“Of all the challenges facing Spain, education is undoubtedly the most urgent, because the quality of our democracy and the competitiveness of our country depend on it,” said Javier Solana, president of Aspen Institute Spain, as part of his opening address for the seminar entitled “A Conversation about Issues Relating to the Present and the Future of Education”, accompanied by José María de Areilza, secretary general of Aspen Institute Spain, Emilio Gilolmo, Executive VP of Fundación Telefónica and Ana Sáenz de Miera, director of Ashoka in Spain.

In line with the objectives of the three institutions, and within the framework of the Programme on the changes in Spain initiated by Aspen Institute Spain for the 2013-14 academic year, the conference focused on promoting dialogue between different stakeholders and an analysis of the best practices already being used to generate real change in education.

The aim of the event was to encourage dialogue between different stakeholders and make an analysis of best practices already being used to generate real change in education.

“Innovation in the Classroom and in the Management of Schools” and “Public Policy and Social Change” were the two main themes of the conference coordinated by Professor Juan Urrutia, addressing issues such as the value of the educational subject in the exercise of education, methodological innovations in education and the role of education in preparing people to be able to take on future challenges such as adapting to change, ecological sustainability and inequality.

Many well-known faces from academic world, such as César Bona, teacher at CEIP Sancho Puerta de Zaragoza and Global Teacher Prize nominee; Monserrat del Pozo, pedagogue and pioneer in applying the Theory of Multiple Intelligences; Antonella Broglia, Ambassador for Ashoka and for TED in Spain; Antonio Cabrales, Professor of Economics at University College London; and Ismael Sanz, Director of the National Institute for Educational Assessment in the Ministry of Education and Chair of the PISA Strategic Development Group, discussed the health of the Spanish educational system.