Dr. Randy Pausch didn't hold back when it came to his teaching methods. "Last Lecture" is not only inspiring for someone who is planning on being a teacher but anyone who is around people! The energy he used during his lecture made me want to watch more. The passion he showed toward wanting his students to achieve every goal that they set is truly remarkable.
In his lecture he makes a comment about how you should never set the bar, this statement stuck with me more than some others. The idea of having a person stop when they get to a certain place in their life when they think that is all that needed to be done made me realize how often I stop once my goal is reached. He talks about how you shouldn't stop when one project is done, you should make a good idea, great! It makes you wonder what else could have been accomplished if every time you finished something, if someone would have asked for a little more.
"Have them think they are learning something else", how true is that? Personally my best learning is done when I don't even realize I'm doing it! He mentions the term "head fake" a couple times, a great way to do this is to integrate subjects into one another. One that comes to mind is to have kids think they are doing a art lesson when really their learning something like history. I think a kids mind is best used when they aren't bored into a text book. More teachers should use the idea of making sure they aren't preaching instead of teaching.
Enable, to make able; provide with means or power. In this video he said you should be an enabler. I think that if anyone has children, works with children or if they are around them should be an enabler. How often do you settle for something other than your best? The way he made someone feel like they aren't just another student in a desk makes me want to be as active as I can be once I become a teacher. Seeing the impact he made not only in his personal life but his students life is very inspiring. To have watched one video and feel like I've walked away with a stronger work ethic make me wonder if I could be a teacher like that. Would my future students think so highly of me? I think that his leadership is one of the greatest qualities that shines through in this video. I can honestly say I enjoyed watching this!
Heather,
ReplyDeleteI honestly enjoyed watching this video as well. We made some of the same points. I also found the part about raising the bar very interesting. If there is no bar set, learning and improvement can be endless. I really liked that you said this video made you walk away with a stronger work ethic. That is really how I felt too. It would be awesome to know that we made such an impact on a students life. Making students feel like they are more then just another student sitting at a desk is very important to me. I have had teachers who made me feel this way and those are the classes I learned the most in. You make some great points!
I really enjoyed this lecture as well! I agree that we should all be "enablers" to our students by setting a positive example to all of them. You also made a great point about setting the bar. It was very inspiring to think about how much we can actually do when we push ourselves and strive for so much more!
ReplyDeleteHeather,
ReplyDeleteGood job on this post! You did a good job relating Pausch's lecture to everyday life and life in the classroom!