It’s not every day that seventh and eighth-grade students can be in the same company as Bill Clinton, Jane Goodall, Al Gore, and Billy Graham – all of whom have conducted a TED talk. However, that will change next week. For the first time ever, the Benjamin Middle School will host a TEDx event: TEDx The Benjamin School. TED, which stands for “technology, entertainment, and design,” is a set of conferences from all over the world run by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation. TED’s slogan is “ideas worth spreading,” and features speakers whose topics range from technology and science to culture and education. The videos, which are usually limited to 15 minutes in length, are available for free at www.ted.com.

TEDx, on the other hand, are independent TED-like events that can be organized by anyone who obtains a free license from TED and agrees to follow certain stipulations (i.e. creating unique marketing for the event by incorporating the TED brand, filming the event, etc.). Benjamin will hold its TEDx even in the Barker Performing Arts Center on April 29. Dr. Tina James, the Middle School’s academic dean and seventh-grade English teacher, brought TEDx to Benjamin this year.

“Last year, at [the] Pine Crest [Innovation Institute conference], their teachers talked about [how they conducted a TEDx event], and Mr. Crisafi and I went and learned how they did it.”
Dr. James was excited to create a TEDx event for Benjamin not only because of the opportunity it would afford students to share their stories, but for the academic merits as well.
“[TEDx] encourages public speaking [and] is great from a diversity standpoint because we’re all talking about each other’s stories and learning more about each other, especially since our topic, ‘Pentimento,’ talks about journey and process,” explained James.

“Pentimento” means an alteration in a painting, evidenced by traces of previous work, showing that the artist has changed his or her mind as to the composition during the process of painting. For the students, this means creating a talk about the process of discovery through some journey or event. The speakers will have to use data, quotes, and metaphors in their writing. To help her students understand the process and get motivated, Dr James had her classes watch several TEDx talks. This helped the students to begin brainstorming and get a feel for what a TEDx talk should look like.

Benjamin’s talks range from battles with eating disorders to students’ questions about their own identities. Although all of the students in seventh and eighth grade have been assigned a talk, only a select few will be chosen to give their talks and have them filmed. The students’ talks will then be immortalized as they will be uploaded to the TEDx website. To ensure the students won’t miss their academic classes during the event, they have been placed in groups, given a time slot, and will deliver their talks between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on the 29th. In addition, faculty, staff, and members of the TBS community will be invited to the BPAC to hear the speeches.

“This is a community-wide project,” stated Head of Middle School Mr. Charles Hagy. “The best projects involve many members of the community. All the work comes beforehand in class and outside of class, so the day itself is going to be a big day, but it will mostly result as the final work of what the students did in their classes.”
For the students, that work has been significant. The process began in February when they started pitching their ideas. Once their ideas were approved by their English teachers, the students began drafting their stories After they finished their rough drafts, the teachers provided feedback, and the students continued to rewrite, critique, and practice the delivery of their speeches out loud with their peers.

For some students, their topics weren’t readily apparent. “I tried thinking of some cool things that happened to me and my family and it just evolved into the TED talk I have now,” said seventh grader Alex Michelon, who is delivering a talk about how his mother and her family survived a missile attack in Beirut.

For others, they knew exactly what they wanted to write about. “As soon as [eighth-grade English teacher Mrs. Devine] said we had to write about something we overcame, I wanted to write about my grandmother because she passed away last year from cancer,” said eighth grader Chloe Jezerinac.

In writing these speeches, some students, such as Michelon and Jezerinac, have been able to share personal stories and feelings that they wouldn’t have otherwise shared with their teachers and peers. However, they have also honed their English and communication skills along the way. “[Working on this project] has taught me how to be a better public speaker,” said Jezerinac, while Michelon added, “[This whole process of refining my talk] helped me improve my writing.”

To hear some of these unique stories, plan on heading to the BPAC on April 29 – TEDxTheBenjaminSchool is right around the corner.