Heriani Saputri

Educator/Teacher

I am a full-time English teacher at MAN 2 Pekanbaru, Indonesia, with a strong commitment to helping students develop their communication skills, critical thinking, and confidence in expressing ideas. Through years of experience in both academic and extracurricular settings, I have worked closely with students to support leadership, collaboration, and meaningful discussion. I am particularly interested in creating learning environments where students feel encouraged to explore perspectives, connect ideas, and engage with real-world issues beyond the classroom. As the license holder of TEDxYouth@MAN2Pekanbaru, I aim to bring a culture of idea-sharing into the school community by providing a platform where students and educators can exchange insights, build curiosity, and contribute thoughtfully to broader conversations.

I am passionate about education, especially in how communication and language can help students grow in confidence and express their ideas clearly. As a teacher, I find it meaningful to see students develop not only academically, but also in how they think, question, and engage with the world around them. I am also interested in creating learning environments where students feel encouraged to share their perspectives and explore ideas beyond the classroom. I believe that when students are given the space to think critically and communicate openly, they become more independent, thoughtful, and responsible individuals. Through this, I am motivated to support students in connecting what they learn in school with real-life experiences, so that education becomes something meaningful and relevant to their lives.

For me, a strong idea is something that helps people see familiar experiences in a different way. It does not need to be complex or technical, but it should offer a clear perspective that connects personal experience with a broader understanding. The value of an idea lies in its ability to make people pause, reflect, and reconsider what they previously assumed. In a school environment, meaningful ideas often come from everyday observations. Students and educators experience learning, communication, and social interaction directly, so they are in a unique position to notice patterns that others might overlook. When these observations are developed into thoughtful insights, they can become meaningful contributions that encourage discussion and deeper thinking. Rather than focusing on giving instructions or motivation, I believe a strong idea invites people to think, question, and form their own understanding.

Communications, Critical Thinking, English, Public Speaking, Student Development

My journey with TED began through watching talks that connected simple, everyday experiences with deeper ideas. I was drawn to how speakers could present something familiar in a way that encouraged reflection and new understanding. Over time, I started to see how this approach could be meaningful in education, especially in helping students think beyond memorization and engage more actively with ideas. As a teacher, I often see students with thoughtful perspectives but limited opportunities to express them. This is what led me to bring TEDx into the school environment. I see it as a platform that allows students and educators to share ideas in a structured and meaningful way, while encouraging curiosity, clarity, and confidence in communication.

People don’t always know that I am particularly interested in helping students connect their ideas and see relationships between what they learn and what they experience in daily life. I enjoy guiding them to think more deeply, not just about what to learn, but how to understand it.