Theme: Rethinking Education - The Forest Through the Trees

To effectively rethink education we first need to understand the bigger picture. This year, TEDxWestVancouverED will focus on what we want education to become without getting lost in the finer details of how we will get there.

Kay Meek Centre for the Performing Arts
1700 Mathers Avenue
West Vancouver, British Columbia, V7V 2G7
Canada

Alan November

Educator + Author + Early Adopter

Alan November - early adopter of tech to expand boundaries of learning for students (1981). May have been the first teacher in the world to have a student project online (database for the handicapped in Boston) in 1984 and possibly the first teacher in the world to use spreadsheets with students (1981) - Visicalc. Author of best selling book, "Who Owns the Learning" and a few others. Presented in every state and province and more than 40 countries. It is a blast time to be alive in the field of education.

Angus Reid

Professional Football Player + Businessman + Speaker

Angus Reid is somebody who found a way to make his dream a reality. He has just recently retired from professional football after playing 13 years for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. The Richmond Born native played in 200 professional games placing him in the top 5 all time for games played by a BC Lion. Throughout his career Angus has been a 3 time all star, 2 time Grey Cup Champion and 8 time team captain. Over the years Angus has become much more than simply a football star but has become a true fixture in the community. Along with his new career as a commercial insurance broker with Reliance Insurance, Angus also writes a weekly newspaper column for the Vancouver Province, hosts a radio show on the team 1040 and is also the host of Global TV's "CrimeStoppers" and "The Monday Morning Blitz" show. He is also involved in many youth charities and tours BC schools speaking out on such issues as ‘Violence Against Women’, 'Bullying’, and the importance of health & fitness.

Brad Baker

Leader in Indigenous Education

Brad Baker is a member of the Squamish Nation and is presently working as a District Principal for the North Vancouver School District. His passion is bringing the history of First Nations to the classroom to allow a better understanding of how we as a society can move forward in a collaborative manner. Brad was the recipient of the national Indspire Guiding The Journey Indigenous Educator Award in Leadership in 2014. Brad believes that conversation on the tough topics of Aboriginal Education will lead to reconciliation which will enhance the learning environment for all learners. GO FORWARD WITH COURAGE.

Brad Daudlin

Educator + Musician

Brad Daudlin - I have worked with children for over 35 years and have been an educator for almost 29 years. Currently my position is Vice-Principal at West Vancouver Secondary School – my seventh year. Before that I spent 22 years working at the Elementary level that included 9 years as an Elementary Principal, 4 years as an Elementary Vice-Principal and 9 years as a classroom and music teacher. I completed my B.Ed. and teacher training at UVIC in elementary with a specialty in music and a Masters in Educational Administration at UBC.

Bridgitte Alomes

Co-Founder of Natural Pod

Bridgitte Alomes - As a thought leader in environmental design for natural play and children’s learning environments Bridgitte Alomes, CEO and Co-Founder of Natural Pod, has supported over 1,000 learning environments, and has engaged 30,000 educators through her workshops and presentations. For the past 10 years, Bridgitte has been dedicated to play-based pedagogy, environments and materials for educators, families and children. The importance of the environment around children, how they interact with it and what is presented to them, is paramount and Bridgitte is on a mission to make non-toxic and natural play synonymous. Her goal with the natural play philosophy is to create an education-changing impact on children, educators, and classrooms alike.

Brooke Moore

Educator + Writer

Brooke Moore believes that every child can cross the stage with dignity, purpose, curiosity and options. Throughout her career as high school Teacher then elementary school Vice Principal in West Vancouver, and now District Principal of Inquiry and Innovation in Delta this goal remains a core professional focus towards making the world a better place. She writes for Education Canada’s blog and says yes to every invitation she can when asked to work with teachers around assessment for learning and inquiry. Brooke’s mindset is one of "what if?" and "let’s try" because it’s just more fun that way.

Dean and Martha Shareski

Educator + Innovator / Filmmaker + Student

Dean is the Community Manager for Discovery Education and excited to have a job that is about connecting people. Dean has been connecting online for over a decade and offline my entire life. He's been privileged to travel and speak to many wonderful people around the world. Dean's blog has been the primary way he has shared his learning and continues to explore the affordances of technology for learning and living. This was the first time Dean was able to share the stage with his recently graduated daughter Martha.

Dr. Gordon Neufeld

Developmental Psychologist

Gordon Neufeld is a Vancouver-based developmental psychologist with over 45 years of experience with children and youth and those responsible for them. A foremost authority on child development, Dr. Neufeld is an international speaker, a bestselling author (Hold On To Your Kids) and a leading interpreter of the developmental paradigm. Dr. Neufeld has a widespread reputation for making sense of complex problems and for opening doors for change.

Dr. Phil Nuytten

Diver + Explorer + Innovator

Dr. Phil Nuytten has devoted his life to subsea exploration. He has logged many thousands of hours underwater as a working commercial diver and as a developer of underwater equipment and techniques. He is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of the modern commercial diving industry and a significant force in the creation of new technology. His goal has been to provide scientific, technical, military and sport divers full access to continental shelf depths without the hazards of decompression, so that humans can explore, learn about, and - ultimately - protect the world’s oceans.

Dr. Sukhi Muker

Doctor of Chiropractic & Optimal Living + Author + Teacher

Dr. Sukhi Muker almost lost his life before he began a remarkable life changing journey from a world of crime, violence and drugs. Experiencing life from outside of the box he’s dedicated the past 23 years to studying health, healing and maximizing human potential. He’s created a post-Newtonian health care paradigm that bridges science, spirituality and human potential, teaching people our innate design to live more radiant, purposeful and powerful lives. He’s a published author (Beyond Body Beyond Mind), global speaker and pushes his personal limits as a competitive ultra-endurance athlete. He lives and practices in West Vancouver and has his innovative Centre’s for Optimal Living in Canada, USA & Europe. His cutting-edge work has touched the lives of thousands of people worldwide.

Frank Wolf

Explorer

Frank Wolf - I have a passion for adventure and wilderness. Over the past two decades I've merged these two loves in the form of lengthy self-propelled wilderness expeditions that I share through film and writing. My work aims to provide audiences with a ground-level perspective of ecological and cultural issues that exist in these areas- not only through our experience, but through the voices of indigenous and other local people who live there. In 2012 I was named one of Canada's Top Ten Adventurers by Explore Magazine, and in 2015 Canadian Geographic named me one of Canada's Top 100 Explorers.

Hannah Boon

Youth Advocate

Hannah Boon is a grade 11 French Immersion student from Sentinel Secondary School. She is deeply passionate about language education and youth advocacy, both of which are interests that have led her to be involved in various organizations. As an active member of the North Shore community, Hannah strives to promote youth initiatives and education by being a regional manager for Kindlers Society, a council member on West Vancouver Community Foundation’s Young Adults Helping U (YAHU), a Secretary for the District Student Council, and the President of a French Immersion tutoring club. After 6 years of learning French and Mandarin, Hannah’s affinity for modern languages and culture has shaped her perspective on rethinking education. She aspires to be a part of the change towards enhancing the learning experiences of youth in our community and beyond.

Ian Landy

Educator + Advocate

Ian Landy - I am Principal at Sorrento Elementary in the North Okanagan Shuswap school district. I have always encouraged the blending of technology and curriculum as a key method of differentiation in order to reach each learner. I have been called an ‘early adopter’ by some, an ‘education maverick’ by others and I have been a strong advocate for project based learning via #geniushour and Self Organized Learning Environments. My blog demonstrates my learnings and reflections each “day of learning” at technolandy.wordpress.com and tweets via @technolandy. I feel that sharing what I do is part of who I am - reflecting on both my successes and failures can help me learn and stay mindful of what I am doing as an educator.

Jennifer Ellis-White

Student + Innovative Thinker

Jennifer Ellis-White is a fourteen year old student from West Vancouver Secondary School. She has just finished her Grade 8 year and enjoyed making the most out of her first year of high school by joining school teams and enjoying all the programs her school has to offer. Outside of school, Jenny is a member of the North Shore Stars Volleyball Club and the West Vancouver Pathfinders.

Jody MacDonald

Photographer + Traveller

Jody MacDonald is no ordinary photographer. For nearly the past decade, she's called a 60-foot catamaran her home as she's sailed to the wildest corners of the planet on a global kiteboarding, paragliding, and surfing expedition that's taken her to over 60 countries. MacDonald, who was born in Saudi Arabia and has been traveling the world since she was a child, documents extreme sports, spectacular landscapes, and everyday scenes that open a breathtaking window on different cultures, from India to Mauritania to Morocco. Jody is an award winning photographer represented by National Geographic Creative. You can see her images in many international publications such as National Geographic, Red Bull, Outside, BBC, Patagonia, Islands, and Men's Journal among others.

Joey Commisso

Comedian

Joey Commisso is 33 year old Stand-Up comic and landscaper. Been living in Vancouver for 6 years. Moving here was my remedy for being diagnosed as bi-polar. Now have been a comic for 3 years. And feel a little closer to being the me I need to be.

Lee Watanabe Crockett

Designer + Author + Speaker

Lee Crockett is an author, speaker, designer, inspirational thinker and the creative force behind some of the most exciting transformations in education happening worldwide today. But, that’s all in a day’s work. In life, Lee believes in creating balance in the reality of a digital present and future. As such, he has cultivated skills in Aikido, studied tea ceremony while living in Japan, as well as studied painting in Florence. He also studies traditional Zen Buddhist music which he performs on a Shakuhachi, a Japanese bamboo flute.

Lisa Domeier de Suarez

Educator / Maker

Lisa Domeier de Suarez is a teacher librarian & make teacher at the Surrey Academy of Innovative Learning(SAIL) in the Surrey Schools in BC, Canada. She is part of a STEM/STEAM team for grades 8-10. Previously, she was a District Helping Teacher for Technology Integration/Learning Commons/Social Media. Her current obsessions are learning space design, makerspaces, inquiry learning, and digital storytelling. In 2013, she became an Apple Distinguished Educator. She is passionate about giving students voice and choice and presents locally and internationally.

Todd Ablett

Educator + Robotics Innovator

Todd Ablett - I was born in a small town in the Rocky Mountains of Canada. I grew up in a time where black and white tvs were still the norm, slide rules were still taught in school and a gestetner was used to make copies. I now teach high school students how to build robots and use them to compete in international robotics competitions with other students from around the world. We program using PID controls, while having discussions with the inventors/engineers of the technologies that we use using over the internet to all the corners of the planet. We live in a time where we need to seriously reconsider how, and even what we are teaching the next generation. I want to be a part of what changes the world.

Tracy Cramer

Early Learning Educator

Tracy Cramer - I am a Kindergarten teacher in Langley that worked as a 911 dispatcher before delving into the world of education. I have 2 of my own littles at home and I believe that just because I teach little humans doesn't mean they can't do big things. I am a long distance open water swimmer and I want to encourage and inspire other educators to the be best they possibly can.