TEDxLangleyED
I love the idea that the emergence of TEDxLangleyED came from the grass roots of the SD35 organization. It started with a question from curious educator to the superintendent of schools. “Do you think we can we host a TEDx here in Langley?” The answer… “YES.” The ball gets rolling, a committee is struck, and voila!!!
To attend a TEDx, candidates must answer a few questions and apply online. Many people applied to be a part of this inaugural event and I feel so fortunate to be one of 100 people selected to attend. At this event, there was an amazing line-up of speakers and performers to provoke, inspire, and motivate this captive audience. Aside from the presentations, what I love most about this learning opportunity is re/connecting with members of my PLN… face-to-face.
It is a phenomenal experience to meet someone for the first time, but feel like you have known him or her for years. The conversation does not start with “What’s your name?” or “Where do you come from?” It starts off with sharing your pedagogical beliefs, dialoguing about your educational philosophy, and discussing elements of your professional practice. That day, I met and chatted with @rondorland, @technolandy, and @teachinginthe21 to name a few. It was super fun!!!
However, in this blog I want to highlight a few of myTEDxLangleyED favourites. I loved listening to @karlLS and his passion for education and his students. He teaches in the United States and proclaims that the school system is broken. He follows up this statement with a question. “What are YOU going to do about it? This Monday!!! Good question. I love his ideas and I agree that teaching and learning goes beyond the standardized test. Karl is an engaging speaker and I am aligned to his message, practice, and purpose as a teacher.
My next fave speaker was Monique Gray Smith. She spoke about “the cookie people.” What I loved about her TEDx talk was her inquiry… “Who are your teachers?” These teachers are not necessarily your teachers in the classroom, but also teachers in your life who may have influenced your life to take a particular direction. This provoked me to think… who are my teachers? I have many ‘cookie people’ and I am grateful.
My last mention will be Hannah Park. First, I like that she was a Langley School District graduate, but also I appreciated the humour, honesty, and creativity. She spoke about her inquiry of reducing light pollution as it relates to the stages of creativity. With this presentation, I thought about my dissertation and the many struggles I have faced. She reassures me to press on and move forward because “shit” will eventually transform itself to “awesome.” Love that idea and I am hopeful.
In this blog, I would love to mention something about every speaker and performer at TEDxLangleyED, but I think it would require pages and pages of blog. I hope you get a sense of how awesome it was. I have much gratitude for the TEDxLangleyED committee, volunteers, presenters, and attendees. #thankyousomuch
