This post was written by Tracy Sockalosky, President of MassCUE

Truth be told, I have avoided this conference for many years, it always felt too overwhelming for me. I am really glad that this year I took the plunge and made the trip. And I am so grateful that I am lucky enough to call the two best ISTE sherpas my friends, so thanks to Rayna Freedman and Kim Zajac, I arrived in Orlando with a full itinerary and the appropriate wardrobe ready to connect and learn. The experience did not disappoint. Reflecting on the experience, I share my five key takeaways.

1. There is no such thing as the end of the learning journey in education. 

Just kicked off year five as an administrator after more than 20 years as a classroom teacher. I can say with certainty that I still have so much to discover in my quest to create and support learning environments that meet the needs of our students. Sure my toolbox and knowledge base have grown considerably from where they began, but sitting in sessions, exploring the playgrounds, listening to ideas shared by other educators all confirmed that there is so much possibility in the future of education and I need to be open to learning AND unlearning in order to fulfill our promise to kids.  In one 1-hr panel session I scribbled a full page of notes, searched 27 different ideas, authors, companies, tools mentioned and am now going to go back and rewatch the video because I know I missed things. And that was only one session. The experience had ideas spinning about ways to reach students in new ways from Starr Sackstein and Michael MacDowell’s simple but powerful “dot strategy” to the possibilities Tim Needles shared with his experience in the NASA Solar System Ambassador program, to ways to be more efficient in my own work (Google Classroom updates are fantastic!) and ideas to explore further with my colleagues (two that stand out for me are Snorkl and OKOlabs). As educators, when we pause and take the time to listen, when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable, we accept that we still have so much to learn and that will not change regardless of how long we continue to dedicate ourselves to education.

2. “Tech” is not the problem and bans are not the answer.

As expected, a theme of many sessions was the current tech backlash. The panelists for the session “Effectively Navigating Tech Backlash” encapsulated my thoughts far more succinctly and articulately than I could so I share some of their thoughts here:

Amber Oliver: “We are missing the forest through the trees by not talking about the fact that our kids aren’t reading. Twenty-five percent of our kids are missing, not coming to school, feeling like it isn’t relevant to them. That’s the conversation teachers want to have. How do we show up and make sure that we are doing what is needed for kids? And we need every tool in the tool box to do that.”

Jeff Livingston: “The kids who get into my house are going to get all they need. I’m going to make sure. But we work for kids who don’t live in houses like mine, and we owe it to ourselves to make sure that we are doing what is right for them today and in their future.”

Beth Rabbitt: “One piece of the narrative we have to talk about a bit more is our responsibility…to preparing our kids to be the ones who are using these technologies…I don’t know if anyone knows this but scientists in March embedded 200,000 human brain cells on a chip, and that chip learned how to successfully play the video game “Doom.” We don’t know what our kids are going to be facing. So the most important thing we can focus on is helping them be great learners and really critical consumers, and they’re not going to do that on their own.”

Brandon Olszewski: “There is no research out there that shows well-built technology, implemented well, hurts academic, personal or social outcomes. It’s not true. We’re thoughtfully considering exactly how, where and when technology can help our students and teachers, especially those students that are trying to learn English and thrive in this world, and the students on 503s…And there is no engineering school who wants a student who learned how to use the abacus in high school…”

3. We still have work to do for our students, especially those who are historically underserved.

My first job in education was serving as the skills instructor for students enrolled in the METCO program at Curtis Middle School in Sudbury, MA. My second was 8th grade US History teacher at Carroll School, a school dedicated to the education of students with dyslexia. Suffice to say that my passion is educating students who are often lost in public education and has been for more than 25 years. And though there have been improvements, a quick scan of assessment data of even the most high-achieving districts in my state reveals that these students are still in the margins rather than thriving alongside their classmates. In 2005 I had the privilege of learning about UDL from David Rose himself, and yet more than 20 years later there are still sessions introducing educators to the concept. I was thrilled to listen to the amazing team of educators from CAST but it also reminded me that we still have so far to go to create educational opportunities that are inclusive for all learners. Two questions posed by our own extraordinary Karen Janowski during her session continues to resonate with me: “Would I want to participate in this learning experience? Does the environment (curriculum AND learning space) reflect the learners?” 

4. Assessment must be a focus of every educator.

What I knew before this week and what I am 100% confident of now - we MUST discuss assessment in our classrooms. Starr Sackstein and Michael McDowell’s session on Actionable Assessment got my wheels spinning even more. Their premise is that the most essential assessment in a classroom is the ongoing feedback students receive. According to their research, 80% of feedback received is from their peers and 80% of that feedback is incorrect; therefore, we must make feedback clear and actionable so that students have clarity about what they understand and can replicate beyond the moment. The ideas and practical strategies they shared had me yearning to be back in the classroom to use with students. None of them were earth-rattling, but each powerful for student learning and a reminder that “if students lack clarity, it's not teaching, it is tutoring.”

I am still thinking about a statement about a dilemma that Indiana University professor, Joseph Baird, shared on a panel titled “What If Everything We Know About Assessment Is Wrong?“ In speaking about his observation of his students he shared, “They think everything is an instance instead of a pattern. They think that they need to solve a single problem with a single output in order to answer what's the answer to this problem. But what they don't quite see yet is this problem they're trying to solve is actually an instance of a type of problem, and that those types of problems are instances of even broader types of problems.” To me this exemplified my concern about assessments in secondary schools today: what are we actually assessing and is it what we should be assessing? The whole panel conversation, which also included Josh Caldwell from Google, Isabelle Hau the Executive Director of the Stanford Accelerator for Learning, educator and author Michael Hernandez, and Brooke Stafford-Brizard from Carnegie Foundation, was thought-provoking. 

In the session about tech backlash, Beth Rabbit, Co-CEO of FullScale, shared that she is working to build a public school system in Maine that is competency-based and ensures that all students graduate with early college credits or a credential of value in the work force. I am so curious about what assessments will look like in Moxie Public Schools, and I am hopeful schools like these and the learning that they do will be a guide in our path forward to making assessment meaningful to our students. 

5. Connections matter. 

There are an endless number of cliches I could draw on to convey this concept, but rather than pick one I will stick with the simple truth that is neither new nor revolutionary - talking with others connected to the education community is essential. Throughout my time spent in Orlando, including time at the Tech&Learning Pre-ISTE Summit at the Kennedy Space Center, at the convention center and at the social gatherings, I engaged in conversations with colleagues from all locations near and far, and with each conversation, my curiosity about our world expanded and my passion for education grew.  Sure there were times that the conversations were not at all work-related (shout out to Nick Provenzano and Donnie Piercey game night laughs), but in a profession as stressful as ours can often be, camaraderie is critical and laughter is therapeutic. So as I invite new connections on LinkedIn and click accept on those who invited me to their networks, I reflect on the power of community and my deep appreciation for the many people who are a part of mine. 

Before I left for ISTE I had the privilege of reviewing the incredible session proposals for our annual MassCUE Fall Conference. From reimagining meaningful assessments and inclusive practices, to navigating the future of educational technology, our fall conference will explore the exact areas that have my mind churning post-ISTE. Join us and take part in these essential discussions while also enjoying the laughter and support of the professional connections that our MassCUE community provides. I look forward to continuing to learn together and hope to see you at MassCUE Fall Conference 2026 in October!