I am an involved parent. My day revolves around my children. As my eldest daughter took her first steps to school and I committed to being her companion through her education. I got educational toys and books, planned educational outings and did everything in which she would learn to do well at school. With days passing by, I found myself making her cram things for tests or competitions. It made me wonder the true essence of education. My approach was lacking creativity and my daughter didn't seem to enjoy it. I started reading on innovative education and reworked my methods. This research led me to find the true essence of education. I read, pondered and reflected. I found 'critical thinking' is the real essence of education. We as parents, teachers and educators should work on building critical thinking skills in children.
Education is my passion. I have served the board of my daughter's school as the General Secretary of the Parent School Association. This gave me a great exposure into the working of an educational institution. I was the link between the parents and the school authorities. I learnt to resolve the issues and escalate important matters. This opportunity gave a deep understanding of the school management and functioning of the board. I learnt the teachers perspective and it widened my understanding. I conducted a workshop on creative writing for students. I experienced teaching students in school and their reactions to new concepts. I organised 'Parents Thanksgiving' event at the school. My tenure of two years gave me great insights into the Indian school system. I wanted to work towards building critical thinking skills among students. I was also keen to bring international exposure at school level.
My quest with these two goals ended when I found TED Ed Clubs program. TED Ed Clubs program emphasizes on passion - driven education, self - directed learning and independent thinking. It gives voice to the students and celebrates their ideas. It is not competitive rather it focuses on one unique thing that only you can do. It is an initiative to help students around the world to bring TED in their school. I decided to start a TED Ed Club at Sat Paul Mittal School in Ludhiana, Punjab in India.
Being a TED Ed Club leader has empowered me. I have grown and immensely learnt through this course. I am not a teacher by profession but my passion for this course lead me to deliver it effectively. The program has excellent resources. I went through the curriculum and extra exploration references. 'TED Talks' by Chris Anderson, the head of TED, is an invaluable resource for all TED Ed Club leaders and students. This book has many great examples and major takeaways of TED conferences.
Each session was immense learning for me. I created power point presentations for most of the sessions. It helped me upgrade my computer skills. Every class enhanced my presentation and public speaking skills. The course structure is open ended which gives a chance of creativity for the club leaders. I invited a guest speaker, Mr. Shivam Pahwa, an artist to talk about his career. It was an enlightening and motivating talk for the students. I shared my work experience with Google and Leo Burnett with students. Every class brought about fresh ideas and new understanding of different things. It was a delight to have discussions with students. I got a chance to understand their views and perspectives. We worked on various ideas, brainstormed and concluded on the best. In the course of the club, we became a little family functioning together.
The final day of recording was definitely the most memorable day of our club cycle. It was nice to see the students formally dressed for the recording. We had fun moments when I captured the nervous students rehearsing their talks on candid camera. I learnt that by showing confidence in students abilities we give them power to achieve anything they want. I saw a pattern of ideas coming from this new generation. A few students spoke on depression, anxiety and stress. They conveyed a message of the pressures they go through and what the adults can do to make them feel better. I could see a trend among their age group through their talks. I felt the power of this course that if I can see a pattern through the TED Ed Club talks in my class, then how talks of students from all over the world tell us the needs of the young generation. We can truly build a better future if we understand and cater to the needs of the students around the world.
Education is my passion. I have served the board of my daughter's school as the General Secretary of the Parent School Association. This gave me a great exposure into the working of an educational institution. I was the link between the parents and the school authorities. I learnt to resolve the issues and escalate important matters. This opportunity gave a deep understanding of the school management and functioning of the board. I learnt the teachers perspective and it widened my understanding. I conducted a workshop on creative writing for students. I experienced teaching students in school and their reactions to new concepts. I organised 'Parents Thanksgiving' event at the school. My tenure of two years gave me great insights into the Indian school system. I wanted to work towards building critical thinking skills among students. I was also keen to bring international exposure at school level.
My quest with these two goals ended when I found TED Ed Clubs program. TED Ed Clubs program emphasizes on passion - driven education, self - directed learning and independent thinking. It gives voice to the students and celebrates their ideas. It is not competitive rather it focuses on one unique thing that only you can do. It is an initiative to help students around the world to bring TED in their school. I decided to start a TED Ed Club at Sat Paul Mittal School in Ludhiana, Punjab in India.
Each session was immense learning for me. I created power point presentations for most of the sessions. It helped me upgrade my computer skills. Every class enhanced my presentation and public speaking skills. The course structure is open ended which gives a chance of creativity for the club leaders. I invited a guest speaker, Mr. Shivam Pahwa, an artist to talk about his career. It was an enlightening and motivating talk for the students. I shared my work experience with Google and Leo Burnett with students. Every class brought about fresh ideas and new understanding of different things. It was a delight to have discussions with students. I got a chance to understand their views and perspectives. We worked on various ideas, brainstormed and concluded on the best. In the course of the club, we became a little family functioning together.
The final day of recording was definitely the most memorable day of our club cycle. It was nice to see the students formally dressed for the recording. We had fun moments when I captured the nervous students rehearsing their talks on candid camera. I learnt that by showing confidence in students abilities we give them power to achieve anything they want. I saw a pattern of ideas coming from this new generation. A few students spoke on depression, anxiety and stress. They conveyed a message of the pressures they go through and what the adults can do to make them feel better. I could see a trend among their age group through their talks. I felt the power of this course that if I can see a pattern through the TED Ed Club talks in my class, then how talks of students from all over the world tell us the needs of the young generation. We can truly build a better future if we understand and cater to the needs of the students around the world.
