TED X -- Chicago

Honored and excited to be 1 of 100 educators invited to take part in this year's TED X event at the Harris Theater for the Performing Arts in Chicago.

Ted x Midwest

TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is a not for profit institution founded in 1984 dedicated to the notion that ideas are worth spreading.

TED

I'm sure you have seen a TED video or two.  If not, I've included a couple of my favorites below:


Gustavo Dudamel Leads El Sistema's Teresa Carreno Youth Orchestra




Jose Antonio Abreu -- Founder of El Sistema in Venezuala




Salman Khan -- Founder of Khan Academy




Sir Ken Robinson -- Do Schools Kill Creativity?




Jon Hunter -- Teaching with the World Peace Game

Connecting Music and Gesture

Albert Gilbert, music director of the New York Philharmonic, demonstrates and discusses the role of the conductor:

Connecting Music and Gesture

The Maestro's Mojo

Interesting article in the New York Times on the art of conducting:

Maestro's Mojo

Northside Prep Chamber Strings

I just received an email with the following pics attached from one of the the yearbook photographers.  A funny bunch we are.

Formal

Silly

Taylor Mali -- What Teachers Make

I'm sure many of you have seen this performance piece by Taylor Mali, poet and educator. It is a powerful work and speaks to what I consider to be one of the noblest professions one can dedicate their life to. 

Whenever I'm in need of rejuvenation, I watch this video:




Taylor Mali has published a book entitled What Teachers Make: In Praise of the Greatest Job in the World.  It's a great read full of a myriad of anecdotes from his time as an elementary school teacher.

Matt Farmer - Lawyer and Parent of CPS Student

Matt Farmer has emerged as one of the staunchest advocates for fighting the powers that be in the Chicago Public Schools system.  As a parent of a CPS student, he is keenly aware of what's at stake for the children of Chicago that depend on public education.

Read this article from the Washington Post to learn more about what is going on right now in the Chicago Public Schools.

Better yet, watch this fiery speech Matt Farmer gave at a CTU (Chicago Teachers Union) rally in May of 2012, putting Penny Pritzker, CPS School Board Member, on the hot seat as he "cross examines" her and the CPS' board policies.

The War on Teachers

Noticed this blog post in draft form that I started in March of 2012.  For whatever reason, I never got to posting it; so here it is:

This is my first post unrelated to MUSIC in education, but education in general.  Public education is in a sad state of affairs; teachers are being demonized by the media and political establishments as the primary reason for failing schools.  I've had the great fortune in teaching for the last 11 years at the #1 high school in the state of Illinois; from my experiences I can tell you first hand that if a student CHOOSES not to learn, a teacher can only continue to encourage in hopes to inspire and motivate a student to care about and tend to his/her education.

Here's an article from the Washington Post:

The War on Teachers: Why the Public is Watching it Happen