TED Talks Education

Racism morphs, spreading and hiding behind numerous half-truths and full-blown falsities about where it lives and who embodies it. In this actionable talk, political scientist Candis Watts Smith debunks three widely accepted myths about racism in the US and calls for a nuanced, more expansive definition to support this new era of anti-racist action.

Dirt biking is more than just a pastime -- it's an opportunity to disrupt the cycle of poverty and provide enriching STEM education, says TED Fellow Brittany Young. In this perspective-shifting talk, she shares how her team is working with students and street riders to create safe spaces, transferable skills and community.

What does gender equality have to do with climate change? A lot more than you might think. Empowering women and girls around the world is one of the most important ways to combat carbon pollution and is projected to reduce CO2-equivalent gases by a total of 80 billion tons. Entrepreneur, scientist and TED Fellow Rumaitha Al Busaidi looks at why women are more likely to be impacted and displaced by climate catastrophes -- and explains why access to education, employment and family planning for all women and girls is the key to our climate future.

Colleges and universities in the US make billions of dollars each year from sports, compromising the health and education of athletes -- who are disproportionately Black -- in the name of money, power and pride. Sports lawyer and former NCAA investigator Tim Nevius exposes how the system exploits young talent and identifies fundamental reforms needed to protect players.

Higher education remains rooted in rigid, traditional structures and tracks -- and it's at risk of getting left behind in favor of expanded access, greater flexibility and tailored learning. Educator Tyler DeWitt explains how innovations in digital content and virtual reality are ushering in the future of learning, emphasizing why academia must adapt to this new reality and embrace an approach to education that works with students' needs -- not against them.

Centuries of inequality can't be solved with access to technology alone -- we need to connect people with training and support too, says tech inclusionist 'Gbenga Sesan. Sharing the work behind the Paradigm Initiative, a social enterprise in Nigeria that's empowering young people with digital resources and skills, Sesan details a vision for creating life-changing opportunities for generations of people across Africa.

The abrupt shift to online learning due to COVID-19 rocked the US education system, unearthing many of the inequities at its foundation. Educator Nora Flanagan says we can reframe this moment as an opportunity to fix what's long been broken for teachers, students and families -- and shares four ways schools can reinvent themselves for a post-pandemic world.

Two tiny handprints stamped into a cake. A mirror that shatters without warning. A trail of cracker crumbs strewn along the floor. Everyone at 124 Bluestone Road knows their home is haunted— but there's no mystery about the spirit tormenting them. So begins "Beloved," Toni Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama. Yen Pham digs into the novel's exploration of the dehumanizing effects of slavery. [Directed by Héloïse Dorsan Rachet, narrated by Christina Greer, music by Salil Bhayani].

Sophie Howe is the world's only future generations commissioner, a new kind of government official tasked with advocating for the interests of generations to come and holding public institutions accountable for delivering long-term change. She describes some of the people-focused policies she's helped implement in Wales, aimed at cutting carbon emissions, increasing sustainability and promoting well-being as a national goal.

To move forward in the United States, we must look back and confront the difficult history that has shaped widespread injustice. Revisiting a significant yet overlooked piece of the past, Hasan Kwame Jeffries emphasizes the need to weave historical context, no matter how painful, into our understanding of modern society -- so we can disrupt the continuum of inequality massively affecting marginalized communities.