Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University. He co-founded the Entertainment Technology Center and helped to develop Alice, a program used to teach computer programming. He gained public fame after delivering what would become known as,"The Last Lecture".
Mr. Pausch begins his infamous "Last Lecture" by introducing the elephant in the room. He informs the audience that he has been diagnosed with cancer, but tells them not to pity him, because he is in better shape than them. Mr. Pausch then tells the audience what the talk will consist of:
1.My Childhood Dreams
2.Enabling the Dreams of Others
3.Lessons Learned: How you can achieve your dreams or enable the dreams of others.
Mr. Paush then states what his childhood dreams were: being in zero gravity, playing in the NFL, authoring an article in the World Book encyclopedia, being Captain Kirk, winning stuffed animals, and being a disney imagineer.
"Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted."
Mr. Paush achieved nearly all of his childhood dreams but one, playing in the NFL. Although he didn't achieve this dream, he received things more valuable from his experiences playing football as a child. Mr. Pausch referred to football as a "head fake", which is indirect learning. He says that football is a "head fake" because learning to play football is not the goal. In actuality children who play sports or participate in extracurricular activities learn team work, perseverance, and sportsmanship.
"Anything is Possible"
As future educators we should believe that anything is possible and model this belief for our students. We should encourage them to have dreams and set goals for themselves. Our students should never think that a dream is unrealistic. If they close their minds to possibilities, they will never know what opportunities they may have in the future. "Don't lose sight of the inspiration and the permission to dream is huge."
"Brick walls are there for a reason: They let us show how badly we want things. Brick walls are there to stop the people who don't want it bad enough."
Teachers will face many obstacles, in and out of the classroom. Some students may be: disengaged and unmotivated, overly talkative and unfocused, excessively absent and fall behind in class. As teachers, do we give up on these students? The answer is no. As their teacher we should do everything in our power to work with them and help them figure out solutions that will benefit their learning and help them to succeed in and out of the classroom. "Never give up"
Feedback from Students: "Listen to it, cherish it, and use it"
Teachers should always focus on improving themselves, their instructions, and their classroom environment among other things. We should ask our students for their thoughts and opinions, and let them know that we value their feedback.
"You don't know where the bar should be and you are only going to do them a dis-service by putting it anywhere."
Teachers should not set limitations for their students. Students should not be led to believe that mediocre work is the best that they can do. Educators should continously motivate their students to strive to do their best, even when students produce great work. "Students will just keep going, exceeding expectations"
The Power of Enthusiasm
Teachers should always exhibit enthusiasm in the classroom. Students are more likely to be motivated and interested in learning, when their teachers are interested in learning and teaching. Student's learn more when they are having fun. "The enthusiasm of the teacher will permeate students with a belief in themselves."
Hello! This is a wonderful post. I love the way you quoted Prof. Pausch and then followed up by telling what he said to justify the quote. This video had me thinking about many things, but mostly "what would my last lecture be?" I still can not answer that, but I hope, whatever it is, that it is as powerful as Randy Pausch's. Once again, you did an awesome job and keep up the good work.
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