Every year, a handful of lucky 11th graders get the opportunity to present at ISB’s TedxYouth Event.

The event is fast approaching, and now, juniors are getting ready to present their speeches in front of their English class. After that, each class will select its best student, resulting in 8-10 of the best speeches being presented.

If you wish to see last year’s TED Talks, please visit this link:

https://inside.isb.ac.th/tedxyouthatisbangkok/2017-presenters/

Christopher Bell, the High School Technology Coordinator at ISB involved with the event, feels that there are several things students can gain out of the event. “They get to perform in front of an audience, there is a meshing of technology and presenting, and they get to deeply research a topic and provide analysis and solutions based on their findings.”

Furthermore, the event is heavily managed by students. “The TED Talk is almost completely run by students at this point,” Mr. Bell continued. “Students present, Media Studies students record and edit, and students MC it. It is an awesome night to highlight the skills and abilities of ISB Students.”

A few 11th graders were interviewed about their TED Talk topics, which share the theme of “catalysts for change”. With their speeches, students try to persuade listeners to think or act in a different way.

Raphael Romasanta is making his speech about reading the book before the movie.

“I asked myself ‘what is something I do that I feel others could possibly benefit from?’ My parents had always told me to read the book first, and in the long term I feel this benefitted me. I feel like this topic is very relevant in the modern world, especially with websites like Netflix. I hope I get picked for the official presentation.”

Jesse Perkins is going to talk about a new technological advancement called Gene Drive.

“A gene drive is basically technology that ensures a gene will get passed down to the next generation 100% of the time. For example, scientists tested it on mosquitos and found that in the future, they could possibly implement population control and eradicate mosquito-carried diseases such as Malaria. I find this topic very interesting, and hope to inform others about it.”

Darin Sumetanon will be making her speech about the perceptions of race

“I will be talking about how people perceive others to be solely based off of their skin color and where they are from. When I lived in America, I was bullied frequently because I was Asian, and I feel like these experiences heavily influenced me.”

Aarushi Singh will be discussing the underappreciation of arts in India

“I choose this because I am an artist and dancer from India. In India, arts are looked down upon and underappreciated so I thought talking about this topic would be a great idea. I can relate to it and I enjoy doing it. I hope to get picked.”

Like it has been every year, the TEDx Event at ISB will be a great opportunity to learn more about the world from the students themselves. Stay tuned for more information regarding the specifics of the event.

Craig Dawe