In my CAS project, I had to organize the TOK Exhibition where Grade 12 students gave their commentaries to the Grade 11 classes. The event featured 14 presenters that had to go through 7 TOK classrooms and each pair delivered a 12-minute presentation with a quick Q&A. I had to prepare a complete classroom timetable, group students in batches, notify the DPTs and participants, plan the necessary resources and send a reminder in advance. I also had to gather the feedback forms from Grade 11 students to determine how well the exhibition worked.
LO1 – Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
I realized that I am good at making systematic, well-planned schedules in order to make the event run smoothly. But I know I need to work on improving my last minute tweaks such as dealing with people not showing up for presentations, timing slip ups, etc.
LO2 – Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills
One challenge faced was juggling several people and times when covering every classroom. I developed my organizational and problem solving skills by learning to anticipate overlaps and improvising on the fly with the plan.
LO3 – Initiate and plan a CAS experience
I took the lead, having created the entire event plan, getting the teachers on board, communicating with the 14 presenters and establishing the Grade 11 feedback system. This meant thinking way ahead and dividing work into small tasks.
LO4 – Show perseverance and commitment in CAS experience
The prep took several weeks with follow ups on a regular basis. Whenever there were updates or changes needed to be made, I made sure to keep everyone informed and that nothing was missed. My determination kept things on track.
LO5 – Demonstrate skills and benefits of working collaboratively
Even though I was the leader in the organization, teamwork was a must. With these events I worked with presenters, DPTs, and student volunteers, and it was all about good communication and distribution of tasks to get the event to run smoothly.
The TOK Exhibition was a hard but rewarding experience. The back-and-forth between teachers and students, dealing with many diverse moving parts and handling last minute changes, taught me that prep and coordination is just as important as the presentations. Most of all though I learnt that any event works better when good team work kicks in!
