Educators With Ideas Worth Spreading

Jos Dirkx is the founder and director of the award-winning 'Girls & Football SA'. She is passionate about gender equality and equality in equal education. In this talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Jos reveals some of the subtle and pervasive ways prejudice about gender roles infiltrates our attitudes, and their harmful effects. She encourages us, not to deny femininity, but to encourage girls to succeed in the same way as we encourage boys. A video of this talk

Dr Ramphele is a South African academic, businesswoman and medical doctor and was an anti-apartheid activist. She was one of the founders of the Black Consciousness Movement. In this short talk from TEDxCapeTownED, she issues a strong rebuke for the passivity of South African citizens and explores some changes that could profoundly improve the standard of education in South Africa. A video of this talk

Laura has worked in the field of educational technology at the University of Cape Town for over a decade. The founding Director of the Centre for Educational Technology, she is currently the Director of the OpenUCT Initiative. In this talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012 she shares her passion for open education arguing powerfully for educational resources to be made accessible and encouraging educators to create and use open educational resources. A video of this talk

Soli is a seasoned broadcaster, award-winning actor, television presenter, director, comedian, playwright, columnist and motivational speaker. In this short talk from TEDxCapeTownED he passionately explains what his children taught him in ABC 123. Honest and inspirational, he calls on parents to be the one person their kids need to believe in them A video of this talk

Sam is the founder of GetSmarter, an online/distance learning organisation. In this short talk from TEDxCapeTownED he lays out the philosophy behind their success rates (over 90% vs 9% at South Africa's largest distance learning institution). He credits their success to splitting the role of administrator ('Mother') and teacher, and having this consistent individual frequently in contact with the students. It's a high touch approach that changes the environment of learning and a model, he says, we learnt from our mothers. A video of this talk

Christoph surprised the bank that offered him a job by asking for a one year deferral so that he could teach maths at Mfuleni High School situated in one of Cape Town's townships. In this amusing short talk from TEDxCapeTownED he talks about the challenges of teaching maths in a township school and lays out a great idea for quickly boosting the number of quality maths teachers in schools like this that need them the most. A video of this talk

Malinga was appointed principal of Sinenjongo High School in Joe Slovo township, Cape Town in July 2010. She and her team increased the matric pass rate at Sinenjongo from 44% in 2009, to 98% in 2010, and 88% in 2011. In this short talk from TEDxCapeTownED, she tells the story of Sinenjongo explaining the philosophy of trust (that has her staff handing over the keys to the school to the pupils to lock up after hours for example) and the subsequent commitment that results from this. A video of this talk

Steve is the Managing Director of an Educational NGO called Living Maths. He teaches ¬4500 students weekly in schools around Cape Town and now recently, the world. He is passionate about sharing knowledge and empowering young people. In this whistle-stop tour through his current experiments with technology and education he shows how to use simple and freely available technology to vastly enhance the teaching and learning experience. A video of this talk

Phadiela Cooper is the principal of a Khayelitsha school, Centre of Science and Technology, the first township school to make it on to the province's list of top 10 schools. One of their students achieved six distinctions. The school is one of three STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) facilities in the Western Cape where pupils with an aptitude for maths and science are accepted. In this amusing short talk from TEDxCapeTownED, Phadiela shares the story of two learners and how they exemplify the motto that has taken hold in teachers and learners alike: No excuses, just success. A video of this talk

Murray is the headmaster of Claremont High in Cape Town, a new Maths and Science focus school, which is partnering with the highly successful Westerford High school. In this short talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Murray describes the benefits of his successful partnership and why it could be key for creating high quality schools to meet South Africa's desperate educational needs. A video of this talk

Failing the Majority: The Need for Higher Education to Face Reality Prof. Ian Scott is the director of Academic Development and a professor and deputy dean at the University of Cape Town. He has been a member of the Ministry of Education's Reference Group on Academic Development since 2000. In this talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Ian calls on higher education to face the reality: Too few capable students are not making it through education, and the success rates are worst among black students, where success is most needed. Higher education has a responsibility, Ian says, to successfully educate the high quality students it has been given, and only fear and a failure to accept reality is holding the universities back from making the changes that need to be made to achieve this. A video of this talk

Leigh co-founded the Tertiary School in Business Administration (TSiBA) at the age of 22. In this personal talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Leigh shares her firm belief that asking big questions is the soul of education and practically explains how they try to make this a reality at the TSiBA. A video of this talk

John Gilmour is the Founder of the LEAP Science and Maths Schools. He was Principal of Abbott's College for five years before leaving to set up the LEAP Science and Maths School. In this deeply personal talk from TEDxCapeTownED, John shares some of his regrets over the conversations he failed to have, and issues a strong call for education the encompasses emotional and cognitive development. His stinging critique of a 'western' of education is amusing and his vulnerable story moving. A video of this talk

Prof. Tim Noakes is a co-founder and executive director of the Sports Science Institute of SA. He is an author, respected academic and A1 rated scientist and has long been acknowledged as an expert in the field of sports and the science of physical exercise. Tim is a Director of UCT/MRC Research Unit for Exercise Science and Sports Medicine (ESSM). In this talk from TEDxCapeTownED, he lays out the importance of belief in exceptional achievement, and points to the role of the coach in fostering that belief. He leaves a challenge with educators to see their role as creating belief in their students. A video of this talk

Richard kicked off his career as a rock n roll roadie, operating lights for bands such as Iron Maiden and Def Leppard. From there he started SA's largest presentation firm, Missing Link and co-founded 21Tanks, SA's first perspective lab. In this irreverent but deeply relevant talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Rich passionately shares his frustration with the business model being pursued by learning institutions and lays out how learning can be structured to actually match the needs of the new world. A video of this talk

Louise is the founder of Symphonia, a group of organizations committed to sustainable transformation in people, teams, companies, organizations and communities throughout the world. Through Symphonia, Louise works to mobilize citizens to become actively involved in addressing the education crisis facing South Africa. In this deeply personal and moving talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Louise talks about her experience as a partner with a school principal, humbly sharing the hard lessons she had to learn. A video of this talk

Xola is an 18 year old male who was selected as a GOLD Peer Educator when he was in grade 10 due to his leadership potential (He says he was already influencing people, just not in a good way!). He lives in Kraaifontein, a community riddled with poverty, gangsterism and crime. Xola grew up in a single parent household with four siblings. In this inspirational talk from TEDxCapeTownED, Xola lays out his personal transformation and the impact on the community around him. A video of this talk

(This talk has a music video by Craig Makhosi Charnock singing in Xhosa in the beginning but the whole talk is in English.) Craig Makhosi Charnock is the founder of UBuntu Bridge, a Xhosa and Zulu language teaching company. In this talk from TEDxCapeTownED 2012, Craig shares briefly about his personal story and the transformative power of learning a language, before treating the audience to a lesson in some Xhosa basics. By the end, his passionate talk has the TEDxCapeTownED audience on their feet, dancing in appreciate of this energetic and amusing talk. A video of this talk