Students to Learn From Experts at Big Data for Productivity World Congress

High school students from across the province will engage with some of the world's leading technology-based companies as part of the Big Data Congress Education Day on Wednesday, Oct. 21, in Halifax.

The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development is sponsoring a one-day event where students will learn from national and international industry experts about the impact technology has in the classroom and on everyday life.

Guest speakers include Hilary Mason, a leading data scientist at Accel Partners, Silicon Valley and Gavin Uhma, a Nova Scotia technology entrepreneur who will discuss the importance of using math, technology and innovation to solve world problems.

"The Big Data for Productivity Conference is a once in a lifetime opportunity for our students," said Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Karen Casey.

"Students will get a chance to explore technology, innovation and entrepreneurship with leading experts. It fits perfectly with the action plan where a key priority is to engage more students in hands-on learning to develop their creative, innovative and problem solving skills."

Several hundred students are expected to attend the day-long event. They will participate in hands-on learning through a series of Dream Big! Interactive workshops.

The Big Data for Productivity Congress is taking place at the World Trade and Convention Centre in Halifax from Oct. 19 to 21. It is one of the world's premiere big data for business conferences, which help people discover how big data is contributing to business productivity. Sponsors and partners include Google, Boeing, IBM, Cisco, Hitachi, Adobe and NTT Data.

For more information about the conference, visit http://bigdatacongress.net .