"So, how was TED-Active?"
Ummmmm.... Think. Think. Think.
My answer evolved from the first time I answered.
First, I exclaimed, "It was the best week of my life." This answer just wasn't very descriptive.
Then, I went into detail about people, conversations and workshops leading my dad to ask, "Did you see any talks?"
So again, I tried to reframe my answer by connecting with the person and referencing a talk to be on the lookout for that I knew would be of interest to them.
And then I thought, that's not very TED-like.
Two of the most interesting talks had nothing to do with anything I was previously interested in. I have little interest in architecture but found Marc Kushner's talk about the last thirty years of design completely fascinating. And I have even less interest in parasites but was wonderstruck by Ed Yong's talk, captivated by his excitement and insight. And then it struck me. A common challenge for schools is to engage students into content they aren't very interested in. Making the atmosphere of a school more TED-like may help. My TED Active experience would not have broadened my worldview if every TED talk focused in my interest areas. Variety is the spice of life and exposure to a broad range of ideas in different areas was what made TED magical. Learning amplifies when content is diverse and connections reveal new ideas in unpredictable ways. This really is central to the successful, purposeful and inspiring environment TED creates.
So now I have a better answer when asked, "How was TED Active?"
I answer, "TED Active was brilliant and is a model for what a school could become. Ideas are honored, encouraged and explored with oodles of dynamic participation and thoughtful collaboration."
TED Active was really a think tank, a modern-day symposium, filled with a global community from 65 countries where everyone participated. My week started off with a five-hour brainstorming session alongside TED-Ed with a team of educators I will not soon forget nor let go of. And then TED Active started and boy did my learning community grow.
I met a father who works with 3D printing from Belgium who had a deep understanding of the limits of the educational system with ideas for moving forward. I explained to a doctor the issues I uncovered when a struggling reader does not know some letter sounds. He summed up my literacy work by saying, "It's like building a house If the foundation isn't solid, there are cracks in the walls." Exactly and that foundation is the alphabetic principle. I met a student of neuroscience whose curiosity was on fire and spread to every person he spoke with. I met an artist from Uganda who made recycled playgrounds that are works of art. And I even met Sugata Mitra, winner of the 2013 TED Prize, who is taking the chance and doing a global experiment in the hopes of pushing educational progress for students who may otherwise go without an education. I cannot remember a space of such a short time when I laughed so much, cried so much and conversed so much with such a diverse group of people who were for the most part strangers. It was a safe space where kindness ruled and learning was the goal.
TED Active created a climate for learning.
It's a model source of inspiration for redesigning a learning environments and reframing perspectives. Karen Goepen-Wee wrote a lovely first blog title Re(vision) it. Could TED help us revision a school? Could it help us tackle problems of bullying and violence by tackling fear as a detractor from learning and engagement? I think Karen's on to something and want to hear more about the lessons she creates.
Catlin Tucker wondered in her blog about how the TED Active design could assist in Creating Collaborative Spaces in the classroom. Every space at TED Active was intentional in honoring ideas, creativity and collaboration. Now, think of how many purposefully designed classrooms there are for 21st century learning. Not many. The idea resurfaced in a conversation in the TED-Ed community where and Sean Grainger shared how the students he and his students cocreated a Starbuck's Classroom.
So how do you begin this transition into a more TED-like learning environment?
Start with TED-Ed!
TED-Ed offers several free resources to get your school learning in a TED-like fashion.
Enable students to plan and prepare to deliver TED-like talks by signing up for a TED-ED Club.
Engage with a global community of educators, students and lifelong learners in the TED-Ed Community.
Flip a Lesson Worth Sharing or just show a really interesting video made hand in hand by educators and animators. And don't be shy about nominating yourself or someone else to develop a lesson with an animator. Or create your own TED-Ed Lesson with a youtube video and a little imagination.
And join in the new #TEDEdChat on Twitter, hosted by @TED_Ed Tuesdays at 4:00 pm MST.
Keep moving. Keep learning. Keep progressing. Keep inspiring.
And keep those ideas flowing...
Thanks, TED!
