Top 10 reasons to rock TEDx with your students

1. Student empowerment

One way that TED Youth speaker Adora Svitak suggests empowering students is to give them a forum to share their ideas, wonderings, inventions, to give them a voice in how the world is shaped. TEDx events provide a global forum for students to share ideas that matter. 

2. Networking

One of the biggest networking mistakes people make is jumping the gun when asking for a favor. One key of successful networking that we need to teach our learners is: Give before you get. TEDx events allow students to share their ideas before asking for help to make those ideas come to fruition from the vast expanse of the TED network. 

3. Global audience

TED, TEDx, TEDxYouth and TEDEd are brand ambassadors that offer your students a brand loyal viewership. At the very least one image, tweet, mention of some kind to the TED network can take a student's idea forward. And how big is that global audience? As of February 2015, over 1,900 talks are freely available on TED, and by November 2012, TED talks had been watched over one billion times worldwide. That stat doesn't include the massive amount of TEDx, TEDxYouth and other TED initiative talks.

4. Skills

Reading, Writing, Viewing and Presenting all have a plethora of skills we are looking for from students. Whilst creating, constructing, rehearsing, revising, presenting and reflecting on their talk students gain and refine so many skills that are within curricula. 

5. College & university applications

University and colleges want kids who have taken the TEDx stage. They are smart, confident and willing to share their ideas with the world. With TEDx events happening in universities and colleges all over the world it's a no-brainer.  

6. Inspirational

Youth talking to youth is the best way to inspire kids. You want students to get excited and inspired by service learning? Have a student who is passionate about it share their experience onstage! 

7. Digital citizenship

Digital citizenship is a hot topic right now in schools around the world. How do we teach kids how to behave online? How do we empower them, teach to be smart and safe, respectful, as well as careful and gentle? Well, one way is to get them engaged online in smart, safe and authentic ways. TEDx talks model the behavior and digital footprint we want students to develop.

8. Crowdsourcing

News reporters reach out to the general public to call in and report events, allowing them to quickly report on things they otherwise could never hope to cover. Journalists and authors often practice this technique – trying to get to the real story by reaching the masses- as opposed to a few. We have watched this happen on social media a lot lately. And students are some of the best crowdsourcers out there. Our learners understand that crowdsourcing taps into the global world of ideas, and helps them work through a rapid design process. TEDx events allow students to crowdsource 'right', taking their need for information beyond their network of friends to a global network of experts, volunteers, hot lines, internet blogs, idea communities, and products. 

9. Insight

Master teachers are those who know their kids. They know them academically, they know if they had breakfast, they know what they do after school on Tuesdays for activities, they know who they hang out with and they know what drives them. After 5 years as a TEDxYouth organizer, I can say that I have truly got to know my students through the process of getting them prepped for the TEDx stage. 

10. ​The family of TED ​

In 2009, TED created a program called TEDx. TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience where x = independently organized. I founded TEDxYouthBIS with only 70 Euros out of pocket and watched it grow over 4 years. Now, I founded TEDxYouth@NIST and am excited to see our second event happen in 2016 . At these events, TEDTalks video and live speakers are combined to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group.
​But that is just the face of TED. 

This winter I went 'home' to Canada for the first time in 15 years. In a local bookstore I happened to have a tall, young man approach me, "Ms. Tosca? Oh, it IS you." he said. Duncan Page was a TEDxYouthBIS speaker in 2014 at my school in Germany. He told me he was taking a year off to explore his passion for music. I was bursting with pride and so happy to see him. I was a kindergarten teacher at the time, but had the chance to effect the life of this wonderful adult. TEDx changes lives- for students and teachers. ​

Top 3 Obstacles and how to tackle them

1. Holy work, Batman

It's a whole lotta work. Really. I have run 70Euro events and 10,000Euro events and they are both a lot of work. So, bring your passion, your love of teaching, your desire to see #youthchangemakers have a voice in the world. Let it drive you and inspire them.

2. Kids

Kids can be kids, right? They forget the meetings, they don't show up for rehearsals, they miss the requirements for the keynotes... they don't cite their sources. And part of your job is to help guide them or find mentors to guide them through that process. To help with that process Jeff Hoffart and I created a free ebook to take you through each step of organizing an event. Before TEDEd, before the newly designed TED site, Jeff and I wanted a clear step-by-step process of how to create an event for kids with examples and inspirations- so we wrote the book and created a complimentary website to help teachers make it happen at their own schools. 
Get the book and access the website. 

3. Volunteers 

Teachers are busy people. SUPER busy people, and time is their greatest enemy. If you want your event to work, make it part of the culture of the school. Apply to host a smaller After School Activity as a TEDEd Club. If you just want to get your community started with TED and TEDx talks explore this free eBook.