Education TED-Ed

What does innovation in education look like? A new program asks educators to imagine it

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The 28 teachers in the first class of TED-Ed Innovative Educators work in Brazil, Indonesia, South Korea — 11 countries in all. Over the next year, each of them will create a project in their school based around TED-Ed concepts.

“Innovation in education involves constant collaboration with colleagues — a total last-minute redo of a teacher’s lesson plan because there was something else out there that he or she just had to try, a change in the direction of a class because the students are driving the instruction.”

“Innovation in education happens when educators ask, ‘How can I make this real, relevant, interesting, student-centric and personalized?’”

“Innovation in education is about more than just technology. It’s about how you can use technology to empower students to become lifelong learners who are agents of change.”

The three teachers quoted here come from the United States, Canada and Indonesia, and from three very different kinds of schools. But they’re all members of the first class of the TED-Ed Innovative Educator program, which brings together 28 educators from 11 countries to learn how to help students, teachers and parents make the most of TED’s free education tools.

How it works: TED-Ed Innovative Educator is a year-long professional development program. It begins with two months of training on how to use video to spark curiosity, how to teach presentation literacy, and how to connect with other schools and teachers around the world to discuss and share ideas. The first class just finished their training. Over the next 10 months, each participant will work on a project that incorporates TED-Ed concepts to have a positive impact on students or teachers in their communities. One core goal of each project: it should be replicable elsewhere.

Educators in the program will get support for their projects, and will attend a TED Conference for free and participate in professional development workshops designed just for them. But most important, they’re taking this chance to think alongside other dynamic educators about what the future of education might look like.

The TED-Ed Innovative Educator program is in closed beta now. Applications for the next class of Innovative Educators will open in December 2015. So mark your calendar, and sign up for updates on the program.

Want to know more? Read the TED-Ed Innovative Educator program basics »

And meet the leaders who make up the first class of TED-Ed Innovative Educators »