Chatham Teacher Takes On TED-Ed Masterclass

CHATHAM, NJ - Chatham High School English teacher Christina McCabe was selected as a panelist at a National TED-Ed Masterclass Showcase in New York City last Sunday.

“It was truly an honor to join the TED-Ed community for such an impactful, inspiring day," McCabe said. "In a very short amount of time, we were able to form connections with other outstanding educators from around the country, all passionate about student and educator voices.”

McCabe shared the stage with Director of Professional Learning at the NJ DOE Tonya Breland and
Superintendent of West Windsor Plainsboro Regional School District David Aderhold.
Panelists had implemented successful TED-Ed programs in their districts, and showcase attendees were leading Educators, TED-Ed Innovative Educators and TED Masterclass participants from all over the United States. TED-Ed Masterclass is designed to amplify teacher voices by giving educators a platform to share their ideas with a broader audience.

McCabe was selected to be a panelist because of her success implementing the Chatham TED-Ed Masterclass, TED-Ed Youth curriculum and the highly successful TEDxYouth@Chatham event last June. Chatham’s program has gained attention from TED leadership because they have observed that McCabe has built a strong platform for student and educator voices, yielding transformative results across the School District of the Chathams and the entire community. As a panelist, McCabe shared her experiences and insights from coaching 15 teachers through Masterclass and teaching more than 100 High School students in the first two years of the program.

A key theme that came out of the Showcase was the importance of relationship-based teaching. Hearing the voices and perspectives of educators beyond Chatham exposed teachers and administrators to the innovative ways educators are engaging students from diverse experiences and backgrounds and giving them a platform to share their learnings with others.

“It was very empowering to hear the personal stories of colleagues from around the country and how they, in turn, applied their own experiences to their classrooms. It reminded me of how important the reflection component of teaching truly is," said Chatham High School teacher Kris Fallon. "We are in the human experience business and without compassion in our rooms, all connections are lost.”

Other Chatham teachers and administrators who attended the Masterclass Showcase included English Language Arts Supervisor Heather Rocco, Washington Avenue School teacher, Denise Gangaware, and TEDxYouth@Chatham organizer, Amanda Feeman.

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