Every Child Deserves A Champion – Highlights of inspiring TED Talk By Rita Pierson

Share

A rousing call to educators to believe in their students and actually connect with them on a real, human, personal level.

Rita Pierson, an educator for 40 years, once heard a colleague say, “They don’t pay me to like the kids. They pay for teaching lessons and kids should learn lessons. ”
Her response was : “Kids don’t learn from people they don’t like.'”

…one of the things that we never discuss or we rarely discuss is the value and importance of human connection, relationships.
“James Comer says that no significant learning can occur without a significant relationship. George Washington Carver says all learning is understanding relationships.”

Unless there is a connection between teacher, student and lesson, learning becomes tiresome to all involved.
Strong relationships encourage learner exploration, dialogue, confidence, and mutual respect.
“I gave my students a saying to say: ‘I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I’ll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong.
I deserve the education that I get here.” You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

“Every child deserves a champion—an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection,
and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be.”

We can do this. We’re educators. We’re born to make a difference.

You may also like...