Reflections from Speakers and Reporters from The Post Oak School

Maddi Speed
I found TEDx to be an enjoyable experience because of its overall beneficial nature; specifically, the practice in public speaking and the interaction with other schools.  Public speaking is a vital part of any activity one could do because it is something that will follow you wherever you go, so the more practice the better.  The interaction with different schools is good because it allows you to see education and school structure from a whole new perspective.  Because of this TEDx was an enjoyable and beneficial experience.

 Emma Bennett
I very much enjoyed returning to perform a TEDx speech again, this time with my partner, Maddi Speed. I love participating in TEDx because not only does the experience teach you important life skills, but you have the opportunity to get your opinion out in the world. TEDx is one of the only ways kids my age can share and spread a message, and as I love sharing with the world, TEDx has always been an enjoyable and exciting experience for me.

Layton Debes
I had so much fun doing having the experience to do the TEDx youth program at Duchesne because I got to see my friends that went to Duchesne and I got to meet a lot of really nice and inspirational people. I hope to experience this again maybe not as a reporter, but as a speaker because I noticed that they all really stood out to the audience.

Shiraz Ghauri

It seems like so long ago when I was sitting in the commons, and watching a presentation TEDx Youth. Since that moment I was inspired to participate in it, and try to make a change. Let the people know what’s going on outside of the country. So thinking about that I started doing some research on globalization.

In the first few days after signing up, I just did some basic research nothing too serious. But as the Ted day started to get near I just dove in my research. I started reading about events that I had never heard of before, researching about them and one thing led to another and I was completely into it and had around 12 tabs open in my browser. One event that I focused on was the Bangladesh Factory disaster because I thought it was a really good example to support my opinion on globalization. It wasn’t a few days before the Talk when I started feeling nervous and decided to just practice and hope for it to go well.

Finally it was the day to present. Ever so excited and nervous I got on stage to get my word across. In the beginning I was quite nervous, and stumbling with words, but got comfortable fairly quick. Overall I think the event went really well, all the talks were inspiring and interesting. It was a great experience and if I’m able to do TEDx next year, I won’t have any second thoughts about it.

Isabella Neblett

I must say that TEDxYouth was something of a thought provoker. I found myself among a group of people who were utterly passionate about their topics, as I was for mine. Homosexuality is something that people are already highly uncomfortable about here in the United States of America. I live in conservative Texas, where coming out is not exactly encouraged. So, the prospect of homosexual bullying was something that I knew would stir conflict. I recognized and acknowledged people's beliefs and opinions, but that did not stop me from speaking. I was not afraid of what people would come back at me with despite the circumstances. I wished to discuss something horrid that was happening where I live. Yes, atrocities are committed in other places around the globe, but what about the United States?

I wanted the world to know that homosexual bullying is wrong, and I achieved just that. Being a person who has a lot of stage fright was something of a hindrance, but it was worth it. TEDxYouth allowed me as an adolescence to share my ideas with the world. Giving this speech was one of the best things I have ever done in my life, and I wouldn't change it for the world. 

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Thank you to our speakers and reporters from The Post Oak School!