How changing schools taught me more than any class | Kyle Channell | TEDxColumbusAcademy

Kyle Channell, a sophomore at Columbus Academy, discusses his experiences changing schools multiple times, and his observations of how education is impacting students.

Kyle Channell is a sophomore at Columbus Academy. This is his second year at the Academy having previously attended Olentangy Orange Middle School. Prior to this, he was homeschooled by his mother, Linda, through seventh grade. His mother now has returned to work as a Speech Pathologist while his father works in food purchasing. Kyle is the youngest of three siblings; his two older brothers were also both previously homeschooled and now attend Vanderbilt University in the Freshman and Junior classes. Kyle’s academic interests include creative writing and biology. Other school activities include journalism, debate, choir and student council, along with being a member of the CA football team. Outside of school, Kyle has been performing musical theatre since he was seven. He has also appeared in several films, beginning at the age of ten. Kyle is very passionate about education, having enjoyed such a diverse background in his personal learning experience.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx

Good evening, everyone.

My name is Kyle Channell,

and I'm a sophomore
here at Columbus Academy.

So, I would just like to ask for
a little bit of audience participation.

Who here, at any time
during your academic career,

was attending a private school?

Most of us.

Who here ever attended a public school?

Again, most of us.

Who here was ever homeschooled?

And there's no one.

I was forunate enough
to be one of these individuals.

I was homeschooled
by my mother for nine years,

all the way through seventh grade.

So, I want to raise the question to us:

'What is the best education system?'

Now, there is this stigma
with homeschoolers

as being one of three things:

either super religious,

super conservative,

or just super awkward.

(Laughter)

Now yes, these are true sometimes.

But it's important to remember
that this isn't always true.

So, homeschooling, why?

What did I get out of it?

What was the purpose?

So I want to judge

the different systems of education
that I went through

in three criteria - not three criteria -

based upon what I ultimately gained
and will continue to use

in the continuation
of the rest of my life.

What did I gain from homeschooling?

In homeschooling,

I learned how to be creative,

how to explore,

how to try new things
and not be afraid to fail.

But the main thing that I got out of it
was learning how to think.

I learned how to observe and analyse,

and found the value
of exploring my education.

So, what was my next step?

Well, like my siblings in the past,
preceding before me,

I would begin public school
in eighth grade.

This was terrifying.

I didn't believe that I was ready
for this major change.

So I started attending public school,

and I immediately noticed

these massive social
and cultural differences.

Now, socially I was able to do pretty well
while I was homeschooled.

I made connections,
I was involved in different areas,

I did a lot of extracurriculars.

So I had plenty of friends.

But culturally, there was still
this disconnection.

I noticed this specifically
in the very first class

that I had when I started
attending Orange.

It was a science class,

and very early on in the class,
the teacher told us,

'We're going to start to watch, today,
an episode of Bill Nye.'

Now up to this point,
I had no idea who Bill Nye was.

So you can imagine my reaction
when students start chanting,

'Bill, Bill, Bill, Bill Nye, Bill, Bill!'

I was terrified!

(Laughter)

What is going on? How?

Bill Nye,

(Laughter)

one of the largest figures
in social education

and an ultimate figure
in all of public education.

Most students are familar with Bill Nye,

but up to this point,
I had never been introduced to him.

Now this isn't to say
that because I hadn't seen Bill Nye,

I didn't know how science worked
or I wasn't able to learn.

I just learned differently.

So, I started attending Olentangy Orange.

The building on the left
is the highschool,

and the building on the right
is the middle school.

So, what did I gain?

Let's go back to our idea

of, What is something
I'll use for the rest of my life?

Olentangy Orange taught me structure.

It taught me how to work
with other individuals

and how to take their ideas
and be able to continue.

But the most important thing
that I got out of attending Orange

was a variety.

I met a wide range of individuals.

Up to this point, I was only introduced
to my family's ideas or close relative's.

So I was able to experience
different opinions.

Different people's ideas were now
becoming an influence in mine.

So I loved it at Orange.

I learned a lot.
I made a lot of friends.

But four months into the school year,
my parents raised a possibility to me.

They said, 'You may be able to apply
to Columbus Academy.'

Now I thought to myself,
that's a smart person's school.

I'll never make it there.

But we ended up applying, just to try.

I ended up getting accepted,

and it worked out

that I was going to be able
to attend the next year.

I was jubilant.

Honestly, I never imagined myself
ever attending a school such as this.

So, I changed to Columbus Academy,

and the first time that I noticed

that this was going to be like nothing
I had ever experienced before,

was, again, my first class.

Again, a science class.

Mr Davis' advanced bio course.

A lot of you know what I'm talking about.

(Laughter)

So, I asked Mr Davis a question,

and his answer

changed everything I believed
about education up to this point.

It impacted me so deeply,

and it continues
to influence me to this day.

I asked him the question,
'Can I go to the bathroom?'

(Laughter)

He responded with, 'Yeah sure, go ahead.'

Yeah sure, go ahead? Go ahead?
Like, I can leave the class?

What?

This changed everything
I believed about education.

I was used to having to ask the teacher,

get a pass, and have a timer set

that I can only be gone
from class for three minutes.

So, everything I knew

about the way that school worked,
up to this point, changed.

I realised in this simple moment,
this simple, beautiful moment,

that this school is like nothing
I've ever experienced before.

And I very soon began to realise
exactly how different it was.

It was a combination of what
I have enjoyed from homeschooling

and what I got from public school.

I was free.

I could explore
and be creative and artistic,

yet be supported by the school.

They provided me
with structure and guidance,

which I was able to use
to further my studies.

So, let's return to our question.

What is the best education system?

Now, up to this point,
you may respond: private school.

It's how it worked for him,
and it seems to work for other people.

But my response to this question
is a little bit different.

'What is the best system of education?'
is not a very good question.

The thing we should be asking is,

What is the best education system for me?

Every individual's
academic journey is different,

and we have to be aware of that.

So, what does this mean?

What is it all for?

The main thing that I noticed
throughout my academic journey

were there were two very distinct paths
that students tended to follow.

That of diversity -

which I ended up following,

changing schools multiple times

and being able to experience
a variety of opinions and different ideas.

Or that of adversity.

So, what is adversity?

It's not a typical term
that you'd expect for learning.

Adversity is remaining at one school
for an extensive period of time.

So, why? Why is this adversity?

It's important to understand
the concept of adversity

because if a student
stays in a specific area,

let's say for 12 years of their life,
they stay in a single area,

they are limited by the confines

of whatever that school district or school
has in mind for those students.

Let's take an example of a student
who attends public school.

Let's say they intend to explore the arts;

they want to be a writer
or a composer or a musician.

Now, they have limitations
in their school district,

they're required to take a specific
number of courses in specific subjects.

In public school, there is
a typical focus on STEM courses.

So, what if a student
wants to continue their focus,

what if they've decided,

'This is what I want to do
for the rest of my life'?

It is on the student to then explore,

to find out,

'How do I make this a reality?'

A student must do three primary things.

A student must, A: find time,

B: find connections, find the teachers
that can help you in these focuses,

and C: work very hard

because there are limitations
to what schools can provide to students.

This is the adversity.

If a student is able
to go beyond the limitations

of whatever school they may be attending:

public, private, home or any other,

they are able to be successful
through the path of adversity.

So, what does this mean?

We have our two paths:
adversity and diversity.

So, let's go back over the primary points
of what these two mean.

Adversity is a single system.

This is beneficial

in the way that it allows
a student to be comfortable,

to be established and to be used to it.

But exploration is needed
because there is limited exposure.

You are confined by the things
that the school has provided to you.

Diversity: diversity provides exposure.

You are able to experience a variety
of opinions and ideas,

but you need to be flexible.

It is important for a student
experiencing diversity

to be able to adapt quickly

to whatever environment
they are expected to change to.

So, what does this mean?

We have two paths

that most students end up following.

Granted, there are many other paths

that, frankly, there's not enough
time to delve into.

But the important thing
to take away is this:

no matter what system
of education you follow

and no matter what path you end up taking,

every student has the potential
to be successful.

Because each system
has its own set of characteristics

that will guide the student along the way,

ultimately aiding the student
in whatever their endeavours may be.

Thank you.

(Applause)