How to save our children from cynicism | Dr. Graeme Mitchell | TEDxRRU

[Music] lately I've been captivated by a simple yet exciting idea it's an idea with the power to transform education it keeps popping up in my dreams sneaking into my sh hours it's even becoming a bit of a third wheel in my relationship our thoughts are profoundly shaped by what we consume think about that for a second every conversation every book every Journey every snippet of media we engage with shapes our future thoughts that podcast at Thanksgiving that social media post last week even that spicy reality show that you might watched last night they're all combining

to influence the thoughts you're having today now with this in mind I become a bit obsessed about curating better inputs because as far as I'm concerned the person with the better flows of information gets better thoughts which is why this next number is so disturbing 46,000 hours that's the total amount of time my 10th grade class spent on social media just last year for 46,000 hours in that amount of time you could walk from Los Angeles to New York coast to coast not once not twice but 34 times but I think it's more than just

a shocking statistic I think it's a window into their world so as a class we came together and we studied their social media feeds and amidst the cute puppies and the viral dances what really stood out was this tsunami of stress inducing content watching over them day after day and then there's this quirky evolutionary trait that we all share known as the negativity bias this helped our ancestors to detect threats hardwiring all of us to intensely remember bad news to stay safe so for the negative stuff our brains are like velcro catching every bit of

dirt but for the positive stuff it's as if we've washed them with Teflon allowing all that positivity to just slide away now during the school day as they step back from their screens these Learners are part of our Institute for Global Solutions program a public school offering designed to empower teenagers to make a difference in our world what began in 2013 is just a modest experiment with only 23 students taking part has since exploded into this Dynamic offering of nearly 200 Learners annually now when they come into our program we give them a test designed

by the late Hans rosling and it gauges their understanding of important Global issues Health poverty environmental challenges their results they always reveal a striking disparity the Learners coming into our program they think the world is totally falling apart even when the data paints a much brighter picture and it's not just our students when I give the same test to my fellow teachers their results are even more alarming but the real eye opener my master students they have the most negatively distorted views of all as their knowledge increases their hope diminishes this disconnect it motivated us

to launch our program over a decade ago and it was all sparked by a single statement following a class discussion on climate change one of my sharpest 15-year-olds stood up and shouted out what's the point we're screwed now this wasn't your average teenage Grumble so the next day armed with a red marker I wrote his words in the middle of the Whiteboard what's the point and then I turned and ask the class what do you think for the next 45 minutes they just unloaded it when the dust had settled one thing was clear these Learners

weren't indifferent or apathetic no they were afraid this realization was transformative despite being up to their necks in Doom and Gloom these Learners were oblivious to the astonishing advancements of the past Century we weren't just dealing with a knowledge Gap we fac something far more are profound a hope Gap there is no doubt that today's teens need they need to wrestle with the world's challenges but it's equally essential for them to study past victories to understand the incredible progress we've made without knowing about these past wins they can't grasp how far we've come all they

see is this daunting Mountain ahead they need to know we are not at basic camp in fact we are well into the climb because as it turns out our world for all its flaws is in a much better State than most think people are living longer healthier wealthier lives they're benefiting from increased safety happiness and access to education and not just in the west but around the world so in our program we have decided to get intentional we have Shan a light on the Monumental Milestones achieved in the past few Generations now I want to

ask you a question what were you up to 20 years ago now I was working on cruise ships flaunting frosted tips to my hair yeah and sporting a very trendy eyebrow ring now thankfully for my wife so much has changed in the time it's taken our current grade 12s to go from diapers to diplomas the world has been transformed the likelihood of a child surviving to the age of five has nearly doubled the rate of extreme poverty has been cut in half recent leaps in genetics renewable energy and artificial intelligence are fueling breakthroughs that were

unimaginable just a few short years ago these These are triumphs of tenacity they should be making headlines every every day but they don't they slide under the radar silent forgotten they are missing the shock factor that compels us to click so unless we give our students the skills to look for the good they will drown in those 46,000 hours of sensationalism as a teacher I'm expected to give my students the tools to grow and learn and expand their Horizons but these days I find myself embracing a broader role it's now also about inspiring hope and

guiding my students to find that hope on their own especially when it seems Out Of Reach with this in mind we have reimagined our curriculum we now dedicate half half of all class time to showcasing progress and possibility now this isn't about sugarcoating reality now it's about leaning into the facts balancing our wins with the challenges ahead and our goal it's always to find that sweet spot avoiding cynicism and complacency while igniting action and the good news it's working it's as if we've hit a refresh button infusing our students perspectives with balanced optimism this in

turn has sparked a frenzy of incredible projects which are genuinely improving our community so at this moment where what we consume fuels fear or hope it reminds me of the tale of the two wolves an old man says to his grandson there is a terrible fight going on inside me between two wolves one is evil greedy fearful the other is good peaceful and honest that they're fighting inside you and inside everyone else too after a moment the boy asks Granddad which wolf will win the old man pauses the one you feed so let's focus on

feeding the right wolf it's time for all of us to prioritize truth and positivity in our daily consumption let's curate our feeds and the thoughts that follow shining a light on progress not just problems together let's embark on a mission to bridge The Hope Gap let's Forge a world where the Silence of success is replaced by the Roar of progress by Leading with facts not fear we are compelling countless Young Learners to engage with purpose and conviction because if our approach has taught us anything except by being intentional by cultivating better inputs by feeding the

right wolf we can redefine our students see the world and we are just getting started thank you [Music]