Need some back-to-school inspiration? Watch this 7-minute TED Talk from Rita Pierson, titled “Every Student Needs a Champion.” This inspiring video about adult/student connection has been viewed more than 10 million times.
Rita Pierson, a teacher for 40 years, once heard a colleague say, “They don’t pay me to like the kids.” Her response: “Kids don’t learn from people they don’t like.'” This video is a call to educators to believe in their students and actually connect with them on a real, human, personal level.
It is trauma-sensitivity at it’s finest.