Teach Teachers How To Create Magic

Christopher Emdin

In this talk Christopher starts describing different types of educators, The first people he describes are teachers that are planning their classes with education theory, lesson plans, how to graduate their students properly,.. 

Afterwards, he describes folks who know the skills about how to teach and engage an audience, that's why he calls them powerful educators. These master teachers, master narrative builders, master storytellers are far removed from classrooms. They got proper preparation in teaching, not in any college or university, but by virtue of just being in the same spaces of those who engage, such as barber shops, rap concerts, and in the black church, They all hold the secret magic to enthrall and to teach at the same time, and  according to him, it's a skill we often don't teach to educators.

For instance, the preacher bangs on the pulpit for attention, and those things are the skills that we need for the most engaging teachers. Emdin complains about teacher's education since it only gives you theory and tells you about standards which are things that have nothing to do with the basic skills that you need to engage an audience or a student. He adds that content and theories with the absence of the magic of teaching and learning means nothing.

According to him, this magic can be taught by allowing people to go into those spaces where the magic is happening. You've got to view those folks that have the power to engage and just take notes on what they do.

 However, there are also teachers who have those skills, get into those schools and are able to engage an audience.

Finally, he assures that if we could transform teacher education to focus on teaching teachers how to create that magic,we would be able to make dead classes come alive, to reignite imaginations and to change education.

This is one of my favorite TED talks , and in my opinion, this is what all the teachers should do for the students to not get bored in class, and to enjoy more being at school.