TED Talk Meets Global Education

I sat down with Professor Sugata Mitra, TED Talk 2013 winner, and current Principal Investigator at the School in the Cloud to discuss how TED Talks have become a major vehicle for learning. Mitra points to the significance of allowing children to “research the researcher” to gain further knowledge on TED Talk presentations. By allowing children to investigate who is speaking and the motivation behind the speech, they become further engaged and inspired.

The Power of the Cloud

Mitra became well known for his 1999 Hole in the Wall experiment that revealed how children could learn by themselves if given Internet access and the ability to work collaboratively. The research led to a winning presentation in 2013, and eventually the formation of the School in the Cloud program – which makes internet accessible to all children around the globe

Identifying Supportive Tools 

According to Mitra, networks rather than technological machines stand out as the greatest changing force facing education today. Technologies should not be defined as objects in and of themselves. The non-material aspect of an interconnected cyber network and the collective power of collaboration is how large scale transformation is taking place. The skill set of comprehending and presenting material to a growing global body of people will become increasingly critical to the success of students in the future. TED Talks can act as supportive tools to the learning process..

Many believe changes in education need to take place, but most are perplexed as to a common voice or pathway. Mitra points to assessment as a possible catalyst – get rid of the old bureaucratic evaluation process and reform in education can begin.

A New Model for Education

At the end of our discussion, I was struck by an answer to a question I posed. I asked Sugata Mitra to share an imaginary title of a TED Talk that might be missing from the educational conversation. The answer was shocking – “Do We Need An Education Anymore?” It was an honest yet troubling title to imagine, but one that requires us to dig deep and ask, “Are we selling our children short with an outdated model of education?”

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