One view of the future of education, in the form of a fifth grader from Langley Fundamental Elementary, took the stage at the Chief Sepass Theatre on Saturday afternoon at the Langley Fine Arts school to perform a Vivaldi concerto.
Jefferson Hsu began playing the violin at seven, after his talent for learning music by listening was recognized and encouraged.
Hsu's musical performance was one of several presentations at the annual TEDxLangleyED event, an independent, local version of the bigger TED events that bring together leading thinkers and doers.
One of the featured speakers was Luke Dandurand of the Kwantlen First Nation, who talked about overcoming government policies designed to eliminate aboriginal history, culture and language.
"The trauma is still there, but there are small moments of healing that move us forward" said Dandurand, whose Kwantlen name is Wiyé.nox, "the man of sound."
He said First Nations people have a different view of Canadian history.
"It's 150 years of pain for us, but we are trying to flip that forward," he said.
Other speakers included Brent Hayden, a Canadian former competitive swimmer who talked about "how to find success in failure."
Katherine Mulski, a bilingual instructional coach for the Langley School District, talked about controlling her own workaholic tendencies.
True Pay Na Moo described what it is like to be born in a remote Karen refugee camp, where she lived until she came to Canada with her family at age nine.
A complete list of speakers can be viewed here. Plans call for posting videos of the different presentations.
Photos: The TEDxLangleyED speaker Tim Stephenson tries out a virtual reality demonstration. Wiye'.nox, (Luke Dandurand) of the Kwantlen First Nation. Dan Ferguson/Langley Times
