EDUCAR/ EDUCADOR GROWS AND CONSOLIDATES ITSELF AS THE PRINCIPAL MEETING PLACE OF EDUCATORS AND ENTREPRENEURS IN EDUCATION
From May 18 – 21, São Paulo was the Latin American capital for education. Held in the Imigrantes Exhibition Center, EDUCAR/EDUCADOR 2011 completed its 18th edition and was reaffirmed as Brazil’s major education event.
As he does each year, the director of the Colégio Master school in Fortaleza, Francisco Nazareno Oliveira,came to São Paulo to participate in the 18th edition of the Educador Congress and the Educar Fair, accompanied by his wife and friends who are directors of schools in other state capitals in Brazil’s Northeast. He said he was actually not very excited, because he thought that the event had become less interesting. But Nazareno’s attitude changed. As soon as he arrived, he realized that there was something different. He felt that the event was more vibrant than ever. And he was right.
Rooms full of educators, busy stands, crowded corridors, movement, learning, business, and new projects. From any perspective, the 18th edition of the Educador Congress and the Educar Fair was one of the most striking education events in Brazil in 2011. It brought together leaders in the field of education and culture including Domenico De Masi from Italy, Philippe Perronoud from Switzerland, Antônio Nóvoa from Portugal and many others; it brought back big players in the market, including the leading educational systems and technology companies; it attracted the attention of businesses from other countries, initiating a process of internationalization. Educators and the educational market were certain: the great Educar was back.
Created 18 years ago, the Educador Congress and the Educar Fair grew and became references for both education professionals and for businesses that offer quality products and services in the sector. Brazil’s leading speakers and researchers in education passed through its corridors, making contact with thousands of participants from literally all over Brazil. But in recent years, with the repositioning of companies and the crisis in private schools, the event had undergone difficulties. It needed to reinvent itself, and this reinvention was conducted in the hands of the professors and entrepreneurs Mr. Marcos and Mss. Luciana Melo, directors of Futuro Eventos, who assumed control over the event in December 2009.
To reposition the Educador Congress and the Educar Fair, Marcos and Luciana used the expertize they had gained over many years of work in teacher education. This allowed them to improve the event’s synchronization with the demands and interests of the event’s public, with whom they had built strong ties. On this foundation, a new relationship was established with companies in the sector.
The 2011 edition had very positive results, and all of its goals and expectations were achieved. The 18th EDUCAR (International Education Fair) received more than 12,000 thousand visitors during the four days of the event, many of them participants of the 18th EDUCADOR (International Congress on Education), of the 9th AVALIAR (International Assesment Congress), 7º (International Congress Education Management Congress) and the 1st EDUCATEC (International Education Technology Seminar).
The 2011 Edition took place in a larger space, occupying 17 thousand square meters of the Centro de Exposições Imigrantes, with 4,600 thousand sqm² dedicated exclusively to 92 exhibiting companies. The educational systems came back in full strength – practically all of the leaders in the sector were present. Publishers, manufacturers, representatives of pedagogical materials, and technology companies all reserved spaces.
It was not a question of number, but of quality. The program was prepared to meet the demands of teachers in relation to the issues raised and the quality expected of the speakers. All the participants benefited from the presence of important leaders in various fields. The international speakers included Nóvoa and Domingos Fernandes of Portugal, Francesc Imbernón of Spain, Charles Hadji of France, Perrenoud of Switzerland, Thomas Armstrong of the United States, and De Masi of Italy. Brazil was represented by Mario Sergio Cortella, Cipriano Luckesi, Vasco Moretto, Celso Vasconcellos, José Ernesto Bologna, Thereza Penna Firme and many others who guaranteed auditoriums full of teachers, coordinators and administrators.
It is important to remember that in addition to the 120 speakers invited to the event (including 14 from other countries) the exhibitors also invested heavily to expand the learning opportunities. SESI/SENAI/IEL sponsored an arena with special programming prepared by exhibiters who presented various activities including a workshop with Daniel Azulay and a talk by consultant Regina Shudo. Other exhibiters also created interesting programs, such as the publisher Editora Positivo, who brought the musician Gabriel Pensador.
The news media recognized the quality of the programming. More than 60 journalists from various Brazilian media outlets attended, many from other states. Rádio Estadão ESPN mounted a studio at the event to broadcast interviews, reports and debates straight from the Centro de Exposições Imigrantes, as the official event radio station.
Considering these activities, the intense presence of businesses from other countries was not a surprise. This was in part due to the fact that Futuro Events worked to bring delegations and representatives from other countries, such as China. But, at the same time, promoters of the world’s largest education fairs, like representatives of Worlddidac (Switzerland), DIDACTA (Germany) and Bett 
(England), came especially to learn about Educar/Educador. In addition, during the event The Society for the Promotion of Excellence in Brazilian Software (SOFTEX) and the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX) conducted workshops with representatives from Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Chile, Angola and Malaysia.
Not only the participating companies had international representation. The congress was a meeting of languages and cultures because of the interest it stirred among educators from many countries: congress participants included delegations from more than a dozen countries.
The exhibitors were particularly pleased with the public that circulated through the fair. Educar/ Educador has always been characterized as a Brazilian event – and this characteristic was maintained. Administrators and educators of public and private schools from all corners of Brazil participated. “The fair offers varieties, new releases and various options in educational systems,” said Antônia de Fátima, from the Secretariat of Education of Mogi das Cruzes. “There was a very high level of quality of the speakers and ofthen fair,” agreed Vilma Rago, director of the Professora Poetisa Isidora’s School, in Recife. “I liked the fair and the excellent speakers. Each one that I heard touched me. The event was astonishing,” added Denise Rampazzo, a teacher at the Regina Passe’s School from Mato Grosso.
This created all of the conditions needed to conduct good business, and the companies present were optimistic and satisfied. “There are now more exhibitors and quality products, and this is what we want, because it is good for the educator,” recalled José Ribeiro, from Pimpão, a master sponsor. “It is a great joy to participate. This is a great chance for us to present innovations that we bring from abroad, with products and services that were previously better known in the higher education market,” confirmed Guy Gerlach, vice-president of the Grupo Pearson, another master sponsor.
Over four days, the 40 people on the Futuro staff and more than 100 collaborators barely had time to breathe. But it was worth it. “It was difficult to revitalize the congress and the fair, but we have worked diligently to get where we are in short time, and are happy to know that it is possible to do something for education, preparing professionals, promoting debate, discussion, relationships, business and generating jobs,” concluded Marcos Melo, director of Futuro Eventos. Nevertheless, the greatest reward, he said, was to see, during the event, “the satisfaction on people’s faces.”
