As mentioned in a previous lament, I was walking through the valley of the shadow of the dreaded Extended Essay, chased by the impending deadline, along with every other IB assessments that need to be completed. And I was stuck in a rut about a viable topic to even begin researching and writing my EE on.

But no more! There is a light at the end of the tunnel! I’ve finally finalized my research question, and emailed my online Psychology teacher to ask him to be my supervisor. Yes, I am writing a Psychology Extended Essay.

How did I get here? Well, it started out with me being a complete Youtube nerd, and obsessively following several STEM Youtubers (Vsauce, MinutePhysics, Vi Hart, Veritasium, SmarterEveryDay, SciShow, just to name a few). Just like how Khan Academy has revolutionized how online education works by providing thousands of hours of educational videos, with an algorithm to help learners gauge how much they’ve learnt and find the appropriate resources, these independent creators on Youtube can explain complex concepts in simple and engaging ways, and their videos are available for free for all who has an Internet connection. I can learn anything I want, anywhere, instantly.

One of my most favortite Youtubers of all time is a man by the name of Colin Gregory Palmer Grey, or as he is known on Youtube, CGPGrey. One of my favorite videos of his is simply titled “This Video Will Hurt.” Now if you can disregard the click-baity sounding title, this video takes an obscure yet extremely important concept, “the nocebo effect”, and explains it clearly with Grey’s trademark stick figures.

The best thing about these educational videos? They are meant to only provide an overview of the subject matter, to engage the viewers’ curiosity, to make them want to know more. And that is exactly what I am doing with the nocebo effect. Grey’s video intrigued me, and now I am going to research and write a 4000-word paper on the different factors influencing the nocebo effect.

This, I believe, is the future of education.