Find your Edge

Brian Sweeney at TEDxAuckland

Brian Sweeney, founder of NZEDGE.COM

Sweeney utilises a profound scientific metaphor.

Punctuated Equilibrium

Punctuated Equilibriun is about change happening first on the edge of a species. The species enters a process to emerge, evolve and adapt.

Sweeney has used the metaphor to brand New Zealand.

 Sweeney encourages all New Zealanders to know that as they are living on the edge of the world they are contributors to global change. 

Sweeney challenges us to:

1. Know our national and international legends

2. "Find your edge"

I often wonder when and how change will happen in our schools. So many theories and ideas. Classroom teachers working from the ground up. Are we making any difference? Tonight, I am wondering if it is possible, using Sweeney's 'Punctuated equilibrium' metaphor if teachers who are working on the edge are contributing to schools / education being at an emerging stage of change. 

Does this metaphor make sense to any other teachers?

The challenge to 'Find your edge' is important to me. 

I'm tentatively suggesting that based on Tony Wagner's work on Creating Innovators: When a student is learning in a context where play, passion and purpose is evident then resulting from this may be an explicit understanding of the student knowing their edge. The student knowing what it is that makes them different and what it is they can explicitly contribute to their commuity and the larger world. 

Knowing your edge - steps towards innovation?

Knowing your edge - steps towards explicit personal change?

Interestingly:
There is educational research in New Zealand titled On the Edge: Shifting teachers' paradigms for the future