperability through the Schools Interoperability Framework (SIF), which’ll become become the standard framework for all MIS systems by 2010 to allow integration with other applications to be quick and easy.

These changes may require some school software suppliers to make changes to their current products, which could be a complex and expensive task. However, in the long run it appears to be a positive move to improve the level of intergration between systems and therefore ultimately benefiting the end users!

To give you a bit of a helping hand, away from the hard pressing sales men and women bombarding you with reasons as to why you should exhibit, we’ve asked Sandra from Fantasy Couriers to share her experiences of this year’s event.

Name: Sandra Patterson
Position: Managing Director
Company: Fantasy Couriers

What is it that you do?
It’s an Online Business Simulation Game, set in the Courier Industry so it’s very accessible for all students.  Students start as a “white van man” and then have to grow their business, take on employees, vehicles, premises, even buy out competitors.  It is a web based game, and so can be played from anywhere, and uses a competitive fantasy league environment to keep up the competitiveness and the fun.

Is this your first year exhibiting at BETT?
Yes

What were your overall impressions of the event?
Very well organised, very well marketed, worthwhile and value for money.  We are Scottish based so the costs for us would be higher than most when travel and accommodation etc are all included.

Would you say the event represented good value for money?
We chose London over the Scottish learning Festival (Scottish Equivalent) in SECC, as the space prices were virtually identical, but London has a far larger footfall, and more exhibitors.  A far better event.

What sort of response did you get from potential customers?
Very good, positive feedback, good interest, a large number of enquiries and demo account requests.

Will you be exhibiting again at BETT?
Probably.  As the game has a number of different markets we need to advertise into we just need to make sure that other advertising for the non-school side of our business doesn’t require more funds/attention.

What was the approximate total cost of the event?
We had a total budget of £5k.  Approx £3k of that was the stand & space, other costs were the internet connection, printing, furniture hire, LCD hire, accommodation, food, petrol, parking etc.

What would your top three tips be for anyone planning to exhibit in the future?

1. Comfortable shoes
2. Don’t lose your voice on the first day
3. Buy all of your food from the little Turkish sandwich bar over the road from the main entrance, much cheaper and much friendlier.

For more information on Fantasy Couriers, an Online Business Simulation Game please visit the website: www.fantasycouriers.com

BETT Show 2009

Well the stands have been dismantled, the purple carpet rolled up and the salesmen & women retired back to their desks for another year!

BETT 2009 was, for all intents and purposes, pretty similar to 2008. Sadly, there was very little ground breaking ‘new’ technology, nor was there the usual number of fantastic new innovations and gizmo’s, which was a little disappointing. Last year was definitely the year of class voting, but this year’s show really lacked any such ‘wow’ factor.

On a more positive note, many suppliers launched new or updated versions of existing products, giving teachers more to play with, and suppliers such as Promethean and Smart had some great demonstrators on hand, with some really interesting products being showcased.

The show also hosted a vast array of seminars, which received a mixed reaction, from being absolutely fantastic to boring and total rubbish! But you can’t please everyone!

Once again the big boys dominated the vast majority of the ground floor space, with the smaller, niche and more often than not most innovative suppliers crammed upstairs, in what felt like the loft space! In future year’s, the smaller, niche suppliers really need to be brought to the forefront of the show to really make it great once again as they are very close to being both driven and priced out.

BETT Show 2009 Opens

The prestigious BETT Show 2009 opens later this week, and will be celebrating it’s 25th birthday.

The event is topped to be one of the best yet, with many supplier’s, organisations & government departments launching or previewing new products, services and initiatives.

This year BETT are hailing ‘learning elsewhere’ as their main feature, focussing on mobile, remote and distance learning and showcasing products and services that can support and enhance it. This includes a range hardware and mobile devices as well as digital content and software.

Other highlights include the vast array or seminars being laid on, which appeal to many, meaning they get a much more ‘enhanced’ experience and can justify the day-out a little bit more. The seminar programme has also been improved based on how well recieved they have been in recent year’s at  the SLF (Scottish Learning Festival). The traditional software & special needs zone’s are also back as well as a ‘Future Schools’ mini-zone with information & idea’s for those that are already, or are soon to be involved in the BSF and Primary Capital Programmes.

Notably, Apple UK are not exhibiting at this year’s event, despite other big players, including RM & Mircosoft being present. Their reason being that they feel there are better ways for them to communicate with their customers. That said, it will be interesting to see if after this year’s show, others follow suit.

All in all, it’s set to be a good show, and we hope it lives up to expectations.

Cambridge University Press - Race to Learn

Race to Learn is an exciting new development from Williams F1 in association with Cambridge University Press.

The easy-to-use interactive DVD-ROM launches in Summer 2009 and will provide real-life contexts for cross-curricular topic-based learning.

For more information, and a chance to win an exclusive visit to Williams F1 HQ, take a test drive at the Cambridge University Press BETT stand G30 or visit our website: www.cambridge.org/racetolearn

With nearly 700 educational suppliers exhibiting at BETT, and over 100 seminars taking place over the course of the 4 day event, it’s set to be the biggest one yet.

Many local authorities are providing or assisting with transport for visitors from their area in a bid to make it as easy as possible to attend, and with over 29,000 people expected to attend, transport is always a key issue.

Many established suppliers like BETT, it’s big, bold and the place where they are expected to be seen. But in reality, does it really make a return on their investment, and ultimately – does it bring the sales in? The usual big names are there including Microsoft, Orcale & HP – but interestingly Apple UK have pulled out of the event, despite it’s crusade to grab a slice of the UK education market. Apple feel there are better ways to communicate with their customers, and that the money can be better spent elsewhere.

Does this mark the beginning of the end for BETT as we know it? Will other suppliers begin to follow suit as the current economic times take their toll? For a long time, despite the high visitor numbers, many have felt BETT is just too big and over-whelming. Is it time for them to downsize, or will it simply allow smaller & newly established suppliers to opportunity to fill the boots of the big boys?

Either way, we shall have to wait and see…